Adam braced himself against the corridor wall in Chaldea, dry-heaving over and over.
The spacetime jump had left his entire body rebelling.
Void Shiki stood right beside him, gently rubbing his back in slow, soothing circles. Somehow her touch carried a subtle power that eased the nausea almost instantly.
"How are you feeling? Any better now?"
She seemed a little surprised he hadn't simply passed out. Even with her protection, most people would have blacked out the moment they crossed through spacetime.
Yet Adam had only felt sick and queasy.
Once the churning in his stomach finally settled, he turned to her with genuine gratitude.
"Shiki, thank goodness you were there. I almost didn't make it this time."
Void Shiki smiled softly, clearly enjoying the way he needed her.
"I'm just glad I could help."
Then Adam noticed something strange. In that final second back in the Singularity, he hadn't even pressed the deployment button.
He glanced at his Servant roster. All six slots were empty. No one had been summoned.
That meant Void Shiki standing in front of him right now wasn't a Servant called forth by his system at all.
She had come on her own.
The real question was—how?
He knew she could perform limited spacetime travel and even bring someone along. But how had she known the exact moment he was in danger? Especially when time in his original Chaldea had essentially been frozen.
Puzzled, he looked at her.
"Shiki… how did you know where I was?"
Void Shiki opened her mouth, hesitated, then simply said:
"That's… a secret."
Adam raised an eyebrow.
A secret?
That only made him more curious. If he weren't feeling so awful right now, he would have kept pressing until she told him everything.
Void Shiki watched his confused expression and smiled to herself, quietly wondering whether she should confess that she had been watching over him the entire time.
Adam's body, however, was already reaching its limit. The moment the worst of the nausea passed, a crushing wave of exhaustion crashed down on him.
Before he had even arrived at Singularity F, he had spent an entire day farming materials until he was mentally and physically drained. He had barely lain down when he was yanked into the Singularity, then fought through everything that followed.
On top of that, he had just survived a genuine life-or-death crisis.
Now that he was safe with Void Shiki, every ounce of tension he had been holding finally let go.
The sudden release left him utterly spent. His eyelids felt like lead.
But he still couldn't rest. There was too much to do.
Olga Marie's body still needed to be reconstructed.
This Chaldea had just survived an explosion and was critically low on power—they needed the Grail.
The Heroic Spirit summoning system here hadn't been upgraded yet.
And seven more Singularities plus the Final Singularity still lay ahead. He needed to start preparing.
His body, however, had already sent a very clear message: it was done.
No problem.
Adam mentally pulled up one of the divine artifacts he had obtained through the system…
The Silver Apple.
One bite and half his stamina would return instantly.
Come on, body. I know you're exhausted, but just hold on until I finish working, alright?
Void Shiki's gentle expression vanished the moment she saw the Silver Apple. Her brows knitted together.
Just as Adam lifted it to his mouth, the apple was plucked from his fingers.
He blinked at her, confused.
"Why'd you take my apple?"
He reached out to grab it back, but with a quick turn of her wrist the Silver Apple disappeared completely.
Looking at the exhausted, dazed Adam, Void Shiki's face grew unusually serious.
"Pushing your body this hard is not allowed. When you're tired, you rest properly."
Adam gave a small, tired smile. Her concern warmed him from the inside.
"But there's still so much I have to—"
"No." Void Shiki shook her head, refusing to budge. "Look at yourself. Those dark circles are back again."
Adam scratched the back of his head, both touched and a little helpless.
"It can't be helped…"
There really were too many things only he could handle in this world.
Void Shiki stopped listening. Instead she cupped his face with both hands and gently stroked the dark rings under his eyes.
"I know exactly how your body feels right now—better than you do."
"Your head is pounding. Your eyelids are heavy. Your mind is foggy."
"Even if you ate that apple, it would only restore your physical strength. It can't heal mental exhaustion."
She sighed. Part of the reason she had pulled him through spacetime was so the shock would knock him unconscious for a while and force him to rest. She hadn't expected him to endure it all on pure willpower.
"I hate seeing you like this."
"What you need right now is real rest."
"You don't have to be so strict with yourself. Taking a break every once in a while is necessary."
Adam slowly wrapped his fingers around the hand still caressing his cheek. Seeing her dead-serious expression, he finally surrendered.
"…Alright. Resting properly for once does sound nice."
"Especially with you."
Hand in hand, the two of them walked to the 48th Master's bedroom.
Adam opened the door with practiced ease and stepped inside.
Just as he was about to collapse onto the bed, Void Shiki moved the pillow aside, sat down in its place, and patted her thigh invitingly.
Adam smiled with quiet understanding. He rested his head on her lap, and almost instantly fell into a deep, exhausted sleep.
However… the utterly drained Adam had completely forgotten one small detail.
At that very moment, Ritsuka Fujimaru was also trudging down the corridor toward the same 48th Master's room, her own tired body moving on autopilot.
***
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