Tohka was strong—there was no doubt about that. She wielded her sword as naturally as breathing. But she had no technique, no martial arts. Everything was brute force and instinct, and that wouldn't defeat Scathach, a monster of martial arts.
"I want to see it... use all your strength."
So unless Scathach felt threatened, she wouldn't attack.
She had her pride as the ruler of the kingdom of shadows. She wanted to know just how far Tohka's power could go.
"Hm, Nia said it doesn't matter if I use all my strength... but..."
Grooooll~
A sound like a beast's roar echoed, and Tohka couldn't help touching her flat stomach...
"I'm sooo hungryyyy~..."
Puffing out her cheeks cutely, tears gathered at the corners of Tohka's eyes. She lowered her sword, which dissolved into fragments of light, just like the Throne of Annihilation.
"I'm hungryyyy~..."
It couldn't be helped. Ever since her boyfriend—the cook—had been bound to the Throne, there was no one to take care of her stomach. She had gone days without eating anything decent, and her hunger only kept growing.
"Saber?! What are you doing, Saber?!"
"I'm sooo hungryyyy...."
"Saber!"
Throwing a tantrum like a child, Tohka turned her head toward Rin, then collapsed onto the ground like a puppet whose strings had been cut.
Drool spilled from her mouth. It was both pitiful and oddly funny...
Just like a child throwing a fit...
[Tehee~ Tohka-chan ran out of fuel...]
"What?!"
Fortunately, Rin understood what Nia meant by running out of fuel. She seriously began to doubt what kind of Servant she had obtained and felt like she'd been scammed...
"....."
Seeing this, Scathach lowered her spear as well. All fighting intent vanished.
It was pointless. Her opponent was rolling on the ground, pounding it and demanding food.
"Tohsaka Rin, does this mean you surrender?"
Raising her fan, Luviagelita blinked in amusement. At first, she'd been a little worried about Tohka. Her stats were higher than Scathach's. But seeing her now, she was just a very cute child. She'd worried over nothing...
"Of course not! Saber! Get up, you have to fight!"
Grooolllll
Unfortunately for Rin, the only response was the growl of Tohka's stomach.
At that sight, Luviagelita and Scathach couldn't help looking at each other and sighing at the same time.
It was so embarrassing...
"Can I take that as my victory?"
"Of course not! Come on, Saber! Get up. When this is over, I promise you a feast..."
Winning and becoming Luviagelita's subordinate—Rin would never accept that. So she used bait. Tohka's eyes regained a bit of their sparkle, but sadly, her stomach disagreed. Her body went limp like jelly, collapsing to the ground with her rear raised, waiting for a kind soul to save her from misery.
Tch, tch...
"Let's end this. How about a draw?"
Rin's cheeks turned red as she looked away in shame, but there was no other option. Without Tohka, there was no duel, and she didn't want to become Luviagelita's subordinate.
It was obvious she had many Servants, but unfortunately not all of them were obedient. Saber was useless, Foreigner didn't listen to her, Rider was a coward, and Caster was black-bellied.
As for Avenger, it was better to forget about him entirely...
"...."
Luviagelita didn't respond right away. She raised her fan and thought.
Under normal circumstances, she wouldn't accept a draw. She'd make sure to ridicule Rin the Gorilla instead.
But now, there were more important things she wanted to know...
"I'll accept a draw if you tell me what's going on... Where did you get these Servants?"
That was right. Ever since Tohka appeared, Luviagelita had seriously begun to doubt the origin of Rin's Servants. It was obvious Rin couldn't summon more than one Servant. There was something else going on...
"Well..."
Rin hesitated. She knew she could trust Luviagelita as a rival and a teammate, but that didn't mean she couldn't be betrayed.
"Caster-sama, are you sure I can talk about you?"
[If that's what Rinrin-chan wants, you can. We don't mind. And Rinrin-chan shouldn't be afraid—we'll be there to protect you no matter what....]
Smiling lazily from her Throne, Nia replied. She didn't care if Rin leaked all their information. On the contrary, she hoped she would. After all, if the enemy knew nothing about them and didn't put up a proper fight, the "performance" wouldn't be satisfying, right?
The more they fought, the better...
Only then would they be worthy of proper training...
"Alright...."
Rin, of course, knew none of this. She calmed herself and took a deep breath.
"Fine, I'll tell you. But first, we need to find food for Saber. It's too miserable to see her like this..."
Pointing at the shameful Servant on the ground, Luviagelita had to agree. Even she felt it was too pitiful...
Servants didn't need to eat, so why was Tohka screaming and crying for food?
Luviagelita couldn't understand it. Still, since Rin agreed to explain everything, she reluctantly accepted.
"But... how do I get food? I brought money with me..."
She'd been summoned without warning. Rin didn't have her wallet on her, and she was worried. Without food, she couldn't order Saber anyway...
Unfortunately, she said that out loud, and Luviagelita immediately took interest.
"Money? Hohoho, as expected of the poor Tohsaka Rin. Such a thing isn't necessary for gorillas..."
"What did you say?! Sausage curls!"
If there was one thing Rin hated more than anything, it was being flaunted money at. As a low-budget noble, it had always been her Achilles' heel. That was why she constantly clashed with Luviagelita—a rich girl who didn't care about spending money on pure nonsense...
"Not only are you a gorilla, your hearing's bad too. What can be done? Saber, don't worry. I'll treat you to the greatest feast of your life...."
"R-Really?!"
Showing off an exclusive golden card for the wealthy, Luviagelita stroked her curls confidently. Even Tohka, who was starving to death, jumped up in excitement and, without hesitation, ran to Luviagelita's side, her beautiful eyes shining...
That behavior didn't match her earlier tantrum at all...
"Of course it's true. As long as you obey me, you can eat as much as you want~~ hohoho."
"Um, um!"
Patting her head like a good girl, Luviagelita's smile deepened. Tohka looked so adorable to her...
"You!"
Rin couldn't take it anymore—watching her Servant being taken right in front of her eyes...
"In case you've forgotten, this is another world! Your dirty money doesn't mean anything here!"
This was another world. Did Luviagelita really expect her family to exist here? And even if they did, would they still be rich?
In her dreams!
Even if she was filthy rich, it wouldn't matter here!
Rin was furious and excited. She wanted to see Luviagelita embarrass herself when her fake card was rejected...
Unfortunately for Rin, her fantasy didn't last long. Nia shattered it.
[Rinrin-chan is mistaken. This world is a Parallel World, so just like the Tohsaka family, the Edelfelt family also exists here. And just like in your original world, they're very rich~, so money isn't a problem~....]
"What?!"
[Even Rinrin-chan and Luvi-chan exist in this world~.]
"...."
The light vanished from Rin's eyes. She'd suspected it before, but now she was certain...
(Black-Bellied Caster!)
Was it really necessary to shatter her fantasy?!
Couldn't she dream, at least a little?!
Was it that hard to stay quiet?!
Rin dropped to her knees, questioning life itself. Luviagelita, meanwhile, ignored Rin's complaint. Like Rin, she'd also considered the possibility that her fortune might be worthless in this world.
But according to Lancer, this was a Parallel World almost identical to the one they came from, so it was a gamble...
A gamble worth taking, since Tohka was like a cute puppy waiting for food—and also a double-edged sword, since she didn't know what would happen if she couldn't give her what she wanted...
"The Sword of the End?"
Est, meanwhile, stared intently at her rival. She wasn't bothered by the embarrassing display. Instead, she connected with Yuki through their contract, sharing emotions—and the joy she felt coming from Tohka left her a little lost...
In the end, was she Yuki's partner, or merely Tohka's replacement?
Est didn't know. But like Eggy, she desired the Throne....
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