It was Saturday morning. Chaldea's workshop was slightly brighter than it had been the night before. With the restoration of the computational device Trismegistus came the return of the lights, and the white fluorescent tubes hummed once more. On the table sat the remaining two spirit vein stones and—the artifact that Gilbert had retrieved from the treasury—a small golden furnace, placed with a soft clink. It was a miniature golden furnace. Small enough to fit in the palm of a hand, with intricate patterns carved into its sides. If you were told an ancient Mesopotamian craftsman had made it, you'd believe it. But how to touch it, where to activate it—that remained completely unclear. Ritsuka stared at it for three minutes straight. Gilbert stared at it too. Maurice stared at it as well. The three of them stood in silence, surrounding the small golden furnace. "[serious]……I shall touch it first" Gilbert extended his arm. Golden hair fell from his shoulders. Sharp golden eyes fixed on the artifact as his fingertips traced the patterns on its side. Nothing happened. He pressed a little harder. Nothing happened. Gilbert touched a different face. Then another. The artifact trembled slightly. "Ooh" All three stepped forward. The next instant, the artifact began shaking violently—brrrrr—and the table rattled. Gilbert pulled his hand back. Maurice jumped backward with an "Whoa!" Ritsuka took a step back as well. The artifact shook for about seven seconds, then stopped abruptly. Silence again. "[sarcastic]……This is something my blacksmith once used. I would know" "You clearly don't" "[angry]Silence" "Look, I'll try touching it too. If we just give it a good whack——" "[angry]I told you not to strike it!!" "I'm just touching it!!" Ritsuka stepped between them. Both hands spread wide, laughing, voice rising slightly. "[gentle]Wait, both of you. If we hit it, it might break, and um——" The three of them gazed at the artifact again. Time was running short. The computational device had been restored, and the processing plan was set. But without knowing how to use this artifact, the high-speed refinement meant nothing. What should we do, Ritsuka thought. That's when the workshop door opened quietly. The sound of a yawn came first. "Haah……noisy from the morning, aren't we" A young man in a purple robe entered slowly, a thick ancient manuscript tucked under his arm. Silver-white hair loosely tied back, a blue mask hanging slack from his jaw. Eyes of different colors—left purple, right silver—gazed at the three with a half-sleepy expression. Marcelius Var. A carefree mage Ritsuka had met once in the library. "[gentle]Ah, that artifact, huh" Marcelius approached the table and peered at the artifact casually. "[gentle]I know how to use it. Probably. Well, definitely. ……Anyway, we'll manage somehow" Gilbert's brow furrowed. "[cold]Who are you" "[gentle]Just a passing mage. I've been researching furnace repair methods in the library. Then I happened to see something useful, so I came to check it out" Ritsuka stepped forward. "[excited]Then you can help us……!" "[gentle]Yeah, sure. Sounds interesting" The reply was light. Really light. But the moment Marcelius spread open the ancient manuscript, his words changed. Flipping through pages while comparing them to the artifact's patterns, tracing the inscriptions on its side with his finger, he began explaining the activation sequence without hesitation. Each word was precise, without doubt. Amazing, Ritsuka thought. It came out of her mouth. "[surprised]Amazing……" Gilbert crossed his arms, and his expression relaxed just slightly. Even while putting on a tough front, you could tell he was relieved inside. And so the coordinated work began. The roles were divided like this: Ritsuka would continuously supply magical power to the artifact. Gilbert would operate the furnace and apply heat to the spirit vein stones. Maurice would push the large manual bellows to adjust the fire intensity. Marcelius would give instructions to everyone while reading from the ancient manuscript. The first five minutes went smoothly. Ritsuka placed her palm against the artifact, channeling magical power from her right hand marked with command spells. A warm sensation flowing from her fingertips. When Gilbert manipulated the furnace's patterns, the spirit vein stone began glowing orange. Maurice slowly pushed the bellows. The fire grew stronger. The stone's surface gradually softened. This could work. This might actually work. In the sixth minute, Maurice said: "[excited]This would finish faster if we pushed harder!" He pushed the bellows to their limit. ROOOOOOOAR!!! Flames reached the ceiling. A burnt smell. Black stains spread slowly across the ceiling. Gilbert's face went "Oh." Ritsuka's face went "Oh." Marcelius looked up from the manuscript at the ceiling. "[angry]Don't burn the ceiling, you reckless fool!!" "[angry]Shut up! I'm doing exactly what you said!!" "[angry]What do you mean exactly what I said!! I said appropriate fire intensity!!" "[angry]How much is appropriate!! Give me a number!!" "[serious]Everyone, please, focus!" Snap. Both of them stopped. Every time Ritsuka's voice rang out, somehow the three of them moved in sync. Ritsuka herself was most surprised by this pattern. They reduced the fire and resumed work. The stone gradually took on the shape of a furnace core. After a while, Marcelius said quietly: "[gentle]Come to think of it, this process gets automated in the future. I think about three hundred years from now, a furnace core-specific refinement device gets invented——" Hands stopped. He closed the manuscript, eyes distant. "[serious]Marcelius, we can talk about that later!!" "Ah, right. My apologies" Back to work. This time Gilbert, adjusting the furnace, suddenly started talking. "[cold]This artifact was originally favored by the most skilled blacksmith in my kingdom. His name was Nabu-Bel, and when I was seventeen——" "[serious]Everyone, please, focus!!" "……Understood" Maurice couldn't help but laugh. His shoulders shook as he pushed the bellows. "[laughing]That's the last thing you should be saying" "[angry]What's so funny!!" "[serious]Both of you, please!!" Snap. It worked again. This repeated over and over. Scattered, loud, scorch marks accumulating on the ceiling——but the stone was definitely taking shape. Every time Ritsuka shouted, the three came together. That alone was what kept this chaos moving forward. Hours passed. Marcelius said quietly: "It's complete" The spirit vein stone had taken on the precise shape of a furnace core. The blue-silver stone, carved with complex curves, was in perfect form. "[excited]We did it!!" He struck the work table with his fist. The table rattled. "[cold]It was only possible because of my artifact's power" Arms crossed, nose raised. But the corner of his mouth lifted slightly. Heat came to Ritsuka's eyes. She was about to cry. She wanted to laugh. Both came at once, and she knew her face looked strange. The four of them cheered in the workshop. ——It was right after that. Marcelius picked up the furnace core. He stared at it for a moment. His expression changed. Not the carefree face from before. "There's something I need to tell you" The tone of his voice changed. Everyone noticed. The workshop fell silent. "[serious]To replace the furnace core, you have to go directly inside the magical furnace and fit it into the center. The inside of the furnace is filled with extreme heat and a storm of magical power. If a Servant entered, their spirit foundation couldn't endure it. So——only a human Master can go in" Silence fell. Gilbert's golden eyes slowly turned toward Ritsuka. Maurice's red eyes turned toward Ritsuka. Marcelius's differently-colored eyes turned toward Ritsuka. Three gazes converged at once. Ritsuka was standing. She couldn't say anything. For the first few seconds, she really couldn't say anything. Her feet felt glued to the floor. Furnace core replacement. Extreme heat and a storm of magical power. She would have to go in there. Her body was trembling. Slowly, she looked at her right hand. The command spell mark carved into the back of her hand. Three lines, a red seal. As long as she had this, she was connected to her Servants. She wasn't alone. Last night, when she was huddled on the floor in the dark workshop, it was different from now. The door had opened, and two people came in——those kinds of people were still here with her. Staring at the command spell, Ritsuka quietly made her decision. She looked up. "[serious]I'm going. Protecting everyone is my job" Her voice was shaking, but she managed to say it all. Maurice slapped Ritsuka's shoulder with his palm. Firmly. Too firmly—Ritsuka staggered slightly. "[serious]You better come back" That was all. But everything about Maurice was contained in those words. Gilbert pulled something from the treasury's space. A golden talisman. A palm-sized tablet with intricate magical patterns carved into it. A protective charm. He pressed it gently into Ritsuka's hand. Eyes averted. "[cold]This should help you endure it somewhat. ……Come back. Don't die pointlessly, Master" When he handed over the protective charm, Gilbert's fingers touched Ritsuka's hand. For one beat, he didn't let go. Ritsuka noticed. Gilbert noticed too. Neither said anything. But that one beat was long. Gilbert withdrew his hand. Eyes still averted, looking at the wall. Marcelius winked. "[gentle]Don't worry. I can see the future——probably" Ritsuka gripped the protective charm tight. She opened the door. Red light spilled out from inside. Heat came. On her face, her arms, her whole body. The scorching wind drifting from the depths of the magical furnace made Ritsuka's hair sway. Ritsuka took one step into the light.