Chapter 344: Ryougi Shiki: This Is My Most Difficult Moment!
"Here you go, Lecturer Velvet. Your midnight snack."
The night-shift cook at the Clock Tower handed over a tray to Waver, whose expression looked as sour as a squashed bug.
The latest episode of Fate/Kaleid Liner Magical Illya had just ended, and now—utterly unwilling—Waver found himself trudging to the kitchen to fetch a snack for his teacher.
Sure, a bet's a bet… but braving the freezing wind through the grand hall? That didn't make it feel any better.
"Soup and a drink again? Not worried about having to get up all night to pee, are we?"
Waver glared at the tray and grimaced.
"Maybe I should throw in some diuretics. Let's see if that lemon-headed, balding middle-aged man can survive that!" he muttered.
"Hm? You said something?"
The chef hadn't caught his grumbling and assumed Waver wanted something else.
"It's nothing. Thanks for the trouble."
Waver shook his head, picked up the tray, and walked out of the cafeteria.
"Take care, Lecturer Velvet!"
Watching Waver's retreating back, the cook couldn't help but feel a bit puzzled.
Not because the lecturer had ordered a late-night snack—half the researchers at the Clock Tower were nocturnal. The kitchen stayed open 24 hours precisely so these magi could bury themselves in "mystery" without worrying about such mundane things as hunger.
And for the big names, food delivery was standard service.
As the second-in-command and housekeeper of the Department of Modern Magecraft, Waver certainly qualified for that privilege. So why bother walking all the way down here himself?
Even stranger, he'd ordered the food, only to carry it back personally, risking it going cold. Sure, he could keep it warm with a simple spell—but still, wasn't this all… unnecessarily troublesome?
Especially with that expression like he was marching to his own execution. The cook could tell that there was a story behind this.
"Well, best not to pry into the affairs of the higher-ups," he decided, abandoning his curiosity. The cold wind outside was punishment enough for anyone wandering the halls this late.
"Hope the lecturer doesn't sneeze halfway and spill the whole tray."
With a silent prayer for Waver's safety, the cook quietly closed the kitchen doors behind him.
While Waver embarked on his "midnight jog," Kayneth was busy contacting Shinji to discuss details about filming The Case Files of Lord El-Melloi II.
Since the series' main stage was the Clock Tower, they had to decide whether to shoot on-site or build a replica set in Fuyuki City.
From a promotional perspective, shooting inside the actual Clock Tower was clearly superior.
Shinji agreed; aside from a few action or explosion-heavy scenes, filming on location would save a fortune in both time and set construction.
Kayneth, though, was more concerned about whether the production would disrupt the Tower's daily lectures and experiments.
If the filming interfered with academic progress and reduced the department's quality of education, he would not hesitate to explode.
Kayneth El-Melloi may play favorites with his students—but never when it came to coursework.
Still, The Case Files of Lord El-Melloi II project was next year's problem. For now, Shinji's focus was on The Garden of Sinners.
After months of shooting, most of the film was complete. Only one scene remained—the most important of all: the parking lot battle.
As the grand finale, the climactic showdown between Ryougi Shiki and Asagami Fujino would define the movie's overall quality.
Shinji spared no effort in preparing for it—but this scene's difficulty was unlike anything he'd faced before.
It wasn't about crafting the effects or building the set… it was about how to capture them on film.
In Shinji's vision, Shiki and Fujino would clash amid a raging artificial typhoon, wind and rain whipping around as they fought in the ruins of a parking structure.
To make it even more cinematic, he designed a sequence where their battle literally shatters the walls—letting the storm itself burst in and join the fight as a living backdrop.
But that decision came with a price.
Creating a typhoon on set made the shooting conditions miserable.
For a camera, heavy wind and rain were practically natural enemies.
A strong gust could topple the tripods and rigs, and the invasive rainwater would creep into every circuit, shorting out electronics faster than you could say "budget cut."
And yet, even that wasn't the worst problem.
Wind? Shinji could handle that by having a Servant physically carry the camera to keep it steady.
Rain? He could use waterproof cameras—or better yet, let Archer reinforce them with magecraft.
But those solutions only worked for ordinary cameras.
For this final battle, Shinji insisted on using IMAX cameras—and anyone who knew those beasts also knew how fragile and expensive they were.
Taking one into a man-made typhoon? That wasn't filmmaking. That was financial suicide.
So, after discussing with everyone—Aoko, Medea, Archer, Shirou, even Hinako and Shiki herself—Shinji came up with a solution that wasn't really a solution at all:
"Act first. Film later."
"Archer, make absolutely sure you remember your movement path during the shoot!"
In the final minutes before filming, Shinji paced around giving his last-minute instructions, his voice loud enough to cut through the wind machines.
"The crystal orb records in every direction. If you miss your mark, the IMAX reshoot won't be able to match the angle!"
That's right—Shinji's plan was to have the actors perform first in a mock environment.
Outwardly, it looked like they were filming normally—but the "camera" Archer carried was just a hollow shell.
The real recording device was the crystal orb embedded inside.
After capturing the entire performance through the orb's all-seeing lens, Shinji would later replay the scene in a controlled, open space—where he could safely reshoot everything with the IMAX setup.
"Remember, each orb only lasts five minutes! You'll need to swap it out before it runs out, or we'll have gaps in the footage!"
Shinji handed the "camera" to Archer with the nervous care of a man cradling an infant.
"You… do know how to use this thing, right?"
Archer gave him a deadpan look. "Yes. Pull the red lever to switch orbs, press the yellow button to record. It's literally a glorified firearm. You've explained this over a hundred times, Shinji."
"Definitely not that many. Maybe twenty tops."
Archer exhaled upward, an audible sigh left his mouth.
While Shinji fretted like a stage mom and Archer remained unimpressed, the actors were the ones truly nervous.
"Good grief… Are we really performing in this storm? We won't catch a cold, will we?"
Okita's worried eyes darted toward the massive blowers and sprinkler rigs lining the set. They were just props for show—the real typhoon simulation was, of course, Shinji's magecraft.
Hinako quickly denied it. "Impossible. Servants don't get sick."
"Other Servants, sure! But I'm not famous for my immune system, you know…"
Okita grimaced. That delicate, chronically ill aura was practically her trademark—it wouldn't take much for her to start bleeding from stress alone.
"Well, whether you get sick later or not, I'm already suffering."
If anyone looked worse off than Okita, it was without question Ryougi Shiki.
Having a stunt double handle the action scenes didn't mean she could just stand back and relax.
For the close-ups and signature poses, she herself had to step into the storm.
She'd heard the tales of famous actors sacrificing everything for their art—she'd even told herself she was ready for that level of commitment.
But now that the storm was real and the cameras were rolling, her heart couldn't help but tremble a little.
After all, this Shiki wasn't the hardened killer from the old world—she was a genuine highborn lady.
Throwing her into a typhoon? Yeah… maybe that was a bit much.
"Don't worry, Shiki."
Shirou smiled reassuringly as he handed her one of the props. Then, with a tilt of his head, he gestured toward a few figures standing at the edge of the set—
"The medical team's right over there, and the assistants are on standby. Whatever you need—we've got your back, always."
"…Honestly, I'd rather not have any 'backing.' I just want to crawl into bed and hide under a blanket."
Shiki sighed and accepted the dagger Shirou handed her.
She was only complaining for the sake of it—at this point, there was no turning back.
Across the set, Shinji gave Shirou a hand signal. Shirou quickly turned to the actors and called out, "Alright, we're nearly ready! Everyone, take your positions!"
Shiki and Hinako headed to their designated spots at opposite ends of the parking structure.
Meanwhile, Shinji passed the "camera" to Archer and then pulled him along toward Shiki.
"Shiki-nee, this one's live-action. No do-overs."
The parking lot set had taken the crew weeks to build. If anything went wrong mid-shoot, there wouldn't be enough time to rebuild it.
Sure, Shirou and Archer could project props if needed, but reconstructing an entire set? Not even their magecraft could cover that.
So every scene involving destruction had to be done in one take. No mistakes allowed.
"The early shots are simple enough," Shinji explained, his tone turning serious. "But the first major sequence—that's where the typhoon hits. The explosion will blow open the wall, and then the wind and rain will pour in."
"When that happens, it'll feel… intense. Shiki-nee, whatever you do, keep control of your body."
This was no simulated breeze. Shinji's conjured typhoon was a Category 15 typhoon—winds up to 50.9 meters per second. Standing upright in that would be a challenge even for a Servant.
He wasn't worried about Shiki not feeling the wind. He was worried she'd panic and break character mid-shot.
Shiki forced a faint smile. "A few days ago, Arturia-san let me experience her Invisible Air firsthand. I got used to it. I'll be fine."
Shinji nodded, then turned to Archer. "Watch your framing during the shoot, and make sure your movements match Shiki's. We'll need perfect coordination."
The crystal orb's one advantage was its 360° capture. As long as the actors stayed within its recording range, it would miss nothing.
Archer gave Shiki a thumbs-up, his grin far too casual. His attitude toward her was clearly warmer than toward Shinji.
"Don't worry. I'll make sure to capture every glorious second of your hair flying wildly in the storm."
"…If possible, could you not capture it that clearly?"
Shiki's mouth twitched.
This jerk wasn't filming her performance—he was setting her up for bloopers!
"You two really are a perfect pair of awful human beings. Hmph!" (｀へ´)
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