Fate/Irregular Summons

Chapter 16: Parents and Guardians

FATE/IRREGULAR SUMMONS

Chapter 16: Parents and Guardians

Connla's short legs carried her away from the Einzbern manor as fast as they could. Her heart threatened to explode from the stress, yet she ignored it and kept scurrying through the forest. She had a frantic expression like she was running for her life... and she most certainly was. She wanted to be absolutely sure that Gilgamesh would not find her and rain his wrath upon her the same way he did to Heracles. All the while, Illyasviel floated beside Connla inside a wind bubble, completely unconscious. The young Servant had no choice but to knock her out with a chop to the nape of her neck before taking her away from the mansion.

So many thoughts raced through Connla's mind that she couldn't put any words to them. In these panicking moments, nothing made sense to her. Heracles, who was supposed to be the strongest Servant with the greatest chance of winning the Holy Grail War, wound up being the first one to die. Medea was amassing her strength through cruel methods precisely to combat Heracles, yet he was no longer around to be a threat. In his place was an even more dangerous Servant who proudly called himself an irregular participant like Connla was. Even if Medea wound up fighting Gilgamesh, she would probably stand less of a chance at victory than if she challenged Heracles.

Furthermore, Gilgamesh was specifically trying to kill Illyasviel. What was he after? Did he want to demonstrate his superiority to inspire fear in the other contestants? Or was there something he needed from Illyasviel herself? Any other Servant would have been reckless to go after Heracles first, yet Gilgamesh destroyed him as if he was taking a walk in the park. It was only because of Connla's interference that he failed in murdering Illyasviel, and the young girl knew he would harbor a grudge against her for it. The idea of being such a powerful Heroic Spirit's next target outright frightened her.

Before Connla knew it, she had reached home territory. She recognized the tree formations, meaning they were nearing Edelfelt Manor. Soon, she emerged from the woods and approached the front entrance. Waiting for her were Caren, Shirou, Rin, Sakura and Medusa.

"Welcome back, Lancer," Caren murmured.

Connla looked at the others, and realized that they all appeared upset with her. Sure, they were relieved to see her alive, but their frustration over her taking off on her own outweighed that. However, Rin approached the unconscious white-haired girl and wondered, "Illyasviel? What is she doing here?"

"I, um..." Connla stammered. "I... managed to... rescue her..."

"Rescue her from what? Did Caster make her move?"

"Well, uh... I really don't know... but..."

"Lancer," Shirou furrowed his eyebrows. He could tell that the little girl was frightened out of her mind, and that it wasn't from the prospect of being harshly scolded. Whatever she had went through had to have been absolutely terrifying for her, so he eased his stony expression and kneeled before her. He placed a hand on her shoulder, and only now did he realize how much she was trembling.

Medusa sighed and said, "I think we better let them rest for a while. We can save the hard questions for later."

"Yes, that would be best," Sakura agreed and helped Shirou bring Connla inside. Medusa carried Illyasviel piggyback style to a spare guest room and laid her down on the bed. Rin was hesitant about looking after Illyasviel, so Caren volunteered instead. In the lounge, Shirou and Sakura both sat beside Connla and spent some time consoling her.

"Are you hurt anywhere?" Sakura asked.

"No... I'm fine..." Connla whimpered. "Ms. Einzbern should be okay too... but Berserker..."