But this simple childhood happiness did not last long. After a barely adequate bento lunch, the homeroom teacher suddenly brought news that afternoon classes were canceled.
Most of the students were happy to hear they would not have class, but a few cared about the reason.
Rin Tohsaka was one of them. She went to the office intending to ask the teachers, but at the door she overheard their conversation—about the children who had gone missing in recent days.
Because of King of Conquerors Iskandar's actions yesterday, Caster's workshop had been destroyed. The commotion that caused attracted outside attention, and the heinous crime of murdering children was thus exposed to the public.
One of the missing students from Fukayori No. 1 Elementary was among the victims, and the culprit still had not been caught by the police.
The killer operated in Fuyuki City, and this school had quite a few students from Fuyuki. For the sake of their safety, once the principal of No. 1 Elementary received the notice about a child‑kidnapping murderer in Fuyuki, he decided to cancel the afternoon's classes.
In the days to come, nerves would be on edge. There might even be consecutive cancellations until the culprit was caught, or until the bad impact faded from public memory.
Listening outside the office, Rin began to tremble. She thought of the deskmate who had not come to school today. Kotone also lived in Fuyuki.
Worried about her friend, Rin went to the pay phone on campus, dropped in some coins, and called her friend's house. The call was answered quickly, but what came through was a woman's anxious question.
"Kotone, is that you?"
"I'm not Kotone. I'm Rin Tohsaka, Kotone's classmate. She didn't come to school today, so I wanted to ask what happened."
Rin's answer clearly disappointed the woman.
"Kotone's missing. She disappeared yesterday. We're looking for her too. If you have any news of her…"
After the call ended, Rin walked away in a daze. As a mature little adult, she liked to imitate grown‑ups and watch the news.
So she knew something about the kidnappings in Fuyuki. She just had not imagined that kind of disappearance would strike a friend so close to her.
"There's no class this afternoon. Let's go play soccer on the field."
Back in the classroom, some kids who could not go straight home started talking about what games to play instead. Compared to their carefree mood, Rin was heavy with worry.
"What's wrong?"
Through the Crystal Palace, Broly noticed Rin's Happiness Value dropping and could not help asking.
"Kotone… Mm, it's nothing."
People with troubles always want to talk, but if the person they're talking to is someone they think would only be burdened by it, they'd rather keep it to themselves.
Rin was more mature than other kids. She saw Broly as a seatmate who needed looking after, not someone she should scare with talk of kidnappers and murderers.
Broly: "…"
If it was nothing, then why was her Happiness Value dropping? Every point that vanished was food he might never get to eat. How could a glutton who cherished food not be anxious?
But since Rin really did not want to talk, Broly had no idea what to do—until the school gates opened for those who could go home. When Rin slung her schoolbag over her shoulder and left, he followed.
Rin had decided to go to Fuyuki to look for her friend. It was reckless and impulsive, but the thought that her friend might die was unbearable. Burdened with worry, she never noticed the little tail trailing behind her. At the ticket machine on the train platform, she bought a ticket, passed through the turnstile, and boarded the train for Fuyuki just as it pulled in.
Broly had no money, so he did not buy a ticket. Relying on his height, he crawled under the rail of the ticket gate, completely unnoticed by the nearby attendant, and got onto the same train.
Once on board, the quiet time gave Rin a chance to think. Fear stirred in her chest again—after all, she was only seven.
She might act like a little adult most days, but she and her family both knew the truth. Faced with the possibility of confronting the kidnapper who had taken her friend, someone who might be a child‑murderer, how could she possibly…
"Huh?"
A pair of small shoes appeared by her feet. She looked up and gaped when she saw her little deskmate.
"What are you doing here?"
She blurted out.
"I followed you."
Broly answered honestly.
"Why?"
Rin did not understand.
"You're not doing well. I'm worried."
Broly was concise, leaving out the crucial detail about her Happiness Value plummeting.
Rin: "…"
She did not know what to say, but the panic and nervousness had been somewhat washed away by the boy's unexpected appearance.
For the sake of this small deskmate who needed her, she forced herself back into her reliable, mature-little‑adult mode. Putting on a stern face, she began lecturing him.
"Kids are supposed to go straight home after school. You shouldn't wander around outside. It's dangerous."
"Aren't you a kid too?"
Broly asked back.
"I'm different. I'm going to find a friend. And I'm stronger."
Rin's face reddened as she defended herself.
"Oh."
Broly nodded, accepting her explanation as fact.
His ready acceptance actually left Rin a bit at a loss.
"You're not going to argue with me at all?"
"Are you lying?"
"No."
Her voice wavered, but she puffed out her chest.
"Where do you live? I'll take you home first when we get off."
She changed the subject.
"I live over there."
On the train, Broly pointed in the direction of the Fujimura estate.
"I mean your actual address."
Broly just gave her a blank look.
"Don't tell me you don't know your own address."
"I can find my way back on my own."
He really had not memorized the address, but he remembered the direction.
It was not far at all—nowhere near as far as his home on Planet Vampa was from the Vampa spider caves.
"So you're lost?"
Rin felt her head start to hurt. First the old deskmate had gone missing, and now the new deskmate had followed her out here and lost his way home.
"I'm not lost. I can find my way back."
Broly repeated.
She did not believe a word of it. "Finding his way back" was just stubbornness—a boy not wanting to lose face.
"I'm going to look for my friend Kotone. When we get off, find a policeman and have him help you get home."
"What's a policeman?"
"You don't even know what a policeman is… It's fine, when we get off I'll show you…"
She stopped.
A child her age, spotted by a cop in a situation like this, would probably just get marched straight home.
"Forget it. You're coming with me to look for my friend. Once we find Kotone, I'll take you home. But you have to listen to me. If we run into danger, when I tell you to run, you run."
Taking a friend along on an adventure was not smart, but in Rin's eyes, this was her only choice.
She could not turn herself in to the police, and she could not leave this obviously helpless seatmate alone in some strange place.
"Okay."
Broly nodded obediently. He had no objections to the conditions she laid out in advance.
Thus the young Rin and young Broly formed a little duo, ready to embark on a big adventure in Fuyuki—right there on the train.
After they got off, Rin led Broly along the route from the station to her friend's house, searching as they went.
Based on Kotone's mother's description, and using her "Great Detective Rin" powers of deduction, she concluded her friend must have been snatched on the way home.
But she was not really a certain famous detective who only looked like a child. Facing a maze of streets and buildings, she had no idea which area was more likely to be the kidnapper's hunting ground.
All she could do was a clumsy exhaustive search, using herself as bait.
Of course, that bait had a little tail—Broly—following right along behind.
"I can't find her… I just can't…"
From broad daylight to the setting sun, Rin felt the helplessness of being a child.
"Broly?"
Just as she was about to push on blindly, she noticed her little tail had disappeared.
She panicked. One deskmate was already missing—was she going to lose the new one too, right from under her nose?
But when she doubled back to the previous street, she found that Broly had simply stopped in front of a takoyaki stand, entranced.
"Do you want some?"
Seeing that he hadn't vanished, Rin breathed out in relief. Looking at the hungry light in his eyes, she walked over and asked.
"Yeah."
The smell of takoyaki had his stomach rumbling.
"Then I'll treat you."
Rin fished out her little wallet and bought two orders.
They had walked a long way; she was hungry too.
They went inside, found seats, and waited for the takoyaki.
"I'm going to the bathroom. Don't follow me."
Feeling a sudden urge, Rin stood up. When she saw Broly move to trail after her, she blushed and snapped the warning.
He sat back down obediently.
The flush of running water sounded.
When Rin had finished washing her hands and was about to come out, the magical compass hanging at her chest began to react.
It was a birthday present from her father, able to detect magical creatures and phenomena. It was meant to help her avoid hidden dangers. She had not expected it to react now.
Following its needle, she poked her head out the back door of the takoyaki shop—and saw a young man bathed in sunset light, smiling brightly as he walked past a nearby alley, holding the hands of several blank-faced children.
"Good kids, come with big brother. Big brother's going to take you to play a really fun game."
Ryunosuke Uryu, wearing the hypnotic magic bracelet his Servant had made for him, had gathered another handful of adorable kids.
Ever since he'd met his "blue‑bearded lord," inspiration had been bursting from him nonstop.
Because of the police dragnet, he still did not know that his "art" had been ruined by Rider.
Now he smiled brilliantly, already thinking of his next creation.
He had already made a handmade human piano. That had indeed been art.
So next should be furniture. Perhaps a handmade human piano chair that would make a child let out a beautiful wail when someone sat down on it.
This person is wrong. There's a magical reaction on him!
Rin hesitated at the back door, then chose to quietly follow. She did not go back to get Broly. Compared to dragging another child into tracking a likely kidnapper and murderer, leaving her new deskmate safely in the shop to eat takoyaki was more responsible.
"Here's your takoyaki."
Five minutes later, the shop owner set two plates of steaming takoyaki in front of Broly.
Staring at the piping hot balls, he swallowed. Rin was really slow.
The person he'd locked onto with his aura was getting farther and farther away. Who knew when she'd be back?
So…
It should be okay to eat the portion his wife had bought for him, right?
Thinking that, he reached for a toothpick and speared a takoyaki ball.
Round and plump, it was hot and fragrant in his mouth.
One bite, and the octopus inside was delightfully springy.
In short, it was delicious.
Watching the other customers pour sauce, Broly imitated them, adding sauce to his own.
While he savored the takoyaki, Rin carefully followed the suspected child‑killer down a flight of stairs.
She hid behind a stack of boxes at the corner. Only when the man left again did she slip into a derelict basement bar.
There, she found several kidnapped children—and among them, her missing deskmate.
"Kotone… Kotone…"
No matter how she called, the girl remained glassy‑eyed and unresponsive.
"She's under a magic hypnosis."
After a quick check, Rin determined her friend's condition.
"Oh my, where did this kid come from?"
Just as she was about to sneak out and look for help, the way back was blocked by Ryunosuke, who had come back without her noticing.
"If it weren't for my lord's familiar, I wouldn't have noticed someone tailing me. But lucky me, it's a cute little kid. So, what are you doing here?"
"I—I just got lost."
The sudden turn left Rin breaking out in a cold sweat. She tried to bluff and made a break for it.
"Since you're here, why don't you join big brother for some fun? Parties are only fun with lots of people."
Ryunosuke blocked her way and reached out to grab her. With the hypnosis bracelet, he thought it would be child's play to subdue a kid. But the moment he took her hand, a jolt ran up his arm and he reflexively let go.
"You've got static on you?"
He stared in surprise. Not being a magus, he had no idea that his bracelet's magic had collided with the magic in the girl's body, and that resistance had produced a shock-like reaction.
"Don't climb on the bar. If you fall and break something, that would be bad. Raw materials for art should stay intact."
After some back and forth, he managed to grab her again. But as Rin forced herself to stay conscious, she pushed her magic into the bracelet with brute force, shattering it and blasting him back.
With the hypnosis tool broken, the children in the bar woke up. Finding themselves in a strange place, some burst into tears at once.
"Rin… What am I…?"
"No time to explain. We have to go. Everyone, come with me!"
At Rin's shout, the dazed children instinctively followed her.
But as she opened the door to flee, a sea demon dropped from above.
"A familiar?!"
The grotesque monster made her go pale as she stumbled back.
"Good thing I've got backup."
Ryunosuke crawled to his feet, feeling relieved, and pulled out a small knife from his pocket.