The light morning rain washed the entire city. Raindrops hung from the branches and fell slowly. The fresh air couldn't help but soothe one's spirit.
Arriving at school early in the morning, Ritsuka was the Student on duty today, so she planned to do some cleaning in advance. This way, she could finish faster when school ended, making it convenient to pick up Miyu and go home together.
At nearly sixteen years old this year, she was already a second-year student in high school, but there were only a few classes in the entire high school department, making the school seem quite deserted.
Walking through the corridor, Ritsuka scanned Fuyuki through the window with a touch of emotion, "After all, it's been through two major disasters consecutively, so a reduced population is inevitable."
She took out the key, opened the door, and walked into the empty classroom. This key was given to her by the on-duty teacher when she passed the staff office, as it was usually the first student in the class to arrive who would pick up the key.
Opening the windows for ventilation and taking out a broom to quickly sweep away the dust, Ritsuka's thoughts gradually drifted.
Nearly five years had passed since Kiritsugu's death, and she and Miyu had been living a more ordinary and frugal life than when Kiritsugu was alive, as the source of income was a major issue.
Ritsuka, being underage, initially relied entirely on Fujimura Raiga's assistance to stubbornly support herself until she could work odd jobs. With physical abilities far surpassing her peers, she could handle three people's worth of work at once, practically a legend in the industry.
The great fire in Shinto ten years ago, and the black mud that swept through half of Miyama Town five years ago, severely reduced the population of Fuyuki City.
Actually, it was better for it to be a bit deserted. Although Miyu had been picked up and dropped off at school by Ritsuka for a long time, if there were more people, things would become complicated, and it would be terrible if Miyu's existence was discovered by certain individuals with ulterior motives.
The power of the Divine Child disappearing from Miyu didn't mean things would settle completely, because she always remembered in her memories that something would happen to Miyu.
She couldn't recall the specific situation, but she remained vigilant.
As Miyu grew older, her changes were significant, so Ritsuka wasn't too worried about Miyu being recognized. She herself had also made changes, even switching her favorite long, flowing hair to a single ponytail.
She had never casually used her magic outside the Emiya Residence... Although the disguise method was quite simple, Ritsuka, who hadn't systematically learned basic magecraft, could only do so much. She had no other means besides brute force.
In short, if she used her fists, Ritsuka could easily take down over a dozen adult men by herself; she had tested this at the Fujimura Group.
But if it involved techniques like using magecraft to disguise herself, then she was sorry, she hadn't even mastered the most basic things, and even the everyday divine skill of hypnotic magecraft, she only knew a little.
"Phew~ That's about enough cleaning, time to wrap up."
Ritsuka wiped her forehead with the back of her hand, even though there was no sweat, then neatly placed the broom back in the corner, preparing to do some coursework in advance.
A silhouette appeared in the doorway, the faint morning light illuminating someone's back. "Senpai."
However, before she could even sit down, a soft voice echoed from the doorway. A slender girl stood there, her long purple hair fluttering in the wind blowing in from the window.
Her jewel-like purple eyes met someone's gaze for a moment. The girl playfully blinked, and only then did Ritsuka react.
With a slight smile, Ritsuka glanced at the time, a little surprised. "Sakura, you're here so early today? Aren't you usually only here just before class starts?"
The classes at Honnoubara Academy were quite relaxed. High school morning classes started at eight o'clock, and she knew that Sakura, who had a habit of sleeping in, usually woke up naturally and then groggily rushed to class.
So, her words also carried a hint of teasing.
"Senpai, are you saying I'm lazy? Hmph, so what if I'm lazy? Is there something wrong with waking up naturally?"
Narrowing her eyes, Sakura pouted discontentedly. Her adorable chubby cheeks made Ritsuka's hands itch, wanting to reach out and pinch them; the feel would surely be wonderful.
But she quickly cut off the incredibly tempting thought in her mind, instead returning to her seat and taking a pink bento box from her backpack, handing it to Sakura. "Here, today's lunch."
Inside the insulated bento box was lunch Ritsuka had prepared early that morning, three portions in total, one each for her, Miyu, and Sakura, all individually packaged.
Ritsuka, excellent at housework and accustomed to caring for others, had always looked after Sakura during their interactions, including preparing her lunch, as Sakura was a year younger than her.
Witnessing Sakura transform from occasionally showing her reclusive side to becoming a campus celebrity, Ritsuka felt truly gratified just by seeing Sakura's smile during their daily conversations. Their relationship deepened faster than she had imagined.
Ever since she gave Sakura the red panda doll as a gift... Sakura hugged the lunch box, feeling its warmth, a relaxed smile blooming on her face. "By the way, Senpai, are we still going to pick up Miyu together today?"
"Ah, that's right. I even came early today specifically to clean up. Being an older sister is quite difficult."
Half-closing the classroom door, Ritsuka clapped her hands, brushing off all the dust.
Though she complained verbally, the happy expression Ritsuka unconsciously revealed betrayed her true feelings, making Sakura also laugh along.
Who wouldn't like a child as adorable as Miyu?
"Oh, right, we still have some time. Sakura, do you want to come with me to the Kyudo Club?"
At the teacher's request, Ritsuka, who was also the Kyudo Club's captain, planned to clean the dojo and perhaps shoot a few arrows to relax.
Anyway, it was there for the taking. Since she was the captain, she naturally called the shots in the three-person Kyudo Club.
Hearing this, Sakura, who was putting her lunch into her backpack, gently nodded. "Mm-hmm, I want to go too."
Walking through the empty corridor, they only passed two male students. With Fuyuki City's population not increasing, the number of students at Private Honnoubara Academy naturally couldn't be helped. If this continued, the school might close down due to a lack of enrollment.
But none of this concerned Ritsuka... Swinging the dojo key in her hand, Ritsuka asked without looking back, "Oh, by the way, Sakura, is Shinji still sleeping in?"
"Brother? He's probably still sleeping in."
Sakura smiled helplessly. As a friend she had known for a year, Shinji's only characteristic in Ritsuka's impression was being a lazy pig, though he wasn't a bad person.
He was a decent boy, at least his attitude as an older brother towards Sakura was quite proper.
"As the vice-captain of the Kyudo Club, being so lazy won't do, even if Taiga dragged him in just to make up the numbers."
Fujimura Taiga, the Tiger of Fuyuki, was also a major feature of Honnoubara High School. Their school's club requirement was a minimum of three people, and getting Sakura to join was already Ritsuka's limit.
Shinji was incredibly lazy; if it weren't for Taiga's glaring eyes and roaring, he would definitely be a member of the 'go-home club'.
Reaching the end of a corridor, Ritsuka inserted the key into the keyhole and paused slightly. The main door, which had been locked last night, was now unlocked. Someone had entered after she and Sakura left yesterday.
Sakura and Ritsuka exchanged a glance, then slowly pushed open the door, poking half their heads in and squinting at the seaweed-haired boy who was cleaning. Hearing the movement, Shinji turned slightly to look at the doorway, greeting them listlessly, "Good morning."
After a moment of silence, Ritsuka pulled Sakura back out under Shinji's puzzled gaze—
"Oh my god, Shinji is actually cleaning voluntarily!"
"You're so loud! You jerks, if Teacher Taiga hadn't dragged me out early this morning, do you think I'd be willing to come?!"