It started small—someone mentioned a broken heater, and Shirō, being Shirō, muttered something about maybe being able to fix it. Then, when no one was looking, she actually fixed it using fortification magecraft. The same thing happened with a faulty speaker. And, for some inexplicable reason, even the washing machine.
Of course, people started talking.
"Hey, doesn't she kinda remind you of Emiya?"
"Yeah! He used to fix stuff around here too!"
Shirō gritted her teeth. Ugh, stop comparing me to me.
And then there was Shinji.
That had been especially annoying.
He'd stormed up to her, arms crossed, scowling like he had something to prove. "I still haven't forgiven you," he declared, as if that was supposed to mean anything. "But—" his expression turned sly— "if you fix the AC in the Archery Club, I might consider it. I have to take these girls to a new restaurant, you see."
...Shirō pitied those girls.
Still, being the absolute fool that she was, she ended up fixing it. And, of course, it took an hour. By the time she was done, the campus was almost empty.
That's when Rin found her—sweating, panicked, and pissed.
"Are you nuts?!" she snapped. "I thought a Servant or Master took you! What the hell were you thinking?!"
Shirō blinked. "I was just helping—"
"Ugh. You are going to regret this personality one day, Emiya-kun."
Archer appeared out of nowhere, arms crossed, looking unimpressed as ever.
"I found two more," he said.
Shirō and Rin tensed.
"Where?" Rin asked immediately.
"Near the back of the gym. They're still breathing, but—"
They didn't wait for him to finish.
When they arrived, the sight wasn't pretty.
Two students lay sprawled on the ground, their bodies unnaturally pale, their breathing shallow. Their uniforms were slightly wrinkled, like they had collapsed mid-step.
Shirō crouched beside them, pressing her fingers to one's wrist. The pulse was weak—barely there.
"Tsk." Archer clicked his tongue, eyeing them with distaste. "Their life force was sapped away."
Shirō clenched her fists. Damn it. They were too late to stop this one.
Rin knelt beside them, already reaching for her magic circuits. "They won't last long like this." She placed her hands lightly over their chests, eyes narrowing as she focused. A faint glow of mana surrounded her fingers.
A few seconds passed. The students' breathing steadied, their skin regained a bit of colour. It wasn't much, but it would keep them alive.
Rin exhaled sharply. "That should do it—for now. But if this keeps up…"
"We need to end this," Shirō said, standing up, eyes burning.
Archer gave her a knowing look. "Getting fired up already, Saber-chan?"
Shirō shot him a glare. "Shut up."