Singularity F - Fuyuki High School.
The Chaldea group was resting here.
Adam stood up and looked around at the others.
They had already been resting for some time, and everyone's condition had more or less recovered.
Incidentally, Skadi seemed unable to withstand Adam's gaze any longer and had left first.
"How about it, everyone? Ready for the decisive battle ahead?"
Ritsuka Fujimaru patted his stomach and gave Adam a big thumbs-up.
"I'm good."
Olga Marie nodded too, showing she was prepared as well.
After all, with Adam there to back them up, whether she felt ready or not hardly mattered.
Mash was a given—she had only been sweating because Fuyuki was so hot, and her condition had stayed excellent the entire time.
Cu Chulainn and Medusa, being full Servants, were also in top form.
But Mash alone kept her head lowered, looking as if she wanted to speak yet holding back.
Adam noticed her state immediately.
This couldn't go on.
He walked over and stopped in front of her.
"Mash, what's wrong?"
"Run into some kind of problem? Why do you look so down?"
"It's not… I just…"
Mash glanced at the other Mash's fully maxed-out gear, then at her own equipment, and let out a quiet sigh.
Adam understood her frustration in an instant.
The current Mash had only recently fused with a Servant to become a Demi-Servant.
Although she had started learning to fight, she still couldn't unleash her Noble Phantasm.
In other words,
Mash felt she was simply too weak right now and couldn't help the group in any meaningful way.
It was a real issue. He'd better think of a solution.
Adam turned his gaze toward Mash's senior, Ritsuka Fujimaru, and nudged him with an elbow.
"Ritsuka, your junior's feeling low. Why don't you go ask her what's up?"
Olga Marie chimed in from the side.
"Yeah, Ritsuka. You're a Master, aren't you? Go show her some concern already."
Prompted by both of them, Ritsuka looked at the dejected Mash.
"…Don't tell me… it's because of what happened earlier?"
Ritsuka recalled how Mash had previously expressed frustration over her own lack of strength.
Mash stayed silent a moment longer before nodding somewhat helplessly.
"…Yeah~"
"It's a little embarrassing to admit this myself, but…"
"Under Teacher's guidance, I've learned the basics of combat."
Mash glanced at the other Mash, thought about her current level of power, and sighed again.
"But I still can't use my Noble Phantasm."
"I haven't even figured out how it works."
"It makes me feel like some kind of defective Servant…"
Seeing how disheartened she was, Adam chose to console her from a different angle.
"Don't be so hard on yourself, Mash."
"When it comes to a sense of duty, you're already an outstanding Servant."
Ritsuka nodded vigorously from the side.
"That's right, Mash. As far as I'm concerned, you're my greatest Servant."
Mash's self-doubt eased a little upon hearing their words,
but then she caught something odd in what Ritsuka had said.
"…Senpai, I'm your only Servant, aren't I?"
Ritsuka realized his slip and scratched his head awkwardly.
Meanwhile, seeing Adam comfort the other Mash, the alternate Mash began letting her imagination run wild with rather indecent thoughts.
Is Senpai really making a move on the me from this world?
Having one Mash isn't enough? He actually wants to sink his claws into another Mash too!
Don't tell me~ Senpai wants to get in bed with two Mashs and…
[[Mash] Affection Value +10]
Adam noticed the strange notification and stared blankly at the alternate Mash.
A faint blush colored her cheeks, and her legs shifted almost imperceptibly against each other.
Adam raised an eyebrow.
What exactly was this girl fantasizing about now?
Just then, Doctor Roman's image appeared, and he tried his best to offer some comfort too.
"Mash, you really don't need to overthink it."
"After all, we're talking about a Noble Phantasm here~"
"I believe something like that isn't the kind of thing you can master overnight."
"If a Demi-Servant could wield a Servant's ultimate technique perfectly after just a day or two,"
"It would leave all the Servants too embarrassed to show their faces."
Cu Chulainn, upon hearing Roman, offered a contrary view.
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
"Of course you can use that stuff the moment you feel like it!"
"After all, a Servant and their Noble Phantasm are essentially the same existence."
"By all rights, from the very moment you began fighting as a Servant, little lady,"
"You should already have been able to use it."
Medusa nodded in agreement from the side.
"It's a harsh truth, but he's right."
Mash's mood plunged to rock bottom after hearing Cu Chulainn.
"So… it really is because I'm just that useless?"
The alternate Mash then stepped in, wanting to share some of her own experience.
"You don't need to worry so much."
"The reason you can't use your Noble Phantasm is exactly as described, but that doesn't mean there's no solution."
Mash's eyes lit up the moment she heard there might be a fix for her problem.
"Really, Teacher?"
"Can I use my Noble Phantasm too?"
Cu Chulainn chimed in playfully at that moment.
"I've got a few methods myself. Hmm… how should I explain this?"
"Fighting spirit? Explosive power?"
"Anyway, how about we start by practicing yelling at the top of your lungs?"
Mash's expression froze after hearing him.
"Is… is that how it works?"
Adam looked at Cu Chulainn with a hint of exasperation.
Why did this sound like some shady uncle trying to lead a kid astray?
Cu Chulainn's explanation had that classic "first you do this, then that, then this again, and finally that—got it?" vibe.
Adam briefly considered summoning Scáthach to give Cu a refresher on his own training regimen.
Starting by treating him to ten strikes from Gáe Bolg Alternative.
Cu Chulainn grew inexplicably nervous under Adam's stare.
"W-what's up?"
"I was only giving an example. The key thing is having the drive."
The alternate Mash paid Cu no mind and continued guiding the other Mash step by step.
"Our nature is protection."
"Protection?" The words seemed to strike a chord with Mash.
The alternate Mash nodded.
"Exactly. You should remember that Servants are typically divided into seven classes…"
"Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Assassin, Berserker."
"But our class… is the 'Shielder,' standing apart from those seven."
"That's why what we do best is protect!"
Mash's eyes gradually brightened with understanding.
"So that's it!"
***
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