Prologue

The Holy Grail War. Every decade, seven mages are chosen as masters to each summon one heroic spirit to fight for them in a war to win the Holy Grail, and thus be granted one wish.

Twenty years ago, my cousin, Kariya Matou, the man who ran from fate, fought in the fourth war and perished. His adopted niece, Sakura Tohsaka, was given up by her father, Tokiomi Tohsaka, to my Grandfather, Zouken Matou, to be raised as a mage heir, since the older Tohsaka daughter, Rin, was already planned to be the Tohsaka heir. Grandfather had some pretty twisted ways of preparing Sakura to become a mage, and Kariya wanted to save her from that fate and reunite her with his family. That was the only reason he chose to fight in the war. He had otherwise disowned the Matou family.

I was only two years old during the fourth war, so I don't remember Kariya personally, but my parents told me stories about him. They were often busy though, and I spent most of my time growing up staying with Grandfather, who spent his last years teaching me magic. We butted heads often, due to the fact that I had respect for my late cousin, whereas Grandfather viewed him as the laughingstock of the family. Sakura gave up the Matou name sometime after the fifth Holy Grail War, out of hard feelings towards the Matou's, and reuniting with her sister, Rin. Although Grandfather and I had differing views, I was the last Matou, and the only possible heir, so he retained some respect for me. When he passed, I was left with the Matou estate, and enough money to live off of the rest of my life. That was four years ago.

Now, I am twenty-two years old, living alone in an enormous estate, bored out of my mind. I never see or hear from anyone else in the family, and I was home-schooled by Grandfather, so I don't really know anyone in the area.

The most contact I've had with other people are the "hello, how have you been?" when going to the grocery store.

The sixth Holy Grail War is about to start. I know this because recently, three command seals appeared on the back of my hand. I have to admit, I was a little confused to see them. I had to sit down and think: what motivates me enough that the Grail would possibly choose me to be one of the seven mages to fight in the war? There's nothing that I have to wish for, I have a very easy life. Then I realized, it's not that I want the Grail to grant me a wish, I'm motivated to win the Grail to honor Kariya. My cousin, who gave his life trying to obtain it, just so he could wish for the liberation of a little girl that didn't even belong to him. I want to obtain the Grail to atone to his selfless deed that which my family laughed at and ridiculed.

And there was one brilliant advance that would make fighting in this war that much more easy: breaking in to the Tohsaka Estate and stealing the artifact for their summon, thus stealing their summon. Grandfather told me that the Tohsaka's have summoned the Archer-class servant the last two decades, and that Archer is the strongest servant class. That in the fourth war, the Archer-class servant, Gilgamesh, won the Grail and was granted mortality, which he kept until the fifth war, when the Saber-class servant killed him, and he was sent back to his realm as a heroic spirit.

And so, I found myself ransacking the Tohsaka estate late one night. It was tricky getting past the magic barrier, but I managed to pull it off. Best part was that Rin and Sakura were supposed to be out visiting relatives quite a distance away. After a while of digging in the study, I found a gold snake figure which gave off an enchanted aura. I figured this was what I was looking for and took off.

After a few days, I finally gained the courage to begin my summon. I pushed my chest-length white-blonde hair to one shoulder, and formed a circle on the floor, placing the snake in the center. I began reading a spell from one of Grandfather's summoning books, and a bright light came up from the floor. I held my hand towards it.

"I, Elysia Matou, summon you, servant Archer. Come forth and fight alongside me in this war."

The floor began to shake and then the light burst toward the ceiling and flashed bright. I put my arm up and ducked my head to shield my eyes. When the light seemed to dim down, I lowered my arm and looked up.

In the center of the circle, stood a tall, lean man with spiky blonde hair and red eyes. He was clad in full body armor, shining gold. He stood with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.

"Who dares to summon me, and what makes you think that makes you my master?"

Wow, conceited. "Well, uh, I summoned you as a heroic spirit for the sixth holy grail war..."

"You think that I, the great Gilgamesh, will fight for yet ANOTHER stupid Grail?"

This is THE Gilgamesh? "Well... There's nothing I have to wish for, I just want to bring honor to my cousin who perished in the fourth war.. You're Gilgamesh? I've heard all about you. Fight alongside me, and you can use the Grail to gain your mortality back."

He smirked. "Well, that sounds like a fair enough trade. I suppose we can work this out, but don't think I will call you master. I am not beneath anyone."

"Um, okay, deal."

"Well then what is your name?"

"Elysia Matou."

"Matou? Ah, so you must be the younger cousin of Kariya Matou."

"I am. You've met my cousin?"

"I remember the name. I remember his face. That's about it. He lost the war."

"I see." I couldn't help but admire him, although he seemed over-confident and expressionless.

"Well, I suppose I won't mind serving such a pretty lady in this war," he smirked. "Those angelic purple eyes are quite lovely to look at. Perhaps, I'll wish to keep you as a treasure."

He started chuckling and continued, "Let the sixth Holy Grail War begin, Miss Matou."