Chapter 45: No Broadcast Tonight
The cold mountain wind blew through, and the sky no longer bore any trace of wyverns.
The sunset, red as wine, spilled onto the ground before slowly sinking beyond the horizon.
Night fell much earlier in this valley.
"Ug..."
Mash suddenly opened her eyes and found herself lying on a flat grassy field.
Why am I here...?
"————?!"
Her previous memories suddenly came rushing back—Carmilla had attacked Senpai. And then...
"Senpai, Sen—!"
Suddenly, a figure appeared in front of Mash.
It was Ethan.
"Senpai?! Why are you here?!"
"Shh."
Ethan raised a finger to his lips, signaling Mash to stay quiet.
"Everyone is resting."
He whispered.
"Everyone?"
Mash looked around and saw that the whole group was resting around a central campfire.
Martha and Johanna were leaning against Tarasque, their eyes closed as they rested. Tonbi was perched on Tarasque's horn, sleeping soundly.
"Mm... Father... I've gotten stronger again... I ate more than you... Heh..."
Mordred was lying on Tarasque's armored back, mumbling in her sleep.
Even the mysterious man, Emiya Kiritsugu, was fast asleep, leaning against a rock.
In theory, Servants didn't need to sleep.
But as long as they retained memories from their time as humans, going without rest for extended periods would lead to mental exhaustion.
A fatigued mind could affect their overall stats, so if given the opportunity, Servants would still choose to rest.
Ethan subtly pointed toward a large tree nearby, signaling Mash with his gaze to head there.
"Johanna has reinforced the barrier around us. Normal monsters and most Servants won't be able to break through, so there's no need to worry."
Ethan picked up a dry branch near the fire and tossed it into the flames.
The campfire crackled softly.
The sound of burning wood echoed in the air.
Silver moonlight sprinkled across the grass, while the occasional chirping of insects resonated faintly in the night.
"I'm sorry, Master. It looks like I fainted."
Mash lowered her head before Ethan.
"I'm still too inexperienced. I couldn't protect Senpai properly."
"No, thanks to you, I'm still here."
Ethan shook his head lightly.
"If it weren't for you, I might have been poisoned. That stuff sticking to a normal human like me—I'd probably die a hundred times over and still not be enough."
Even a Demi-Servant like Mash couldn't withstand it. That meant Carmilla's magecraft was terrifyingly potent.
Perhaps it was particularly effective against Mash because, in life, Carmilla had used all kinds of poisons to torment the young girls imprisoned in her castle.
"And after that... what happened?"
Mash asked, puzzled.
"Carmilla was captured by Johanna, but we couldn't get any information about Jeanne Alter from her. Mordred and Tarasque—after it woke up—drove back the enemy Archer and the swarm of wyverns. After that, we all retreated here and decided to rest for the night."
Ethan explained briefly.
Unfortunately...
The wildlife in this area had all been scared off, so the group could only survive on wild berries for now.
They should have stocked up on rations while they were still in the city.
But medieval France was already a land of scarce food supplies.
The soldiers here survived day by day, eating nothing but black bread mixed with sand.
In fact, their food situation was now even worse than the British.
Hearing that no one in the group had been seriously injured, Mash let out a sigh of relief.
"Mash, make sure to thank Johanna. She used a miracle to heal you."
Ethan reminded her.
The system provided Ethan with the minimum mana required for Servants to remain present.
However, additional energy had to be drawn from Chaldea—either through Command Spells or by using Mash's shield to establish a "base camp."
But the most efficient method was still summoning a Servant with Territory Creation.
They could draw mana from the ley lines and transfer it to their allies.
And with her abilities, Johanna not only possessed Territory Creation but could also heal her comrades.
A perfect support unit.
DPS units could always change, but Support was eternal.
Merlin… Castoria… Waver… Tamamo… Skadi…
Sigh, when will he ever pull them from gacha?
"...It's Ruler-san..."
Mash looked toward Johanna with deep gratitude.
But shortly after, she lowered her head in dejection.
"Senpai, if only I were a little stronger..."
"Mash."
Ethan interrupted her.
"You don't need to rush. Just go at your own pace."
"This journey might be longer and harder than anything you, me, or even Chaldea could have imagined."
"If you push yourself too hard, it could backfire."
"Stand proud, you're strong."
"…Thank you, Senpai."
Hearing Ethan's words, Mash's expression softened.
"Fou~ Fou~~~"
Suddenly, from within the bushes, a small creature leapt onto Mash's shoulder, startling both of them.
"Fou?!"
The white-furred creature, resembling a squirrel, immediately snuggled up to Mash affectionately.
"A-ha-ha, don't be like that, Fou… Where have you been hiding all this time?"
"Fou!!!"
"Oh, so you were hiding nearby?"
"Fou… Fou~~~"
"You even distracted a few wyverns? That's amazing, Fou!"
"Fou, Fou!!!"
Listening to Mash and Fou chat so happily, Ethan felt... completely lost.
Mash had seemingly achieved Grand-level Fou Communication, while he understood absolutely nothing.
"Fou!!!"
Suddenly, Fou jumped onto Ethan's shoulder, sniffed him a few times, then made a dissatisfied expression.
"Fou…"
It even raised its tiny paw and patted Ethan's cheek.
"…Ayo, what do you mean by that? You wanna pick a fight with me?"
One of the Beasts of the planet, huh? Alright then, let's settle this today!!!
"Haha."
Unexpectedly, Mash giggled.
"Senpai, you and Fou are really close, aren't you?"
"Do we look like that?"
"Fou!!!"
Ethan and Fou denied her statement in perfect unison.
"Eh? You're not?"
Mash tilted her head in confusion.
"Oh? So, Shielder-san has already recovered?"
A gentle voice rang out.
A young girl draped in a resplendent papal robe was approaching.
"Johanna? Did we wake you?"
"Not at all, I just wanted to check on the barrier. I'm not disturbing you two, am I?"
"No, not at all!"
Mash quickly waved her hands.
"Oh, right, thank you, Ruler-san, for healing me. I'm truly grateful."
"No need for formalities. We are all Servants of Master—it's only natural to support each other."
Johanna stepped closer to Ethan, her gaze quickly drawn to the small creature beside him.
"Awawa, what an adorable little thing!"
"Fou!!!"
The moment Johanna approached, Fou immediately showed its displeasure, leaping off Ethan's shoulder and hiding behind Mash.
"...Did it just reject me?"
Johanna blinked, slightly surprised.
"Ehm... Fou usually refuses to get close to anyone besides me and Senpai."
"Please don't take it personally, Ruler-san."
Mash quickly reassured her.
Watching the harmonious atmosphere between the two, Ethan let out a silent sigh of relief.
Good.
His biggest concern was the possibility of conflict between Servants.
"Master."
Suddenly, a deep voice called out from behind.
It was Emiya Kiritsugu.
"Apologies, did we wake you?"
"That's not the issue."
Kiritsugu spoke calmly:
"Earlier, I rescued a deserter who had been captured by wyverns. I managed to extract some information from him."
"Information?"
"Yes. According to what he told me…"
Kiritsugu gazed into the distance, his eyes as cold and sharp as a blade.
"Orléans is no longer what you'd call a city."
"That place… has become a den of monsters."