In this world, 'Avalon' is actually two different things that come from the exact same place.
First, there is the place itself—the Garden of Avalon.
It's basically the ultimate fairy paradise located deep at the Inner Sea of the Planet, a place filled with eternal spring where life and flowers never die.
It's the peaceful utopia filled with True Ether that we were just resting in a few minutes ago.
Then, there's the golden scabbard of Excalibur, which carries the actual power of that fairy paradise.
When you use the scabbard as a shield, it doesn't just block an attack—it literally shifts your body into the fairy world so absolutely nothing in this reality can actually hit or touch you.
And when you're just carrying it around, it passively heals any injury you get, as long as Saber is standing nearby.
Before the war started, Kiritsugu secretly put that golden scabbard inside Irisviel's chest to keep her alive as the Grail's vessel.
I don't know what exact method Kiritsugu used, but he somehow linked his contract with Saber to Irisviel's body. So, as long as Saber stood near her, the scabbard kept healing her.
But for the scabbard to keep working inside a human, it needs that active contract link to Saber.
The moment I killed Kiritsugu's contract during my fight earlier, that link broke.
The scabbard inside Irisviel didn't break or hurt her, but its healing turned completely off, leaving it sleeping inside her chest as just a useless piece of metal.
And without that healing, her body is suddenly taking the full burden of the dead Servants all at once.
"This is bad. Like, really, incredibly bad."
Seeing Irisviel's erratic breathing and the way her entire body is trembling, I immediately know she is feeling the massive, crushing pressure of those two dead Servants hitting her system.
While being carefully supported by Saber's free arm, Irisviel lets out a sharp, painful gasp.
She clutches her chest tightly as a sudden, intense wave of unnatural heat and fever flares violently straight through her Magic Circuits.
Unlike a normal human, whose Magic Circuits would instantly rupture or burn out just trying to contain a single Servant's soul, Irisviel is an Einzbern homunculus.
Her body, her organs, and her Magic Circuits are engineered out of high-grade alchemical materials specifically designed to act as a vessel.
But even with that specialized vessel, she is already holding the massive prana of two dead Servants—Berserker and Assassin—inside her.
Having Avalon abruptly turn off means her body is suddenly being hit by the combined weight and burning mana of both Servants all at once, without any transition or warning to let her adapt to the physical strain.
"[I've already cast an illusion around us, Master. You should bring her back to the castle,]" Lady Ava's voice suddenly rings clearly inside my head through our mental link.
"She's right. We can figure something out after we get back, as this isn't a good place to do anything," I mutter quickly, realizing we are completely hidden from the passing crowds for now. I turn my attention straight to Saber. "Saber, can you quickly bring us back to the castle?"
Saber nods firmly. Without hesitating, she easily scoops Irisviel up, adjusting her grip to carry both of us securely while I hold tightly onto her shoulder.
With a single, explosive burst of speed, she launches us into the air, leaping out of the mall and tearing straight toward the Einzbern forest.
"What the fuck!!" I scream as Saber jumps and runs so fast that everything around us turns into a smeared blur.
If not for the wind protection magecraft Lady Ava quickly cast on me and Irisviel, my neck probably would have snapped from the sudden, violent acceleration.
Not even ten minutes later, I can already see the huge Einzbern castle in the distance. Saber doesn't even slow down, keeping up her dash all the way inside the building until we reach the main bedroom.
"Hahh... I thought I was gonna die!" I gasp out, trying to catch my breath.
Saber gently lays Irisviel down on the bed.
She is still conscious, but her eyes are squeezed shut, and she keeps grunting in pain as the crushing pressure of the mana weighs down on her.
"Put me down beside her," I say.
After Saber sets me on the bed next to her, I know I need to do something right now. The problem is, what the hell am I supposed to do?
I have absolutely no idea how Kiritsugu managed to connect his Magic Circuits to Irisviel so Avalon could activate without Saber actually being her Servant in the first place.
My first thought is simple. If Avalon needs Saber's prana to function, why doesn't Saber just form a Master contract with Irisviel directly?
I look up at Saber. "Hey, Saber... since Avalon needs your prana to work, could you maybe just form a contract with Irisviel instead?"
"No," Saber replies instantly, her tone leaving absolutely zero room for argument.
Her eyes lock onto mine with an intense, unyielding focus. "I have already pledged my blade, my life, and my salvation to you, Rikka. I am your knight, and I will never swear loyalty to another."
'Well... there goes that idea.'
I rub my temples as Irisviel groans in pain right beside me, clutching her chest as her breathing grows shallower.
If Saber refuses to contract with Irisviel, how am I supposed to get Saber's energy into Irisviel's body to wake Avalon back up?
I don't know the exact spell Kiritsugu used to link them in the first place, and we definitely don't have the time to figure it out from scratch.
Desperate, I call out to my teacher. "Lady Ava! Can you come out for a second? What am I supposed to do here?"
Golden particles gather beside the bed, and Lady Ava materializes out of her spirit form with a playful, mischievous grin spreading across her face.
"Well, Master-chan..." she says smoothly, casually tapping her chin with her staff. "If you want to link your circuits and share energy with someone, there is always the classic 'prana transfer ritual' and there you can connect—"
Before she can even finish the sentence, Saber's fist shoots out like a rocket.
BAM!
Saber punches Lady Ava straight across the bedroom, sending her crashing into the far wall with a loud, violent thud.
"What kind of absurd nonsense are you trying to suggest to a child?!" Saber yells, her fist still raised and a thick, angry tick mark visibly pulsing on her forehead.
Lady Ava slides down against the wall, wincing and rubbing a giant bump forming on her head. "I was just joking, Saber~! You didn't have to hit me so hard!"
I stare at Lady Ava twitching against the floorboards and mutter, "Yeah... you definitely deserved that."
Once the chaos settles for a second, Lady Ava clears her throat, coughing lightly as she steps back toward the bed and drops the jokes.
"Rikka... you don't need a full contract or anything weird," Lady Ava explains, her tone finally turning serious as she looks at Irisviel's condition. "You are already Saber's Master, so her energy naturally flows directly into your Magic Circuits. All you need to do is use Circuit Grafting. Basically like creating a small Magic Crest thread to link a single pathway from your circuits directly into Irisviel's body."
I blink, processing the mechanics in my head. "Wait... so I can do that to act as the bridge between Saber and Irisviel?"
"Exactly," Lady Ava nods, stepping right beside the bed. "Place your hand over her chest."
I hesitate for a second, looking down at Irisviel.
I know the theory behind Circuit Grafting from Lady Ava's lessons, but executing it right now is terrifying.
My mind is still foggy and throbbing from the backlash of my transformation. Trying to do delicate spiritual surgery when my head is spinning is incredibly dangerous. One slip, and I could tear Irisviel's circuits apart.
Taking a deep breath, I slowly reach out and place my open palm right over the center of Irisviel's chest.
Before I can actually do anything, Lady Ava suddenly places her warm, gentle hand directly over mine.
"Don't try to do it all alone, silly Master," Lady Ava whispers softly beside me.
A soothing wave of her magecraft flows straight into my mind, instantly clearing my brain fog and steadying my trembling fingers.
"The bridge has to come from your circuits because you are Saber's Master," she explains smoothly. "I can't build the bridge for you, but I can keep your mind steady and guide your thread. Let's do this together."
With Lady Ava stabilizing my focus, the fear completely vanishes.
Now that my mind can actually focus on the precision, I extend a single, paper-thin thread of my Magic Circuits directly from my palm.
Together, we carefully weave my thread through Irisviel's complex alchemical pathways without causing a single rejection shock.
I don't know how long we've been doing this, but eventually, I feel a soft click in my mind, indicating the link has successfully connected.
As the circuit bridge locks into place, a glowing mark manifests right over Irisviel's chest, shining brightly through her clothing.
It forms a delicate, tattoo-like symbol—a glowing five-petaled flower. But instead of a normal center, the core is a shifting spiral.
It twists around itself exactly like a yin-yang symbol, cleanly balancing Saber's dense golden prana on one side with the sheer nothingness of my Void on the other.
"Now, open the valve," Lady Ava instructs quietly.
I release the flow, letting Saber's prana surge across the new bridge and pour straight into Irisviel's chest.
Underneath our hands, the golden flower mark flares with light. The dormant Avalon instantly detects Saber's prana and ignites.
Not long after, Irisviel's erratic breathing slows down to a peaceful, steady rhythm as the scabbard's passive healing completely takes over.
I can sense my Od and Saber's prana flowing naturally inside Irisviel. I don't feel any rejection or clashing between them, so she should be perfectly fine now.
"Hahhh... hahhhh... so sleepy..." It seems like I've finally reached my absolute limit for the day.
It is still only the afternoon, but I am just so incredibly tired. Oh well...
"Good night, everyone..."
"Master?!" Saber's panicked voice is the very last thing I hear before I completely lose consciousness.
---
---
---
As Rikka's eyes slipped shut, her body went completely limp. Saber moved instantly, catching her Master before she could slump over awkwardly on the bed.
Carefully cradling the unconscious girl, Saber looked down at her with a mix of awe and deep concern. Seeing her resting so peacefully, Saber gently laid her down on the bed right beside Irisviel.
"Seems like that sleep in Avalon wasn't enough for her," Lady Ava said, looking over at Rikka's exhausted condition.
"Obviously... she is still just a child," Saber replied as she carefully tucked a heavy blanket over Rikka's shoulders.
"Forcing her body to use that much magecraft and endure that transformation... it is a miracle her mind didn't break."
"Said the one who was just fighting that very same child," Lady Ava pointed out. A smirk crossed her face, her tone laced with literal mockery.
Saber sighed softly. "I cannot deny that. My own immaturity blinded me, making me raise my sword against a child just for a hopeless dream."
They continued their casual conversation, with Saber eventually asking when she had first met Rikka.
Lady Ava immediately started bragging about how she had been Rikka's teacher for three years.
It was the exact same story Rikka had told Saber at the mall earlier, though for Saber, that story felt like thousands of years ago because of the illusions brought on by her own stubbornness.
"Oh, right. Where is that golden woman?" Lady Ava suddenly asked, glancing around the room.
"Archer?" Saber shook her head. "She didn't follow us when we rushed back to the castle. I don't know where she went."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk," Lady Ava clicked her tongue. "The moment our Master is unconscious, that golden woman just disappears. Such an ungrateful Servant."
Right in the middle of their conversation, a soft grunt came from the bed, making both Servants turn their attention toward it.
"Ughh... Huh?" Irisviel slowly opened her eyes. She sat up, rubbing her head as she looked around in confusion. "Where? Wait, this bedroom is..."
Her eyes finally landed on the knight standing nearby. "Saber? What happened? I remember bringing ice cream to both of you and Rikka, but then I felt my body suddenly weaken and then... did we get attacked by an enemy Master?"
"Irisviel, calm down. No one attacked us," Saber said, stepping closer to calm her.
"No one? But who is this? Is that Caster? Have they been huding?" Irisviel asked, her eyes darting straight toward Lady Ava.
"Ooh, me~? I'm Caster, Reina's Servant! You can call me Lady Ava~," she chirped, throwing her arms out into a bright, theatrical idol pose.
Irisviel didn't even register the ridiculousness of the pose. Her mind was entirely derailed by what she had just heard.
"Reina's Servant? But how? What happened?" Irisviel stammered, completely failing to bridge the gap in her logic.
How did a simple afternoon trip to Shopping somehow turn into Reina accidentally acquiring a Caster-class Servant?
"No problem here!" Lady Ava announced cheerfully, reaching out to grab Saber by both shoulders and shoving her forward. "Saber will explain everything~."
"Hey!" Saber yell, roughly brushing Caster's hands off her armor. Then seeing the confusion in Irisviel's eyes, she let out a long, resigning breath.
"It is like this. After you left to get the ice cream..."