Olga and Mash stood frozen as they watched the way Ritsuka fought. His blows were brutal yet incredibly efficient. Every punch and elbow strike, coated in magical energy, released shockwaves powerful enough to punch holes through the monsters and crack the surrounding concrete walls.
"Wow… Big Brother is so strong!" Rikka exclaimed in awe, her eyes sparkling as she watched her brother smash through the enemies.
"Keep going, Bro! Beat them until there's nothing left!"
However, in the middle of the fight, Ritsuka suddenly noticed something. He saw Mash standing still, completely captivated, her guard wide open.
"Mash! Don't space out!" Ritsuka shouted sharply, his voice snapping her out of it.
"Focus! Protect your Master and the Director!"
Mash flinched in surprise.
"Y-Yes, Senpai!"
Remembering her duty, Mash immediately took position. She spotted several skeleton monsters trying to sneak toward Rikka. Without hesitation, she charged forward and swung her massive shield.
BOOM!
The shield strike shattered the skeleton monster into countless pieces.
Ritsuka finished off the last monster with a spinning kick, then landed smoothly near Rikka. His breathing was a little heavy, but he looked satisfied.
In another dimension, Kagaya observed Mash closely.
"That girl… her shield is enormous, yet she swings it as lightly as a feather. Is that because of magic?"
"She fights like a steel tank," Koko commented, letting out a low whistle.
"And her outfit… tactical but sexy. Still, it looks like some kind of strange knight's armor."
L tapped his chin, analyzing.
"With a weapon that large and such minimal protective clothing, it would be difficult for a normal human to move that fast. Is she a genetically modified human, or is this the effect of something else?"
Back on the battlefield, Ritsuka looked at his sister sharply.
"Rikka," Ritsuka said seriously.
"You need to pay more attention to Mash. She's your Servant, and you're her Master. You need to give her instructions, not just watch like you're in a movie theater. Got it?"
Rikka puffed out her cheeks.
"Ehh… But Big Brother can handle it anyway. You're strong and smart, so I can just leave everything to you, right?"
"Wait, so she's the Servant Ritsuka mentioned earlier?" Koko asked.
"Seems like it—and his sister is the Master," Kagaya replied.
"But that's strange," L said.
"What's strange, L?" Kagaya asked.
"As far as I remember, there's no legend or historical figure named Mash. Is she really a Heroic Spirit?" L questioned.
"We'll ask him later when Ritsuka is alone so he can answer properly," Koko said.
Ritsuka let out a long sigh. He raised his hand, ready to flick Rikka's forehead again—but this time Rikka was faster, immediately covering her forehead with both hands.
"No! Don't flick me again! It hurts!" Rikka protested.
Ritsuka lowered his hand. His gaze softened, but his tone remained firm.
"Rikka, listen. I won't always be able to stay with you. One day, we'll be separated, and you'll have to walk on your own. You need to start becoming independent now. This world is dangerous."
Rikka shook her head vigorously.
"No! I don't want to be separated from you! I don't want to be independent!"
Suddenly, Rikka hugged Ritsuka tightly around the waist.
"Besides… you promised you'd take care of me forever! You can't break that promise!"
"Wow… Ritsuka," Koko's voice sounded both impressed and disturbed.
"It seems you need to explain your past with your sister in more detail. For her to be this obsessed with you, you must've done something drastic, right?"
"Preliminary diagnosis: Dependent Personality Disorder," L stated flatly.
Ritsuka sighed again, this time much heavier.
"I regret spoiling you too much back then… Just because you're my only little sister," he murmured softly, full of regret.
Ritsuka's gaze shifted toward Olga. Unconsciously, he noticed Olga staring at Rikka with a strange look—a mixture of envy and jealousy. But the moment their eyes met, Olga immediately turned her face away haughtily.
"Hmph, spoiled brat," Olga scoffed quietly, but loud enough to be heard.
Rikka's ears rang. She released her grip on Ritsuka and glared at Olga fiercely.
"What did you say, you old hag?!"
"Old hag…?! How dare you speak to your superior like that, you barbaric woman!" Olga snapped back.
Before World War Three could break out, Ritsuka clapped his hands loudly.
PLOK!
"That's enough! Both of you, stop it!" Ritsuka ordered firmly.
"We're moving on. And it looks like Mash has already finished clearing the area."
Ritsuka pointed at Mash, who was now standing straight beside him, her shield clean of bone fragments.
"Hello, Director, Master, and Senpai. The area is secure. I've returned," Mash reported formally.
"Fou!"
The small white-furred creature leapt off Rikka's head, climbed back onto Ritsuka, and once again settled comfortably on top of his head.
Rikka and Olga turned their faces away from each other in irritation.
"Let's go," Ritsuka said.
They had only taken a few steps when Olga stopped them.
"Wait! Before we continue, there's something that needs to be taken care of."
"Huh?! What now? Are you looking for another fight?" Rikka complained.
Olga ignored the provocation and touched her communicator.
"Romani, are you still there?"
"Yes, Director. I'm standing by," Dr. Roman replied.
"Good. Register Ritsuka Fujimaru as a Formal Investigator of Chaldea. Immediately."
"Eh? Understood. I'll process it right away," Roman answered, sounding slightly surprised by the initiative.
"Alright, done. Now let's move on," Olga said with satisfaction.
Rikka gaped.
"Huh? You stopped us just for that? Was it really that important to register him now?"
"It's extremely important, idiot," Olga snapped as she started walking.
"If I don't register him now, his status will be illegal. Chaldea's bureaucracy is extremely complicated. If we delay it, it'll turn into a nightmare later. Do you want your brother to be detained as an intruder after saving us?"
Rikka fell silent, not fully understanding but nodding anyway.
"O-oh… I see."
"Well, as an arms dealer, I often deal with cross-border bureaucracy. And that woman's right—bureaucracy is a pain. Better to handle it early," Koko commented in agreement.
"Is it really that difficult? I usually have my children and Amane handle administrative matters, so it feels easy to me," Kagaya said innocently.
"Bureaucracy isn't difficult when you have absolute authority or competent subordinates, Kagaya," L added.
They continued walking through the city's ruins. However, at the rear of the group, Olga suddenly stopped. Her communicator blinked again.
"What is it now, Romani?" Olga asked in a low voice.
"Director, there's something strange I'd like to confirm," Roman said hesitantly.
"Could you ask him… how many magic circuits Ritsuka actually has?"
Olga frowned.
"Magic circuits? Is there a problem? Are they below average? Don't tell me he has no talent at all?"
"No, that's not it… If he had no talent, there's no way a monster like Zelretch would take him as a disciple," Roman countered.
"Hey! Watch your mouth! He's a legendary mage!" Olga scolded hurriedly.
"S-Sorry." Roman cleared his throat.
"So, here's the thing… In Ritsuka's old data from his initial registration, he was recorded as having nine magic circuits. Exactly the same as his sister, Rikka. That's the standard number for ordinary humans with slight magical potential."
Roman paused dramatically.
"But… my current system is detecting that he has forty primary magic circuits. And their quality is… extremely high."
Olga came to a complete stop.
"W-What…? Forty?!" she whispered in shock.
"Are you sure? Maybe the detection equipment malfunctioned because of the explosion?"
"No, Director. I recalibrated it three times. The results are the same," Roman said firmly.
"A jump from nine to forty is biologically impossible unless he underwent circuit transplantation or extreme bodily modification—unless the Wizard Marshal was involved."
Olga stared at Ritsuka's back as he walked ahead, disbelief filling her eyes.
Forty high-quality circuits… That was on par with a Clock Tower Lord.
Ritsuka, sensing her gaze, turned around.
"Director? Why did you stop? Is something wrong?"
Olga hurriedly turned off her communicator.
"Ah, no… It's nothing…"
She wanted to ask—but Ritsuka's instincts moved faster than her words. His eyes caught a flash of light in the distance.
"MASH! PROTECT THE DIRECTOR!" Ritsuka shouted.
Without hesitation, Mash jumped in front of Olga and activated her shield.
WOOSH! BAM! BAM! BAM!
A rain of glowing red arrows slammed into Mash's shield with tremendous force, triggering successive explosions.
"Kyaaah!" Rikka screamed in panic, hiding behind her brother's back.
"Big Brother, what was that?!"
Ritsuka didn't answer. He immediately grabbed Rikka, lifted her up, and slung her over his right shoulder like a sack of rice.
"W-Wait, Bro! At least carry me princess-style! Don't treat me like a sack of rice!" Rikka protested, pounding on his back.
Ritsuka ignored her protests. He leapt quickly and landed behind Mash's protection. There, Olga was sitting stiffly, her face pale from the intensity of the attack.
Ritsuka set Rikka down beside Olga, then crouched in front of the Director.
"It's okay, Director. Stay behind Mash. I'll protect you."
The second wave came—this time with twice as many arrows, bombarding their position relentlessly.
CLANG! BOOM! CLANG!
Mash grit her teeth as she endured the onslaught. Her feet sank into the asphalt under the pressure.
Ritsuka looked up, his sharp eyes analyzing the enemy's attack pattern.
"Mash! We move as soon as this barrage ends! Countdown!"
Mash nodded firmly.
"Yes, Senpai!"
Without warning, Ritsuka hoisted Rikka onto his right shoulder again and swiftly grabbed Olga around the waist with his left hand, lifting the Director onto his left shoulder.
"W-Wait?! Ritsuka?! What are you doing?! Put me down! This is improper!" Olga screamed, shocked at being treated like cargo.
"Be quiet and hold on—I'm going to move very fast!" Ritsuka barked, channeling Mana into his legs.
"3… 2… 1… NOW! MASH, RUN!"
The instant the arrow rain paused for reloading, Ritsuka burst out of the dust cloud at inhuman speed, carrying two girls on his shoulders as if they weighed nothing.
Mash sprinted after him, guarding their blind spots with her shield.
They ran at full speed through the ruined city.
"Ritsuka! We're far enough! Put me down now!" Olga shouted, her face bright red from the humiliating position.
"Not yet, Director! We need to get at least five kilometers away from that point!" Ritsuka refused without slowing down.
"That person's firing range is insane!"
"Big Brother…" Rikka asked in a trembling voice as she hung over his shoulder.
"Do you know who attacked us just now?"
Ritsuka formed a meaningful thin smile, his eyes sharp with vigilance.
"Yes… I know him very well," Ritsuka replied, his breathing steady despite running with such a heavy load.
"He's extremely annoying as an enemy… and even more annoying as an ally—but his cooking is incredibly good."