"Yummy!"
In a bustling town where people hurriedly moved about, trading and chattering away,
a food stall owner was counting his dango and felt something odd.
"Huh? I'm sure I made 50 of them. Why is one missing?"
"Owner, give me one!"
"Oh! Coming right up!"
Watching the dango seller puzzled over the missing dango, the boy could only grin.
"Hah... Thanks, owner! I'll come back next time!"
The boy then left, skipping cheerfully through the human town, unnoticed by anyone.
Wandering around the town, he stole quite a bit of human food and drink, savoring each bite in his mouth.
"They say human food is delicious, but who knew it'd be this good? Now I'm curious about how much more tasty food is waiting for me!"
Carefree, innocent, and joyful—
qualities that a yokai shouldn't have and typically doesn't.
After all, yokai are usually selfish creatures, inherently malicious, deceitful, and full of all sorts of vices.
So this little yokai was like a black sheep among his kind...
"Hm?"
He stopped, noticing a crowd following a man.
"Ah! Greetings, Lord!"
"Hello, Lord!"
"What brings the Lord here today?"
The man's retainers remained silent while the one called the Lord smiled brightly.
"No reason at all, I just wanted to see how you all are doing business."
"Oh, we're so grateful for the Lord's kindness!"
Most of the townsfolk adored him, his retainers were fiercely loyal, and he seemed like a good person.
"..."
The little yokai watched this scene with curiosity, and suddenly, something stirred in his heart.
"...I also want loyal retainers, people who love me, and to be a master who wins their hearts!"
No meaningless sacrifices or grand motivations were needed.
It was just his wish, born as spontaneously as he himself had appeared in this place.
***
Gudako slowly opened her eyes, as if she had just woken from a long dream.
And the boy in that dream... he looked oddly familiar, much like her favorite servant.
"Huh?"
She found herself lying still, surrounded by flowers and incense.
"Namo Amitabha Buddha, Ritsuka Fujimaru, who passed away at... uh, how old was she?"
"I think 18."
"Oh, gone at 18, such a tragedy for a young girl..."
What??
Her eyes shot open, and she realized she was inside a coffin!
"Senpaiiii... How could you die?? I haven't even thanked you for everything you've done for me!" Mash leaned against the coffin, crying so much her eyes were swollen.
"Such a pity for a hero of Chaldea, and the last Master, no less... What a great loss," Roman said, closing his eyes in remembrance.
"Hey, any more sake? Pass me some," Shuten said, chugging the last of the sake from her gourd.
"It's all gone, you drank mine too, Shun-chan," Nura said, holding his empty gourd upside down, not a drop left.
"Then can I have your bones instead, Nura-chan?"
"Haha, nope."
What the heck is going on?? I'm still alive, everyone!!
Gudako tried to move, but the coffin was sturdy.
"Sob, I hadn't even introduced myself to her, and now she's gone. I should paint her portrait in her memory," da Vinci said, wiping tears that weren't even there.
"Fou..."
The monk finished chanting and looked at everyone.
"Alright, how do we send her off? Cremation or burial?"
"Cremation."
'WHAT????'
"Very well, first we need to burn her belongings so they can follow her."
The monk picked up a Baeber poster and pulled out a lighter, ready to set it ablaze.
"YOU FILTHY MONK, DON'T TOUCH MY BAEBER!!!" Gudako sprang up, landing a powerful punch on the monk.
"Domestic violence!!!" The monk flew into the ceiling, getting stuck there.
Everyone froze, staring at Gudako, who was very much alive.
"Oh... Well, she's alive. Guess it's time for Olga's funeral now."
"Yeah."
"Exactly."
And with that, everyone left, leaving Gudako alone.
"..."
And so began Gudako's first day after escaping the first Singularity...
After a few minutes, her coffin was promptly tossed out of Chaldea, left in the Arctic.
"Why did everyone think I was dead? I was still breathing!"
Hearing Gudako's complaints, Roman scratched his head and laughed.
"Haha, you were asleep for three days, and your heart wasn't even beating, so I thought you were dead!"
"Then how are my Servants still here? Their presence means I'm not dead!"
"No, no, our Servants."
"I'm not into communism."
"Come on, calm down, Gudako~" da Vinci stepped forward, trying to mediate.
"Who are you?"
"Me? I'm da Vinci desu! Wink!"
...cringe.
"Oh, she's a 'dude,' by the way. She loves her own work so much she used Mona Lisa as her avatar," Roman explained.
"Oh... Kira would totally like you."
"Huh? What Kira?"
After chatting for a while, Gudako got a clearer picture of Chaldea's situation.
"Hmph, it's all over. Hopeless. I give up!"
"Calm down, Gudako! You're humanity's only hope!" Roman clung to her leg.
"Thanks for the pep talk, Doc. Daga kotowaru!"
Such a blunt refusal...
"I just want to roll gacha. Saving humanity is too big a responsibility for someone like me, so I refuse!"
Seeing they couldn't convince Gudako, Roman and da Vinci noticed Nura and Mash being dragged around by Shuten.
"Ah! Nura-san! I need a favor!"
Hearing Roman's request, Nura patted Shuten's hand, hoping she'd let him go.
"Hurry up, I'm not done with you yet~"
And so, Mash, teary-eyed, was dragged off by Shuten.
"What's up, everyone?" Nura smiled.
Life at Chaldea was pretty dull for him. Sure, there was Shuten, but she got bored quickly and was always scheming to use his bones to brew sake to satisfy herself.
Roman leaned in and whispered something to Nura.
"Heh? That's a piece of cake."
Nura then approached Gudako, who was puffing her cheeks, refusing to listen to anyone.
He leaned close to her ear and whispered,
"Master, if you save humanity, you'll get tons of Saint Quartz."
Gudako's ears twitched.
"You might even summon your Saber."
Gudako started sweating.
And the final blow:
"And who knows, maybe you'll summon me as a Saber?"
"Seal the deal." Gudako's face became hyper-detailed, her muscles practically bulging.
'What a sweet talker. He's probably used that charm on plenty of girls,' both Roman and da Vinci thought.
"Oh, I almost forgot!"
"?"
Gudako suddenly pressed something in mid-air, confusing the three of them.
All of a sudden, a bright light appeared beside her.
"Caster, Mario—"
He froze, looking at the three familiar faces.
"..."
"..."
The air grew silent. Roman's face stiffened, while da Vinci showed amused curiosity.
"Haa..." Nura sighed, wondering what other powers this Master might have.