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"Come on in." Shirou offered, pulling his shoes off as he entered the Lobby, Xenovia eyeing her surroundings warily "The shards should be in my caretaker's office. Feel free to make yourself at home while I get them."
"There's no need, please make all haste." Xenovia muttered, her features stern as she took in her surroundings, allowing the redhead to disappear into the structure.
At first glance, it appeared to be a simple bachelor's pad, complete with a bar, assorted games consoles piled neatly near the wall-mounted television and, she was disgusted to note, pornographic magazines hidden beneath other, less illicit types.
What truly set her on edge, however, was the lingering feeling of power permeating the structure. It didn't feel threatening, simply overpowering, and whatever it was, it had clearly been here recently, which made her wonder just who this 'caretaker' Emiya claimed to be living with could be.
'He claims to not be affiliated with any faction or Magical Circle, yet this mansion is clearly the result of serious expenditure, to say nothing of the power I sense within the walls alone.' She muttered, her expression unreadable as she kept an eye out for possible attackers 'Whoever they are, they're easily a match for the Sitri and Gremory heiresses…could it be?'
She trailed off in surprise at the sight, of all things, a King Charles Bible resting on a shelf nearby. A shelf, she was surprised to note upon further examination, that contained copies of almost all the holy texts from the Abrahamic factions, and even examples from other faiths, all in pristine condition and, to her shock, all 'First Editions', though it was clear they'd been read through several times.
"Got them." Shirou called out, snapping Xenovia out of her thoughts, the wielder of Destruction looking up in time to see the Redhead returning with a plastic bag that rattled as he moved "Sorry to keep you waiting. Is something wrong?"
"It's nothing." Xenovia assured him, calming herself with a breath before turning her attention back to the assembled holy texts "I thought you said you and your father were atheists?"
"I am, and he was." Shirou confirmed, following her line of sight and understanding the reasoning behind the question "My Caretaker's something of a completionist. Be it videogames to works of literature, he's gotta have one of each before he can feel satisfied."
"I see…" Xenovia muttered, unsure how to feel about someone treating any holy text, even those not associated with the one true God, as a collector's item but deciding to put such thoughts aside for now. For one thing, it wasn't her job to correct the ways of Heathens, for another, she had a more pressing task to prepare for "Let us be off then."
Still, as she stood waiting for Shirou to lock up, Xenovia couldn't help but feel as if she'd just walked out of the Lion's Den, sending a sharp glare at a passing crow whose sudden flight startled her from her reverie.
"Yeah, the crows like to gather around here for some reason." Shirou admitted, scowling after the feathered fiend pointedly "I keep saying we should get an exterminator in but he says they give the place atmosphere." He paused to look at her in concern "You okay?"
"I'm fine!" Xenovia snapped, instantly on the defensive, only to sigh at his concerned frown "No, it's nothing, really. I'm just frustrated at how things have turned out. First Irina spends all our money on that God-Forsaken Forgery and now we're forced to rely on Devils and Heathens to accomplish our Holy Mission."
"If it's any consolation, you can always say you threatened us to cooperate." Shirou replied dryly, earning a scoff from the girl "Still, I'm surprised the Vatican only sent the two of you in. You'd think something like the Excaliburs being stolen would rate more than a two-man-effort."
"It's precisely because the Excaliburs were stolen that the Church could only afford to send us." Xenovia muttered darkly, "You have to understand, the Excaliburs are a symbol of God's power on earth, a symbol of the unity between the three main branches of Christendom. For even one to be left unaccounted for was a mark of shame on us all, for THREE to be stolen right under our noses, and by a Fallen no less, just rubbed salt in the wound."
"What are these Fallen you keep mentioning?" Shirou enquired, sighing at the look of disbelief the Exorcist sent his way "Atheist, remember? I didn't exactly grow up reading the good book."
"Don't remind me." Xenovia groaned, glancing at his left arm, clearly more troubled by the idea of leaving a Holy Shroud in the possession of a 'heathen' than she was letting on "The Fallen, as the name implies, are those Angels from Heaven who Fell from God's grace due to having 'impure thoughts' that divert from his teachings." She paused to see if he was keeping up "The leaders of the group, who all fell from having sexual intercourse with human women, formed The Grigori faction and typically ally themselves with heretics and those exiled by the church, such as Asia Argento, Freed Sellzen or Valper Galilei.
"Asia-san?" Shirou wondered, blinking at the idea of the sweet little devil girl having anything to do with a homicidal maniac like Freed Sellzen "She doesn't strike me as the type to throw in with them, though then again she doesn't exactly strike me as a 'Devil' either."
"There was a time she was praised as a holy Maiden by the church." Xenovia admitted, her expression darkening, clearly a bitter memory "She possessed the ability to heal all she touched thanks to her Sacred Gear, Twilight Healing." She sighed at his look of confusion "Sacred Gears are Divine Articles forged by God and bestowed upon humanity to enact miracles on Earth. It is said that certain individuals whose names were etched into history most likely possessed Sacred Gears."
'So they're essentially this world's equivalent to Noble Phantasms then.' Shirou deduced, nodding his head in understanding so Xenovia could continue with her explanation.
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If you want to read ahead by 25 chapters from her you can visit my Patre-on.
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