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Chapter Text

 I woke up.

The darkness covered the room and my eyes had difficulty to distinguish my surroundings clearly.

My head hurt, and for some reason, I couldn't recall the time I had gone to bed.

As I tried to move a little to touch my forehead, I realized that my entire body was covered in sweat, despite the fact that the winter season had started a few days ago.

"So damn hot…" I said, feeling uncomfortable, as I threw the sheets to one side and sit on the bed.

I moved my head and tried to take a glance at the digital clock that should be on the nightstand.

I couldn't, there was nothing there, only darkness.

"It must have run out of batteries." I thought, as I extended my hand, in hope to find the clock.

I failed, there was nothing there.

"Seriously?" I said in annoyance. It was like someone was messing with me.

Or maybe I am just too stupid and I forgot to put the clock on the nightstand, it wouldn't be the first time.

Either way, I decided that it was time to get up and take a shower or something. I didn't know the time, but I can't just go back to sleep feeling so damn filthy.

Also, the headache was getting worse. Nothing that a cold shower couldn't fix though.

I slowly walked to the door.

"...?"

The thing is, there was no door.

No matter how much I felt around the wall, I couldn't find the handle or the door itself.

"It should be around here, why can't I…?"

At that moment, something began to shine. I couldn't miss it, as it was the only thing I could see in that sea of darkness.

With curiosity, I approached the shining object, just to find a…

"A key?"

And not only that, thanks to the strange glow I could finally find the door, the bright silver key was already on the lock.

...Was I still half asleep? To forget where the door of my own room was…

I moved my hand to the key and slowly turned it.

Then as I was opening the door….something grabbed my hand.

"...!"

Something long and slimy grabbed my hand and began to pull.

I tried to resist it, but it was too strong, it dragged me through the door.

However, there was nothing behind that door, the Chaldea corridors that should be outside my room were nowhere to be seen.

It was, to put simply, empty.

Nothing existed in that space. There was no Chaldea, there were no humans, and there were no Servants.

Only "it" existed.

I couldn't see or feel it, but I knew it was there, watching my insignificant presence. Contemplating the ant that had ventured beyond its limits.

Beyond the boundary.

Before I could do anything, the thing that dragged me began to get inside my clothes, but it was not only one. There were several, multiple snake-like things began to crawl through me, covering my body from head to toe.

It was as if my whole being was swallowed by snakes, it was claustrophobic...suffocating. I wanted to scream but no words left my mouth, as one of the snakes began to squeeze my neck.

And it that moment, I realized.

Snake have scales; they are not that slimy and wet. Besides, they don't have small protrusions that seem to hold my neck so tightly.

They were not snakes, they were tentacles.

****

I woke up.

The darkness covered the room and my eyes had difficulty to distinguish my surroundings clearly.

"Ah…Ahh…Ahh…!"

My breath was agitated, my heart felt like tumbling in my chest. It was difficult to speak; words didn't come from my mouth.

My entire body was covered in sweat, despite the fact that the winter season had started a few days ago.

However, even if my body was so hot, I could feel like my left hand was freezing.

As I tried to withdraw it, I feel it. Something was touching me, five cold fingers were holding my hand with force.

"...!"

Someone was there with me. A small figure grew in the darkness, beside my bed, watching me.

Slowly, it approached, until being exactly above my face.

What I managed to see at that moment was the face of a beautiful blonde young girl…completely disturbed by an unnatural lock-shaped hole on her forehead, a pitch black hollow that appeared to be even darker in the absence of light.

"Did you have a nightmare, Master? You seem agitated." The person said, and I immediately recognize her.

"Is that you...Abby?" I asked, my voice, ragged.

She responded by putting both hands on mine.

"It's okay, Master." She smiled. "Everything is alright; I am here, by your side."

Abigail Williams, my servant, approached even more; until I could almost feel her cold breath on my face.

"You are not alone, and you will never be again, Master." She whispered.

END OF THE PROLOGUE

Chapter Text

I woke up.

A loud sound echoed in my room, indicating the beginning of the day.

"Ahhh...shut up… I am already awake." I almost smashed my alarm clock. With a "click" the annoying sound finally stopped.

With difficult, I sat on the bed. A sharp pain ran through my entire body.

"Ahhhh…my head…what did I do yesterday?"

I had the impression that sleeping helps to rest the body, not the opposite. So why do I feel like a truck just ran over me?

"Did I drink some of Shuten's sake? No, I am no that stupid…I think"

Well, no use suffering alone here. Maybe Roman can give me a painkiller if I go to the infirmary.

I finally abandoned the bed. I briefly thought about doing some stretching before showering, but immediately reject the idea. It was impossible with this headache.

I undressed and began to make my way to the shower.

"Let's see…the last thing I remember is…"

Talking with Da Vinci. Yes, I was talking with her about our schedule for the day…but that was yesterday morning. What did I do for the rest of the day?

I entered the shower, and slowly turned the water on, in hope that a cold shower was enough to put my aching head at ease.

But no water came from the shower, no matter how much I turned the faucet.

"Huh…It's one of those days." I said, resigned.

Did we have a shortage of water or was my shower just malfunctioning? I didn't know. What I know was that I can't bath, and the headache was getting worst.

"It's no use; I just ask to use the bath of another room…" I said to myself, I didn't even have the strength to be angry.

I was about to exit the bath when I heard something.

Footsteps.

"…?"

Someone was in my room without my permission, again.

Did Kiyohime try to get in my bed again? I can't let her see me like this or things will get ugly…Or was it just Mashu? It wouldn't be rare for her to come to wake me up in the morning. Not that I could let her see me like this either.

Just to be safe, I decided to put my ear on the door and wait.

I could still hear the footsteps; they came and went throughout the room, almost as if that person was looking for something and wasn't finding it.

Come to think of it, why would someone enter my room without knocking? I mean, we are all friends and all but I could be in a compromising situation, like about to bathe, naked.

Maybe it was Kiyohime after all…

While I was pondering that, I realize that the footsteps were getting closer and closer.

Wait…they aren't going to enter the bath, aren't they? Why would…?

The doorknob moved.

…!

I quickly put all my weight to the door, preventing the door from being opened. The doorknob move again, this time, more violently, that person really wanted to enter.

However, after some time, the pushes stopped and the doorknob stopped moving.

"…hello?" I said, against my better judgment. If it really was Kiyohime, then she would now say something like "Achin-sama, let me in, I want to wash your back." and proceed to push the door again.

But to my surprise, no voice came from behind the door. Everything went quiet.

I opened the door a bit and took a peek outside; my room was exactly as I left it, with my bed being a mess and the light turned off.

"…"

I didn't know what to think. Did that person already leave? Why did they want to enter the bath so much? I swear these servants of mine can do so pretty strange things.

*Scene Break*

"Hmmm, everything seems fine." Roman said, talking the stethoscope out of his ears and putting it in one of the pockets of his white coat.

"You said that, but my head still hurts like hell." I replied, a bit annoyed.

"We still don't know what exactly cause the migraines. "He began to explain. "There are a lot of factors like stress, change in the clime or even problems in the brain. The least I could say is that it seems to be nothing serious."

"Maybe stress has finally begun to affect me."

"It could be it. I'll give you something to ease the headaches." He looked away from me and began to look for painkillers in the top shelves. "By the way, did you sleep well last night? You seem tired."

"I am…not sure." I confessed. "Actually I can't remember what happened yesterday."

He looked back at me with horror.

"Hey Guda...why didn't you say that before? That's not normal! Memory loss at your age could be a really serious problem…!" Roman said, actually worried.

"But you said I was fine right? No brain issues or anything like that…"

"Yes…everything looked fine in the check-ups…but what could-" He was wondering when he seemed to suddenly reach a conclusion. "Wait, memory loss, migraine…you didn't drink Shuten's sake right?"

"…"

Poor Shuten, we shouldn't think so badly of her…not that much.

"I don't think so, but as I said, I don't remember too much. Didn't you see me yesterday by chance, Roman?"

"No, sorry, I was buried in a mountain of paperwork and I couldn't leave the office…but I do remember something."

"…?"

"Da Vinci briefly came to my office yesterday; she said that you were about to perform thr summoning of a new servant."

Summoning a servant? So that's what I was doing…but why can't I remember it? What happened during the ritual?"

"Maybe you should ask her for more details."

"Yeah, I'll better do that." I was about to leave when another headache assaulted me. "Ah…Roman, could you give me at least some painkillers? This pain is getting on my nerves."

"Sorry Guda, I can't give you any medication if I don't know what exactly happened to you. You will have to bear it for now."

"...Alright, you are the doctor." I sighed, and leave the room, a bit unsatisfied.

*Scene Break*

Having decided to visit Da Vinci's workshop for explanations, I walked through the empty Chaldea corridors. Maybe she could tell me what I did yesterday and why I can't remember any of it.

Alone I was when, having walked through what looked like the same hallway for a while, I started noticing something weird.

Since I left the infirmary, I have not encountered a single person or servant.

Normally I would meet a servant or two and probably get forcefully dragged into their antics, that was basically my life outside of doing rayshifts and solving singularities. But today was different, everything was weirdly peaceful.

Not that I don't welcome a change of pace once in a while. However, the fact that I hadn't encountered any Chaldea staff either began to worry me.

Where was everyone?

Worst of all, the headache was getting stronger.

"Damn…" I touched my head. The pain was actually becoming unbearable. Maybe I should just postpone going to Da Vinci's and rest a little bit.

I was about to turn back and went back to my room when I lost my footing.

"…!"

Luckily I manage to stop my fall just before touching the floor.

"Ah…" Suddenly I began to feel bad…really bad. It was not only the headache now, but my vision was also begging to blur, to the point it was difficult to keep standing.

"What…what is happening to me?"

I put my arm on the nearest wall to prevent falling off again, but I was not okay. I didn't know what was happening to me, but I needed help.

The world around me seemed to dance as my vision became more and more blurry. The corridor in front of me had become a strange mess of colors and forms.

While I walked glued to the wall, trying not to fall, I notice something.

A door.

Or at least something that resembled a door in the sea of colors that had become Chaldea.

"Help…" I tried to shout, but only a cracked low voice came out of my mouth. It's no use, nobody will hear me. I had to reach that door.

With difficult, I advanced to the door and when I was finally close by, with all the strength I could muster, I hit it.

The door was not locked, and I fall inside the room as it was opened.

What awaited me on the other side was darkness, the lights of the room were turned off.

"Help…" I said again, doing my best to crawl inside the room. But nobody answered; the room was empty.

All my efforts were for nothing.

My consciousness was slowly fading, but at the last moments, I could hear something.

Footsteps.

Slow and heavy footsteps could be heard coming from the darkness, until they were so close that I could hear them next to me.

But they didn't stop; they passed by me, and continue their way to what I think was the door.

What follows was the loud sound of the door being closed.

And then, I lost consciousness.

*Scene Break*

I felt like I was floating in the air, as if my body was weightless.

A sensation of comfort went all over my body. No trace was left of the pain that previously tormented me. Instead, I felt a warm sensation, a gentle embrace, like a child on his mother's arms.

I felt at peace with the world, like I had just born anew.

"Are you comfortable, Master?" I could hear a woman's voice calling me.

I didn't recognize it… but hearing it was strange. That voice…it was relaxing, calming... so calming that I almost forget to respond.

"I fell as I could sleep forever." Was all I could say to her, and those were my sincere feelings.

"You can continue resting then, I don't mind." She spoke again, with the same peaceful tone." Just close your eyes and relax, Master."

"Thank you…" I closed my half-open eyes again.

"Sweet dreams, Master."

And so I did, all my desire to wake up disappeared and I indulged in the dream world once again.

There will be time to worry later, for now, it was time to sleep.

*Scene Break*

I woke up with a yawn, feeling extremely relieved.

Nothing beat a good night of rest. I think I almost forgot the last time I slept so well.

"Good morning, Master."

"Good morning. Man, I feel so good. I slept like a baby."

"I am glad to be helpful."

I got up and prepared to do some stretching. I shouldn't neglect my daily morning stretching since it important for-

Wait. Did someone just greet me?"

I slowly turned my head to discover a girl I didn't recognize. Her long hair was blonde and her eyes were navy blue. She wore a black long dress, decorated with dozen of orange and violet ribbons. In her head rested a small hat of the same color as her dress and in her hands was a stuffed animal, maybe a bear.

The unknown girl was sat on the bed, and she was smiling at me.

"…"

I looked at her, and she looked at me. And that's all we did for two minutes straight.

"Ah…I am still asleep?" I began to talk to myself, while bringing my hand to my forehead. "Why I am dreaming about little girls on my bed….that is dangerous."

"Master?" The girl looked at me, with a curious expression on her face.

"Hello little lady, what are you doing in my room?" I approached her. I may as well see where this is going.

"Hmm, this is not your room, Master. This is actually my room."

"That's strange, then why was I sleeping in your room?"

"You came to me yesterday, you looked really bad, so I let you sleep on my lap." The girl said, smiling while patting his lap.

"Oh…Is that so…?"

That sounded awfully familiar...

Wait, I remember now. I was feeling ill and ended up collapsing as I entered a room. Then that means…

"This isn't a dream…right?"

"Hmm, I am awake so…I don't think so." The girl answered while tilting her head.

"Arrgghh, I am so sorry, where are my manners…" I deeply apologize to the girl. "Thank you for taking care of me A-"

I stopped; suddenly realizing that I didn't know this person.

"Again, I am sorry but…who are you? I don't remember seeing you around here."

The girl expression suddenly turned grim, as her eyes turned downcast.

"So you don't remember…" Her voice had lost its cheerfulness, and it was replaced by a sad tone.

Oh shit.

What have I done? Did I just hurt this girl's feelings? But I truly don't know who she is. Did she perhaps know me from somewhere? Was I supposed to recognize her?

I thought really hard about her.

"Could you be the new servant that I summoned yesterday? I happen to have trouble remembering what happened yesterday so…"

"Yes, I am your servant." She said, still crestfallen. "I am your servant..."

Maybe I really did hurt her feelings. I have to fix this now.

"I am really sorry for forgetting." I was about to pat her head but decided against it, we weren't that close, so I just kneeled down so to be face to face. "Think we can start this over again?"

The girl finally looked at me, and nodded wordlessly.

"In that case, I am Guda, your Master." I said as I smiled and extended my hand to her. "Nice to meet you."

She looked at my hand with a somewhat doubtful expression, but finally took it on a handshake, her hand still covered by the sleeve of her large black dress.

"I am Abigail Williams. I am from the Caster Class." She sounded a bit happier now. "If it's okay with you, please call me Abby, Master."

END OF CHAPTER 1

Chapter Text

"Abby is it, then." I let her hand go. "By the way, don't you happen to have a clock…?" I looked around Abigail's room, it was unnaturally empty. Except for the bed she was sat down, there was no sight of decorations or any other furniture. "…or anything at all?"

"Ah, sorry Master, I still haven't finished moving to the room. But if you are worried about the time, it should be around morning."

So I spent the whole night here with Abby…? I knew I was a heavy sleeper, but not this much.

"Well, since it's apparently morning already, do you want to have breakfast with me? I am quite hungry."

I have not eaten anything since yesterday, after all.

"Breakfast? Sure!" She jumped from the bed, cheerfully. "Can we have pancakes, Master?"

"Pancakes?" I raised an eyebrow before such specific request, must be her favorite. "Sure, why not. I'll ask Emiya or whoever is in charge today to prepare them for you."

"Yay!" Her eyes seemed to shine at my response.

Seeing her so cheerful after what happened put a smile on my face. Hopefully, whatever misunderstanding we had would be cleared by now, as I would hate to develop a bad relationship with one of my servants.

Although I still don't know why I forget about yesterday…well, the day before yesterday, but's that not the point.

Maybe Abigail knows something.

"Abby?"

"Hmm? Is something wrong, Master?" She was already by the door, with her hand of the doorknob. Did she want to eat pancakes that much?

"No, nothing. I just wanted to know if something strange happened during your summoning."

"Hmmmm." She brought her hand, which was hidden by the oversized sleeve of her dress, to her chin as if she was trying to recall something. "Strange like what?"

"Anything you think it was out of place."

"Hmmm." Abby thought a bit more. "Sorry Master, everything felt so new and different that I was a bit overwhelmed." She looked a bit embarrassed while saying that. "So I couldn't notice anything weird."

She sounded sincere, so I decided not to press the issue. I still have to ask Da Vinci anyway.

"I see. Well, it doesn't matter. Let's go eat something, shall we?"

"Yes!" She happily nodded.

*Scene Break*

Despite her obvious enthusiasm with pancakes, I inferred that Abby was actually a bit shy.

As we walked through the corridors of Chaldea, I noticed that she kept trying to be one step behind me. Even when I tried to lower my pace as to be side by side with her, she lowered hers even more.

A few quick glances at her revealed that she seemed a bit nervous, as she was constantly looking at her surroundings; no doubt still unfamiliar with Chaldea.

It was a strange thought, the idea of a Servant being timid, knowing that this little girl was probably stronger than most grown men in the building. Although maybe I am kind of guilty to assume that every young-looking Servant has a special reason to be like that.

A collection of wraiths born from resentment in the case of Jack, a concept taking human form like Nursery Rhyme or a young version of a fictional spirit of vengeance like Jeanne Lily, all these cases made me forget that a genuine human child from the past could have been recorded in the Throne of Heroes.

Not that I treat any of them like they weren't real children, but Abigail felt…different, for a reason I didn't fully understand yet.

Maybe because she just arrived, I see her more like a child than a Servant.

"Have you had the chance to speak with any other Servants?" A question came from my mouth, simple enough to help break the tension that I presumed she was feeling.

"Ah?" She seemed surprised. "Not really, I haven't had the chance to speak with others besides Master and Da Vinci-san."

I see, that could explain her nervousness.

"Well, here in Chaldea we have a great variety of people, even other children so I am sure you will make friends quickly." I said, but I couldn't help but to grimace. "Although some Servant can be a bit..."

Strange, creepy, downright maniac.

"…extravagant, but that's how they are, so don't take it too seriously if they start doing weird things, shouting or even fighting at random."

"Eh...alright?" A complicated expression was drawn in Abigail's face.

Yeah, that's how everyone reacts at first. Most of them would get used to it with time.

I am not sure if I am among them, though.

*Scene Break*

After some time, we finally arrived at the cafeteria. Surprisingly enough, it was quite empty compared to most days. I could only see some Chaldea staff drinking coffee in one of the tables.

I waved at them as we headed to the cafeteria counter, only to find a huge gray shutter with a sign hanging from it.

"Closed" was written on it.

"So that's why there is no one here…"

How strange, usually there is at least one Servant here. It isn't rare to find Raikou, Emiya, or Tamamo cooking at some point of the day, maybe they are busy.

"Tough luck, Guda." I heard a man's voice from behind me. "Lunch just ended a few minutes ago."

I turned around; it was one of the men on the table who spoke.

"Ah…damn, if only we got here a little earlier…" I lamented, until I noticed his wording. "Wait, lunch? Isn't it time for breakfast?"

"Breakfast?" He looked at me with the same confusion. "Who would eat breakfast at two o'clock?"

"Two o'clock…?" My eyes naturally went to the clock hanging from the wall; the hands effectively marked the hour: quarter past two.

Oh.

"It seems we have miscalculated the time, didn't we, Abby?" When I turned around to speak with my newest servant, I found that she was still staring at the closed cafeteria.

She released a big sigh.

"No pancakes today, huh." She seemed disappointed.

"Oh, I don't remember seeing you before, little one." The man apparently just noticed Abby. "Nice to meet you, are you a Servant?"

Abby responded by turning her face to look at the man for just a moment, and then going back to stare at the cafeteria counter.

"Eh…did I say something wrong?"

"You are scaring her with your face, dude." One of the men that were with him said in a mocking tone.

"I too would be scared if I was her." Added another.

"Oi…! That can't be!" He touched his face with some degree of concern. "That's a lie, right Guda?"

"Eh…" I tried my best not to laugh. "Don't worry, your face is perfectly normal. Abigail here is just new to Chaldea. I am sure she will get use to all of you with time."

"If you say so…" The man said, but he looked a bit sad.

"Come on dude, stop scaring the kid." Said one of the men while he stood up. "We have work to do."

"Okay…" The crestfallen man and his group abandoned the cafeteria between laughs.

"Hahaha." I chuckled a bit once they were no longer visible. "Be sure to greet him properly next time, Abby. We don't want to bully the poor dude too much…"

"Eh…?" She answered me, somewhat confused. "Greet whom, Master?"

"…? The man that just talked to you."

She looked at me as if I were speaking in another language.

"Ah…yes!" She seems to suddenly snap out of her confusion. "Sorry, I was still thinking about how we missed breakfast that I didn't notice him." She made an awkward smile.

"…"

…It looked more like she ignored him on purpose?

"A-anyway, we may have missed breakfast, but we still can have lunch together, don't you think so, Master?"

"Uh, that would be nice but…now that there is no one here…hmmm…how do I say it?" Now it was my turn to be awkward.

I could almost see question marks appearing above Abby's head.

"Ah, sorry Abby, your Master here doesn't know how to cook at all." I finally admitted.

"Ah…Is that so?" She said, while trying to suppress a smile and failing.

"Please don't look at me like that."

"Oh, no, no, it's fine! Everyone has things they aren't good at!" She tried to reassure me, but her smile didn't leave her face."

I really should learn how to cook for times like these; I can't always depend on Emiya and the others for my meals forever.

"While I am not that good at cooking myself, I used to watch the servants cook a lot when I was…hmm…alive."For a second, I could feel sadness in her voice, but it was so fast that it could have been my imagination. "So if you can find me ingredients, maybe I can cook for both of us?"

Disregarding the shame of knowing that a kid knows how to cook better than me, that doesn't sound like a bad idea.

I could always ask any other servant to help us but…this may be the perfect chance to get to know more about Abigail.

"Sure, why not. There are ingredients in the cafeteria storage, let me go ask for the key and we can start…"

"Ah, don't worry." She interrupted me. "That won't be necessary."

With an expression that said "leave it to me!" Abby walked to the closed storage door. She then introduced a hand on her sleeve and took something from inside it.

A small key; its silver shine was notorious even in broad daylight.

She proceeded to put the key in the keyhole, and the door opened effortlessly.

"There you go! What do you think about that, Master?" She asked, proudly.

"Hmm, so were you actually a burglar, Abby?"

"Ehhh!?"

"I mean, with that ability no door stand a chance against you." I teased her a bit. "I can actually picture you sneaking into people's houses at night and taking their belongings."

"I was a normal citizen!"

"Hahaha,I am joking, but that ability is quite handy, isn't it?" I said, as I entered the storage. The lights of the room were off, and I could hardly see a thing between the multiples shelves of canned and non-perishable food. "Does it work just with doors? Or with locks too?"

I heard Abigail following me inside the room, but she didn't answer immediately.

Meanwhile I looked for the switch in the dark, until I finally found it. It made a *click* sound when I pressed it, but the lights remained off. Was there something wrong with the light bulbs?

"I can open gates." Abby finally said.

"Gates…? So just doors."

"No, that's wrong, Master."

"Huh...What do you-?"

"Everything is a gate."

Suddenly, a sharp, loud sound began to echo in my head, similar to a whistle being used inside my head. It was immediately followed by a headache, like the one I had yesterday.

"Everything that can be ****, is a gate."

Abby spoke, but I didn't manage to understand some of her words, the whistle was sometimes loud enough to cancel all other sounds.

"*****, Master?

Abby was looking at me now, apparently noticing that something wasn't quite right with me.

"Ah, sorry Abby, what did you say?"

"I asked if **** are alright, you *** pale." Abby sounded worried.

"Ahhh…actually… I…I am not feeling well."I confessed, it was no use trying to hide my condition. "Can I ask you a favor, Abby? Can you help me sit down? I don't know if I will be able to walk by myself…"

"***; leave it to me."

She put one of my arms above her back, her lower height helped her to support my body.

I normally would die of shame if I knew a child was helping me move, but knowing that she is doing so effortlessly bring some peace to my damaged pride.

She guided me to what I presume was one of the wooden boxes in the storage, there I sat down.

The temperature in the room started to raise, a few drops of sweat fell down my forehead. My body was weak, and I felt weightless.

I was definitely not okay.

"You ***, let me ****"

"Ah? Sorry Abby, I didn't-"

Before I realized, she took my head with both hands, and brought it close to her own.

Our foreheads touched and I had to suppress a scream. It was like touching ice, her forehead was unnaturally cold, almost frozen. Or was my body temperature that high?

"Hmmm, you *** burning. Could it be fever?"

"Ahh…maybe, I…I haven't been feeling well these days."

It's happening again…these recurring headaches can't be normal. If it's the same as before, I will start to lose consciousness soon, just like yesterday.

"I hate to ask you for more, but can you let Roman know that I am here? He must be in the command room and…wait, you don't where the command room is, right? Maybe I can make you a map…"

"Master." She interrupted me. "Will you let me try something? I think I can help."

"Oh…?"

At that point, I realized that I knew basically nothing about Abby's abilities as a Servant. It was unlikely, but maybe she has healing-like abilities like Medea Lily and Nightingale?

"If you say you can help…then I trust you, Abby."

And why wouldn't I?

"If you excuse me then…" Just as before, she put her hand on her oversized sleeve. However, this time she took an iron-like bar, which was pretty much half her height.

The bar shone in the dark with a gray tone, just like the key before. At the end of it, I could see a protrusion forming some kind of pattern.

"Eh…? What is that?"

"Everything is a gate, Master, even the human body." She took the bar with both hands. "You only need the proper key to open it."

"A key…? Is that what that thing is?" Now that she said it, it looked something like a key, a giant iron key.

"It's okay Master, just relax. I'll be done before you realize it."

"No, seriously, what are you-" I stopped.

No, I was forced to stop.

My body was paralyzed, no matter how much I tried to stop what was happening, my body didn't respond, I couldn't move a single finger. I couldn't even move my eyes, which simply continued staring at the girl in front of me.

That giant iron bar, the key, was forcefully introduced in my forehead. The thing passed thought my head without drawing a single drop of blood or leaving any kind wound. It was like my skin and bones were no longer solid and had adopted a liquid state.

I couldn't possibly see it, but I felt it. It was inside of me. The key went directly to my brain, the key was connected to my brain.

"The human brain is fragile; there are some stimuli that the mind isn't prepared to feel or known. Their sole presence can throw it into disarray." Abby spoke, calmly. "But don't worry Master, I can fix it for you."

"A-a-abby?" A ragged voice came from my mouth.

"You'll become aware of the gate, Master."

Then, she turned the key.

And my brain exploded.

END OF CHAPTER 3