Jayr POV - ??? - ???
The annoying alarm rings loudly, aburptily waking me up while making me groan, roll over, and smack the clock with a practiced hand as silence once more falls.
I open my eyes and sit up, taking a brief look at my surroundings.
The room is small but clean, a teacher's apartment furnished with simple comforts: a desk cluttered with graded papers, a coffee machine that had seen better days, and shelves full of English literature textbooks.
I get up and immediately blink blearily at the notes on my desk that say: Lesson Plan – English Class 1-A.
For a moment, I stare, disoriented, confused, my mind is completely empty, but then I smile faintly as something deep within my whole being tells me what I have to know, and with a strange kind of absolute confidence, I mutter, "Ah. I see how it is."
I am no longer disoriented, not anymore. I somehow know that I've done this before, I've worn this mask before.
A teacher's schedule, a stack of assignments, the weight of responsibility over a class of students.
I'd lived through this kind of life before, I'd taught in one of the most prestigious academies, trained future heroes, even taught Japanese elementary school once.
Sliding back into this role is as easy as breathing; still, there is a gnawing sense of wrongness in the pit of my stomach.
Something vast, something very important is missing: my memories. Some kind of veil is pressing against my mind, suppressing what I know I should clearly remember, but for now, I decide to play along.
At this point, I move on with my routine, something so deeply ingrained in me that I don't even have to think about it.
I start by going through a series of physical exercises pushing my body to the limit, but once more feeling that strange sense of wrongness to the point that for a brief moment, I get a strong headache, but not strong enough to make me grunt or wince in pain, and have a strange static feeling while my vision also gets affected and distorted like those old television.
However, just as quickly as it has appeared, it disappears and moves on, continuing with my training.
After that, I walk into the bathroom to take a shower, brush my teeth, and so on, before I step back into the room and start to prepare for the day.
I pull on a suit, adjust the tie, and check myself in the mirror. The face staring back is mine, and the records also say that: Jayr Pucci, English Teacher, 24 years old. But still something feels off.
At this point, I chuckle and say, "Heh. Back to being a teacher, huh? Guess it never gets old."
I grab my papers and walk out of the apartment, and as expected, the school itself is right in front of me, a few meters away from the apartment complex, and its name can be clearly seen from here: Tsukimihara Academy.
The name seems to be strangely familiar, but just as I try to focus on it, I once again feel that brief but strong headache combined with the strange static feeling and distorted vision, but again I'm easily able to endure the pain, and soon everything fades away as if nothing happened.
At this point, I focus more on the Tsukimihara Academy, which, as the name implies, is a Japanese school, showcasing its various buildings, a large playing field, a swimming pool, and parking areas.
Without wasting any more time, I walk toward the still mostly empty school, as it is still early for the students to arrive, so I take this opportunity to explore the immense campus a bit more.
The central area's main feature is a large, tan-colored playing field, likely used for sports activities, classes, or recreation.
Surrounding this field are several buildings, all of which have a consistent architectural style: cream-colored structures with dark grey roofs.
The buildings are all multi-story and are spaced apart, with landscaped areas and pathways in between.
To the left of the playing field, there is a group of buildings including a swimming pool complex.
To the right, there is a separate cluster of buildings with a parking lot adjacent.
Smaller structures, like outbuildings, administrative offices, are interspersed among the main school buildings.
The landscaping consists of neatly trimmed lawns, trees, and shrubs, enhancing the orderly and organized feel of the campus.
At this point, I stop and decide to walk into the main building and continue with my routine before the students arrive.
The halls are familiar in that way only Japanese schools can be, lined with shoe lockers, sun streaming through tall windows, the smell of floor polish mixed with chalk dust.
On my way to the staff room, a colleague greets me while bowing politely, "Good morning, Jayr-sensei."
In response, I bow back and smoothly reply, "Good morning." Before I casually walk into the staff room and hear the Math teacher complaining about grading.
Suddenly, the gym instructor slaps me on the back, and the home economics teacher offers me fresh rice balls. It is all too… normal, too clean.
Again, I smile, playing my part, I brew myself coffee while politely asking my colleagues if they also want some, then I mark a few mock assignments, and skim the English textbook the school has so thoughtfully provided.
I read, "The cat is on the mat." Something simple, easy, almost insultingly so, and again the headache hits again, stronger than before, with the same static feeling and distortion.
At this point, I have had enough of this interference, this thin but very oppressive veil pressing over me, and so, with the same innate confidence I've felt this morning, I simply will it to stop, and it does, but something cracks under the weight of my will.
In an instant, some new awareness hits me, and I understand my current situation a bit better, even if my complete memories still elude me, but in the end, I simply decide to focus back on the textbook and immediately apply some change to it while thinking, 'I will still teach them with enthusiasm. If there is one thing I refuse to half-ass, it is teaching. Even if the classroom is mostly a construct, the students still deserve the best I can offer them.'
While thinking that, I wait for the students to arrive and for class to start, while feeling a strange but intense thrill buzzing under my skin originating from something deep within me.
Time quickly passes, and soon the bell rings announcing the start of the classes, so I go over my teaching materials one last time as I keep waiting, as the first hour of the day is usually reserved for the homeroom teachers.
When it is finally time for me to teach my assigned class, I walk out of the staff room and head toward my destination, Class 1-A.
I stop in front of the door and wait until the bell rings once more, and my colleague walks out of the classroom.
I politely greet her, and I step into Class 1-A. The classroom buzzes with the sound of backpacks unzipping and desks squeaking across the floor.
I take a brief look at my students before casually walking up to the desk and saying in fluent Japanese while placing my papers on the desk, "Good morning, everyone. I'm Pucci Jayr, your English teacher. Let's begin."
Dozens of eyes turn to me, young faces, their brown uniforms crisp, notebooks open, all ordinary students, or so they seem.
At this point, I lean casually against the front desk, waiting until the chatter simmers down, and when the last laugh trails off, I grin and start my lesson, "Alright, welcome to English class. Now, I know what you're thinking... Grammar. Ugh. Right? You've probably heard that word and immediately thought of red ink, boring worksheets, grammar nazis, and silly arguments over commas."
I pause to ensure that I've their attention before I let out a dramatic sigh and continue, "But here's the thing: grammar isn't some dusty rulebook meant to ruin your texts to your friends. Grammar is just… the toolbox for making yourself clear."
I pick up the chalk and scrawl two sentences on the board:
Let's eat, Grandma!
Let's eat Grandma!
Turning back to the class, I raise my eyebrows and explain in a humorous tone, "See the difference? One of these sentences makes you a polite, hungry grandchild. The other… makes you a deranged cannibal. And all because of one tiny comma."
The effect is immediate as a ripple of laughter rolls through the room.
After letting them be for a few moments, I continue, "That's the power of grammar. It's not about being fancy. It's about making sure people understand what you mean. Today we'll start small. Just some basic sentence structure. You need three things for a complete sentence: a subject, a verb, and a complete thought. Like this..."
At this point, I turn back on the board and scribble quickly: The dog runs.
I turn back to the students, pointing at the sentence with the chalk and explaining, "Bam. Subject: 'The dog.' Verb: 'runs.' Complete thought: got it. But if I just wrote 'the dog,' that's not a sentence. That's just me awkwardly pointing at your pet."
While saying that, I mime pointing at an invisible dog in the corner and end by commenting, "Not so helpful."
I casually toss the chalk onto the ledge with unnatural precision and smile, "So, here's the deal. Grammar isn't about making you sound like a robot. It's about giving you control over your words. And once you've got that control, you can bend the rules, play with style, even break the rules on purpose... Because then you'll know why you're doing it."
I clap my hands once and say, "Okay, let's get rolling. Who can give me a complete sentence about how you feel on the first day of school? And no, 'tired' by itself doesn't count."
A hand goes up in the third row; it belongs to a tall guy with shaggy black hair and a nervous look on his face, the kind that immediately tells me that he isn't completely sure of his answer but is still brave enough to attempt.
Seeing that, I nod encouragingly and say as I quickly check his name, "Kojima-kun, right? Go for it."
The student clears his throat and stammers a little, "Um… uh… me… um… is… tired?"
He immediately grimaces, already half-expecting laughter and indeed a couple of snickers bubble up from the back, but I raise my hand like a stop sign and say, "Hey. Respect your classmate. We're all learning here."
I then smile back at the young man and say, "Okay, almost there. You've got the right idea, but let's tweak it a little. Instead of 'me is tired,' try 'I am tired.' You feel the difference?"
The young man nods quickly, relief washing over his face as he repeats, "I… I am tired."
I give him a thumbs-up and say, "Perfect. There you go... Subject, verb, complete thought. Full sentence." Making the kid relax in his chair.
Before I can call on anyone else, a hand shot up near the window, and looking at who the hand belongs to, I freeze for a moment.
She is a young woman with aqua eyes and long, wavy black hair in a two-sided-up hairstyle, which consists of part of her hair being made into twin tails tied with black ribbons, while the majority hangs loose.
She is wearing the standard female school uniform of Tsukumihara Academy, which she sometimes accompanies with a long red coat.
I instantly recognize her; she is Rin Tohsaka, one of the most famous characters of the Nasuverse.
(Image Here - Rin Tohsaka)
My grip on the chalk tightens as the faint cracks in the veil pressing me widen even more, and more memories surge in my mind, the battles I've fought, the enemies I've slain, my friends, my family.
The headache and the static feeling with distorted vision intensify even more, and I feel I'm about to completely shatter the veil pressing me, but with the force of my will, I calmly hold it down and continue with the lesson, smiling gently as I say, "Let's hear it, Tohsaka-san."
Rin Tohsaka sits up straighter and says, without hesitation, "I feel excited to learn new things this year."
Hearing her answer, I nod, and with a smile on my face, I reply before explaining, "Excellent. Textbook example: subject, verb, and a complete thought with some extra flavor. Notice how that sentence doesn't just tell us she feels something, but also why. That's how you add depth."
I then glance back at the board, pick up the chalk, and use it to tap against the board while saying, "See, grammar isn't about stripping your sentences down to the bones. It's about building them strong enough to hold whatever you want to say."
Like that, I continue the lesson while holding down the pressing feeling of the full resurgence of my memories, with only my will as the headaches and the static feeling intensify with each passing second.
In the the, the bell that announces the end of my class finally rings, and I steadily give a few more words to the students before leaving the class to the math teacher who is waiting outside.
Then I hasten my pace and quickly climb up the nearby stairs until I find myself on the empty rooftop as my hands shake and my head throbs.
At this point, I stop holding everything down, and the veil pressing on me fully breaks down as countless images crash through me. I finally remember all of it.
Light bursts from within me as the Spiral Cosmo briefly floods outward, making the simulation seem to briefly buckle under the weight of my Divinity, but that is only an impression, as this place is more than capable of holding this level of power, and still, it did affect this reality a bit as the whole building is now quaking.
With that instantaneous realization, I quickly restrain my Spiral Cosmo once more, as I don't want to carelessly announce my presence to any other contestant that may have already regained or is about to regain his or her awareness.
The Random Competition has already started, and I am currently within SE.RA.PH is taking part in the Moon Holy Grail War.
At this point, I can't stop myself from chuckling softly, shaking my head, and muttering, "Hehehe... Of course. Of all the possible settings in the whole Omniverse, it had to be this one. One of the most dangerous and lethal. I'm in the freaking Nasuverse."
The Nasuverse is a collection of fantasy works by the master Nasu Kinoko, ranging from visual novels, games, and light novels, all of which occur within the same multiverse.
Among them are: Tsukihime, Melty Blood, Kara no Kyokai, and the legendary Fate series.
The Nasuverse is infamous for its complex lore and broken powers to the point that at times even the author themselves have no idea what is going on.
I calmly walk up to the fences that outline the rooftop, the artificial sky above shimmers faintly, too perfect, too sterile, and I even notice codes ripple at the edges if I look closely enough.
Then I murmur, "A digital cage. A tournament dressed as a school. A war for the Grail hidden behind chalkboards, classes, and textbooks."
Indeed, the Moon Holy Grail War of the Moon Cell originates from the games of the Fate/EXTRA series and is based on the ritual that took place in Fuyuki in the anime Fate/Zero, and Fate/Stay Night.
However, it is vastly different than the original, as it starts with 999 participants that are pared down to 128 Masters who do battle in a tournament format.
All participants have had their souls digitalized to enter the Moon Cell, and in the case of disqualification or loss, their lives are forfeit due to the deletion of the data comprising their souls.
At this point, a grin formed on my face as excitement was bubbling until I muttered, "A real Holy Grail War… on the Moon. I can't believe I get to see it up close. Experience it even!"
Dangerous? Absolutely. Fatal? Almost certainly. But thrilling? More than anything. I mean, we are talking about a Holy Grail War! This means I get to meet and interact with many of the fan-favorite Servants and Masters.
I try to contain my excitement while thinking, 'I can't wait to see what Servant I'll be able to summon...'
But then I quickly restrain myself before I quickly go over everything I know about the current phase of this competition, the Preliminaries.
At the start, the participants are gathered together in this school, the Tsukumihara Academy, and they have all of their memories suppressed except for certain special people like Leonardo B. Harwey and Julius B. Harwey.
They are placed into the roles of students or other staff members with different memories; they go through the same lessons, subjects, and content every day.
Everything feels artificial, as the participants have trouble with memories and the general feel of the school.
Those who figure out the strangeness are able to regain their own memories.
Those very talented and powerful, like Rin Tohsaka, are able to do it quickly, while some barely manage to make it.
Direct interference with people without memory during this period is against the rules.
People close to figuring it out get crushing headaches and feel static that affects their vision as the illusion breaks apart.
The overbearing strangeness only increases as people eventually start to disappear slowly over time, reducing the number of students each day.
Only those who make the decision to look beyond the accepted and progress are allowed the right to exist.
By recovering themselves, they are allowed to enter the main tournament.
Overall, thirty percent manage to overcome it, allowing them to move on to the next stage of the preliminaries, while any who remain in the school are disqualified.
The final part grants the potential Master an Effigy, a substitute for a Servant, and tests their capabilities.
They are pitted against another Effigy, and if theirs should happen to be defeated, as with the defeat of an actual Servant, they will be disqualified.
Those who manage to win will become one of the 128 competing Masters and will be granted a Servant.
At this point, I tear my gaze away from the sky and focus on the playing field below, watching the students moving around while thinking, 'The Preliminaries will completely end in 3 days... This means that I've quite a bit of time to observe the other people trying to locate the other Champions and possible Masters. While I can't actively interact with them or even sabotage them to prevent their participation, I could still be able to gather quite a few useful information simply by knowing who my direct competitors are...'
Currently, the only other Champion that I'm absolutely sure of is going to take part in this Random Competition is the Champion of Chaos, Aletha Longbottom, the friend and comrade who fought by my side against the Champion of Power and his armies.
She is an absolutely powerful Magic User who was even able to completely obliterate Tzeentch, the Chaos God from the Warhammer 40k Universe, while still keeping some of her trump cards hidden.
But, at the very least, I don't have to worry about her playing some dirty trick or try backstab me as she simply isn't that kind of person, after all, I spent almost a year with her and at this point I know her well enough to fully trust her, even more so as my Divinity as God of Justice makes it impossible for anyone to hide their true nature.
Regarding the other possible Champions, I can only make a guess using what I know for sure.
Let's start with what I know for sure: I've killed the Champion of Evolution and taken out the Champion of Gravity and the Champion of Void, my now friends Nikita and Goza.
Goza told me that he has eliminated the Champion of Matter, so that one is also out.
Zandeer, the Champion of Decay, gave up on continuing and gave me his Blessing, and I know that he has taken out the Champion of Fire and the Champion of Fusion, our friend Jouichi.
Then there is Nellika, the Champion of Reality, who was defeated by Aletha, making the number of Champions that are for sure out of this Holy Grail War to 8.
Lastly there are Paul and Reviael, who were respectively the Champion of Metal and the Champion of Order, that have already been defeated and their Blessing taken, together with the Champion of Power killed by Paul and the Champion of Yang who I know was killed by the Champion of Power thanks to the data we have recovered from one of the destroyed Cryptonians makes the number of eliminated Champion jump to 12.
Ah, wait! I almost forgot that scum, the Champion of Wood, who was killed by the Champion of Destruction, this makes the number rise to 13, a little less than half the overall number of Champions.
Taking out Aletha, this leaves the Champions of Darkness, Light, Death, Dream, Earth, Balance, Space, Yin, Water, Time, Infinity, Growth, Magnetism, Restoration, Destruction, Creation, Karma, and Life, a total of 17 possible enemies; however, I find it difficult to believe that no other Champion has lost after all this time, so the number is likely much less and considering the 3 Random Battles that took place, I think the numbers are around half that making the number of enemy Champions equal to 8 or so.
Reaching this point, I immediately realize, 'Oh my... Only less than 10 Champions remain... This means that this Moon Holy Grail War is going to be much fiercer than ever. It is very possible that at the end of the Moon Holy Grail War, the final winner of the Battle Across the Omniverse will emerge...'
Coming to that conclusion, I fully realize the gravity of the situation and that I have to fully focus on my principal objective, to win.
I turn back toward the door that leads back into the main building and start to walk toward it while thinking, 'If I remember well, which is very likely considering my enhanced mind, as soon as a contestant successfully passes the Preliminary and summons his or her Servant, they are removed from here and sent to a new Reality Marble identical to the school used in the preliminaries. Now, I wonder what I should do? It is better to quickly pass the Preliminary and move on to the main part... Or should I wait until the last day to pass?'
It is clear that both decisions have their clear advantages and disadvantages, but after thinking about it for a few moments, I opt for waiting until the last day, as it will not only allow me to observe the other possible contestants some more, but it will also help me stay a bit more lowkey and avoid useless attention.
Reaching that conclusion, I leave the rooftop and step into the main building, and the next moment, the intercom crackles, "All teachers, please report to the staff room after classes. Repeat. All teachers, please report to the staff room after classes."
Hearing that, I put back my mask and calmly walk toward the staff room, but on my way there, I hear a group of students discussing in a worried tone.
"What do you guys think that was? An earthquake?"
"It is possible, as the whole building shook..."
"No way! It was way too short to be an earthquake... Maybe the building has some issue..."
"I don't think so... The building is almost new..."
At this point, I realize that this is the result of my previous outburst and feel a little guilty about it as I've clearly scared quite a few people, but then the perfect solution comes to my mind and, for a moment, I'm unable to hide the smirk on my face.
I quickly hide my smirk by turning it into a gentle smile and approach the students before reassuring them, "You don't have to worry about that. I've received news that the earthquake was caused by a gas leak in the utility room in the basement, but now everything is fine."
Hearing that, the students immediately relax and thank me before walking away, and once again, a smirk forms on my face, 'I've always wanted to use the gas leak excuse. And I did it in the Nasuverse!'
With a lighter mood, I continue to head toward my destination, ready to play the part of the funny, handsome teacher for a little bit more.