TYPE-MOON Universe, Earth, Japan, Fuyuki City.
Time passed quickly after Sakura's meeting with Rin. Nearly three weeks passing in what seemed like the blink of an eye. During that time, the Holy Church sent another priest to act as the Holy Grail War's Overseer. The new overseer a middle-aged man, was chosen due to his apparent lack of ambition.
Even so, that would not keep the participants, as well as both the Mage's Association and the Holy Church from keeping an eye on him. No one wanted another Kotomine Kirei to pop up again due to a lack of caution, after all.
Mentioning the participants, a fifth Master entered Fuyuki City in that time. He was a Magus from the Mage's Association named Atrum Galliasta. This man, half-European and half-Middle Eastern, stood at 6' tall with long blond hair that reached his chest, blue eyes, and darkly tanned skin.
When Atrum arrived in Fuyuki, he immediately approached the church to register with the overseer. However, as he was wary of anyone from the church, he did not show off his Caster- Class Servant, he only informed the overseer of the Servant's Class before leaving.
After leaving the church, Atrum found an out of the way place to set up his workshop and start his magical experiments. Though, what was strange was the fact that he did not ask his Caster Servant for help. And the reason for that was actually quite stupid.
Atrum was jealous of his Servant's magical talent. So, to keep his fragile pride as a Magus intact, he used a [Command Spell] to keep her from using her Magecraft. He also used a second [Command Spell] to stop her from using her [Noble Phantasm] on him, as it had the ability to break contracts. And that naturally included the summoning contract they had forge when he summoned her.
On top of all that, Atrum constantly belittled Caster, a sign of his inferiority complex. At the same time, he kidnapped many normal people to be used in his magical experiments. However, when Caster tried to advise him about a more efficient way to reach the same goal, he would only lash out at her.
Unfortunately, Atrum was too naïve to think that the [Command Spells] he used to restrict Caster would be enough.
One day, while Atrum was out collecting more experimental subjects, he came back to his workshop to find it destroyed. The culprit? Naturally, it was Caster, who was tired of being treated the way they were.
On top of that, Caster had used her [Noble Phantasm] on herself, breaking the summoning contract from the other side. Then, without any mercy, she killed Atrum before leaving in search of a new Master.
Naturally, Tatsuo and Elicia, who had been keeping all of Fuyuki and its surrounding areas under surveillance, were aware of Atrum's death and Caster going off on her own. They were even aware of when she found a new contract just before being sent back to the Throne of Heroes on Mount Enzou. Yet, they did nothing to stop any of these events.
Though, Elicia did lower the number of people Atrum kidnapped in secret by using the threads she had spread around the entire city to keep as many people out of Atrum's hands as possibe.
Another thing that should be noted about the three week period was the fact that Rin had finally finished all the tasks her father left behind for her. During that time, a set of [Command Spells] also appeared on her hand, as well. Meaning, Rin was also ready to summon a Servant.
"I can't believe this was the only thing father left behind for me." Rin said while holding a necklace with a pink, heart-shaped gem hanging from it. "This doesn't look like any summoning catalyst that I can think of. I wonder what he was thinking."
As she spoke, Rin walked through her mansion towards her workshop. Arriving quickly, Rin looked over the [Summoning Magic Circle] she had drawn weeks ago, taking one last look to make sure there were no mistakes.
"Everything looks in order." Rin said as she held the pendant up to look at it one more time. "*Sigh* I just hope I get the Servant that I want. Otherwise, all the effort I put in to finishing father's tasks would feel like a waste."
After speaking, Rin looked up at the clock hanging on the wall of her workshop.
"The perfect summoning time has arrived." Rin muttered to herself as she stepped forward and placed the heart-shaped pendant into the center of the magic circle. "Well then, let's begin."
With that, Rin stepped out of the magic circle and took a deep breath.
"For elements silver and iron,
Foundation stone and archduke of pacts,
And for my Great Master Schweinorg.
Close the four gates.
Come forth from the Crown and follow the Forked Road leading to the Kingdom.
Fill, Fill, Fill, Fill, Fill.
Repeat Five times but when each is filled destroy it.
Set.
Heed my words, my will creates your body, and your sword creates my destiny.
If you heed the Grail's Call and obey my will and reason, then answer me.
I hereby swear that I shall be all the good in the world.
That I shall defeat all Evil in the world.
Seventh Heaven clad in the Great Words of Power.
From the Binding Circle vow Guardian of the Scales."
As Rin's incantation came to an end, the magic circle in the middle of the room, starting with the pendant at its center, began to glow brightly. Seeing that, Rin's excitement could not be contained, until…
*Boom!*
… the sound of something crashing from above startled her out of her excited state.
Waiting until the light from the magic circle died down, Rin saw that the ceiling of her workshop had been completely destroyed, the hole large enough to see the moon and stars clearly.
Rin then lowered her head and looked around the wrecked magical workshop. Eventually, her eyes narrowed when she saw someone, a man with tanned skin, grey eyes, and swept back, white hair, sitting on the couch in her workshop with is legs crossed and an amused smile on his face.
Taking a closer look, this man wore black, sleeveless body armor with a metal plate around his neck, a pair of black pants with straps wrapped around each of his thighs and shins, and a pair of black, metal plated shoes that seemed to connect with is pants.
On top of that, he wore what appeared to be an open red skirt that was tied around his waist and a pair of separate red sleeves that had been cut off and attached to each other by a metal plate on his back.
"Who the hell are you?" Rin questioned aggressively, not using any of her magical detection abilities beforehand. "And how the hell did you get into my house? No, more important than that, why the hell did you destroy my roof?"
"*Sigh* Why don't you calm down, Miss?' The white-haired man asked in an exasperated tone. "Why don't you think about what you were just doing? If you do, who I am and how I got here should be obvious."
Unfortunately, the man's words seemed to have the opposite effect, as Rin got even angrier when she heard his response.
"Just answer my question, damn it!" Rin shouted angrily.
"I should have known this would happen." The white-haired man muttered to himself in a volume that was low enough that Rin would not be able to make out his words.
Even so, Rin did hear the white-haired man muttering. As a result, she raised her eyebrows and put her hands on her hips.
"Speak up." Rin ordered in an authoritative tone. She then raised her right hand and pointed her index finger at the white-haired man as she activated her magic circuits. "Or will I have to make you talk?"
Sighing once again, the white-haired man raised his hands disarmingly while looking Rin in her eyes.
"I am the Servant you summon, Master." The white-haired man said calmly, not breaking eye contact with the irate young Magus. "I am an Archer-Class Servant. It's nice to meet you. You may refer to me as Archer."
Finally getting an answer to her questions, Rin let her hand fall back to her side. Then, her face lit up with excitement. However, when she heard the white-haired man, Archer, introduce his class, that excitement vanished just as quickly as it came.
"An Archer?" Rin asked in a downtrodden tone. "How can this be? I did everything right. I waited to the correct time. I finished all of my father's tasks. I used the pendant he left for me. I was supposed to get a Saber-Servant. But why did I get an Archer?"
"Pardon me for not reaching your expectations, Master." Archer said, bowing facetiously while speaking in a sarcastic tone.
Rin did not respond to Archer's words. Instead, she started vigorously ruffling her hair. Then, she looked at the mess that was created when the summoning happened and almost exploded in frustration. Yet, she managed to somewhat keep her composure as she snapped her head in Archer's direction.
"Since you made this mess, you can clean it up." Rin barked.
Then, while still staring at Archer harshly, Rin crossed her arms in front of her chest and started tapping her right foot on the floor.
Meanwhile, Archer sighed for a third time. Then, he pushed himself off the couch and looked at the mess.
"*Sigh* Very well, Master." Archer said before he started cleaning up.
Two hours later, Archer, with his inhuman strength as a Servant, managed to clean up all the debris from his summoning. During that time, Rin had introduced herself, as well. Then, when Archer was finished, he and Rin relocated to the kitchen, deciding to leave the repairs for later. He was then ordered to make Rin a cup of coffee, which he did without complaint.
"Well, since you're my Servant." Rin said as Archer placed the cup of coffee in front of her. "There's no point in complaining about not getting the Servant I wanted. So, tell me, what is your identity?"
"Unfortunately, I can't do that." Archer replied while standing next to Rin's chair.
Immediately, Rin's eyebrows shot up.
"Are you disobeying me to get back at me for making you clean up that mess?' Rin asked, in a tone filled with barely contained anger.
"You misunderstand, Master." Archer said, completely unbothered by Rin's anger. "It's not that I won't tell you. Rather that I can't."
Unsatisfied with Archer's answer, Rin only stared at him, her eyes screaming at him to continue.
"It may be due to the flawed summoning, but I can't remember my identity." Archer continued, still unbothered by Rin's glare. "The only things I can remember about myself are things related to my status as a Servant. For example, my Class, my Personal Skills, my Class Skills, etc."
"So, you're saying this is my fault?" Rin asked, her anger on the brink of overflowing.
"Please excuse my bluntness, but yes." Archer replied matter of factly.
Stunned at how bluntly Archer replied to her question, Rin's mouth fell open while her eyes widened to a comical degree. Yet, as angry as she wanted to be, she found it hard to lash out at Archer again.
So, instead of saying something that she was unsure of, Rin turned to look at the clock in the room. When she did, she realized just how late it was and started to panic.
"Damn it!" Rin exclaimed. "It's already this late? I have to get up at seven. I'm only going to get five hours of sleep tonight."
Hearing that, Archer tilted his head in slight confusion. Then, he turned his head to look at the window. And after confirming the position of the moon, he turned back to Rin.
"But from what I can tell by the position of the moon, it's actually around three in the morning, Master." Archer said with a slightly amused smirk on his lips. "So, if we were to go by that, you'd actually only be able to get around four hours of sleep."
"What?" Rin exclaimed as she quickly stood up and rushed to look out the window. "Damn it, you're right! I'm going to be a zombie when I wake up tomorrow."
Rin was once again about to start ruffling her hair in frustration. However, while her hands were halfway to her head, she froze, a look of realization on her face.
"The clocks were off." Rin said in an enlightened tone. A moment later, however, her shoulders slumped as her hands fell to her sides. "And that means I performed the summoning an hour late. Damn it! It's no wonder I was unable to summon the Servant I wanted."
Though he wanted to smile and laugh loudly, Archer held it in. Instead, he only stared at his Master, waiting for her to snap out of it. And luckily, that did not take too long.
"Well, I wouldn't be so hung up about it. Archer said casually. "A Servant's strength is not determined by their Class. Whether, it's a combination of factors. Though, I can't remember most of those about myself. But I do know one."
Hearing Archer's oddly conciliatory words, Rin could not help turning towards him to hear the rest of what he had to say.
"And that's the quality of the Master." Archer continued. "And from what I can tell, you're quite the exceptional Master, Rin."
Surprised by the sudden compliment, Rin wore a shocked expression before she quickly turned away and started twirling a lock of her hair around one of her fingers. Then, after realizing how she must look right now, she snapped her head back in Archer's direction while puffing her chest out confidently.
"Of course, I am." Rin said in a spirited tone. "It's good that you can recognize the truth."
After speaking her piece, Rin raised her right hand to her mouth. Then, she covered it as she yawned.
"Anyway, it's quite late." Rin said in a tired tone. "I'm going to bed. You can accompany me to school tomorrow. Then, after school, we can take a walk around the city, so you can get a feel for the battlefield."
"I understand." Archer replied while placing his right arm across his chest and bowing, this one much more genuine. "Then, have a good night, Master. I will see you in the morning."
With that, Archer slipped into his astral form while Rin turned around and started making her way towards the stairs so she could go to her room and get some sleep.