The Steel Dragon - Chapter 3: Second Owner
Rin Tohsaka could not believe the week she was having. Her legal suit against her legal guardian had finally concluded in her favor just in time to learn that she was too late, that Kirei 'Fucking' Kotomine had completely mangled her family's finances and investments and as a result her monthly budget for the acquisition of research materials needed to be lowered dramatically until her financial situation improved. In addition, her latest letter to the Clock Tower inquiring about being sponsored had came back negative… again, her classmate Shinji was being especially annoying and flirty this week making it hard for her not to punch the creep, and, to make things even worse, there was an unfamiliar magus sitting just a few seats away from her in the Fuyuki Public Library practicing magecraft in the open!
… Sure, whatever spell he was casting wasn't physically noticeable, but his constant use of his mystery was raising the ambient amount of prana in the air considerably!
However, as much as she wanted to immediately call him out on what he was doing, Rin knew better than to do so in such an open and public space. No, she'd wait until she observed him readying to leave and then she would depart the library first. Then she'd wait outside and intercept him as he walked to his next destination. Fortunately for her, the red-haired magus she found illegally operating in her territory looked to be around her age and his lack of scars led her to believe that he wasn't some sort of young prodigious mercenary spellcaster, so she reckoned that if he resisted, she could take him.
At 5:30 pm a twelve-year-old Shirou Emiya left the Fuyuki Public Library after checking out two books on European culinary disciplines and dishes and waited on the steps of the building until a nondescript black car pulled up to the curve closest to him and the back-right door swung open to reveal a very dangerous looking Japanese man. Dressed in a navy dress shirt under a black business jacket with matching pants, the man with a scar running from his hair line down over his left eye looked like what one would imagine when the phrase 'Yakuza Enforcer' came up in conversation. His dark sunglasses hid sharp, dark brown eyes and where obviously from an expensive brand, and similarly his grey dress shoes looked like they were very expensive.
The only detail that looked out of place on this textbook gangster was the gleaming gold-diamond ring that sat on his left ring finger.
"Tatsu-sensei," Shirou bowed politely with a smile as the man grinned and held the car door open for the boy. "Thank you again for picking me up and for the training."
"How many times do I have to say that it is no problem gaki?" The gangster replied after he closed the door behind them, and the driver set the car in motion. "You've been doing well in training so far, so I think it is time you partake in a special test. Something that will really challenge ya."
"I'm ready for whatever you throw at me Sensei," Shirou's eyes turned steely. "I'll do my best."
Rin watched as her magus query drove off with what was obviously a yakuza enforcer with a mutted kind of shock. The young Tohsaka heiress was aware on a surface level that most magi families tended to build connections with unsavory organizations in addition to legitimate ones for the purpose of diversifying their assets and gaining access to resources otherwise unavailable, but the magus she had been tailing was her age and he was interacting with a criminal organization!
The amount of trust in confidence the red-head's family must have in the boy's skills that they would allow him to work with such dangerous individuals…
… Maybe she needed to bring some of her changed gems with her for her next attempt at cornering the mystery mage just in case things turned violent.
"Kyodai! That was the Immortal Dragon Tatsu-senpai right!" A loud, street-tough voice distracted Rin from her planning as it echoed down the alley Rin had ducked into. "He's the guy that beat up the Yamaguchi triplets in Tokyo a few months ago, right? And he singlehandedly dismantled Triad operations on Tsushima Island years back? He's so cool! But who was the red-head gaki that he picked up?"
"You should watch that mouth of yours, Shatei," An older, deeper voice marred by a lifetime of smoking responded. "That there is Shirou-kun; the Young Miss's self-proclaimed 'Little Brother'."
"Oh, that's the Miss's Shioru-kun? What's he doing with Tatsu-senpai?"
"Shioru-shonen asked the Oyabun for help in finding a self-defense trainer to begin his martial arts training. So, the boss asked Tatsu-san to give the kid some pointers."
Rin had heard enough by this point, she doubted she would learn anything else about the mysterious magus known as 'Shirou' this day. All things considered, despite not confronting the other young magus, Rin was actually grateful that her plan had fallen through. If the other magus' family trusted 'Shirou' to communicate with their yakuza allies, then he was likely an accomplished enough mage in his own right. As things were currently, Rin didn't feel totally confident that she could handle the other mage with the resources she had on hand, but with a bit of time and preparation she was sure she could prevail if the situation called for violence.
Rin observed the coming-and-going of the magus known as 'Shirou' for another week; she kept track of the reading material he returned to the library (most of it was basic texts on chemicals and historical texts on metallurgy with a few cook books sprinkled in here and there) and she especially took note of the one day that 'Tatsu-san' did not show up at the library to pick up 'Shirou-kun'. On the first Friday that Rin observed 'Shirou', instead of being driven to his training by the yakuza enforcer, he walked from the library to the nearby shopping center to shop for foodstuffs and cooking ingredients. No yakuza, no clandestine meetings with other magi.
It was the perfect time for an ambush.
So, two weeks after her first encounter with 'Shirou' Rin Tohsaka waited in an alleyway connected to the main road that the errant mage that operated in her territory walked on Friday to reach the shopping center. She had prepped the alley with a few basic bounded fields to keep mundanes from entering or noticing the alley if things got confrontational, as well as few fields that should give her the upper hand on such occasions. In addition to the traps, she had also brought five of her charged gens and even had her Azoth blade strapped to the small of her back. And if the magus 'Shirou' turned out to be far above her skill level, as a final resort her heirloom Ruby Necklace hung from around her neck. She would be loath to use such a precious resource but if the situation deteriorated to such a point, then it would be a necessary sacrifice for her survival.
Hopefully it wouldn't be necessary because her came 'Shioru'.
The red head was walking around some of the adult groups that were chatting while walking home from work, and all the while 'Shioru' was using magecraft; again, in public! Again, his spells weren't anything noticeable for the normal people around, but it was still dangerous. Rin couldn't be sure, but she had a feeling that the other magus was using Structural Grasp, mostly because she could tell that the boy's eyes were lingering on man-made objects around him like cars, street and shop signs, suitcases, and pens.
Fuyuki's Second Owner was about to call out the errant magus but fortunately for her, the red-haired magi must have noticed her obvious bounded field and when his eyes met hers all she had to do was cock her head in the direction of the alley to coerce him into approaching. Once the other magus was fully engulphed in the confines of her bounded field Rin let out a small sigh, relieved that the first part of her plan was done with.
"Good day, Shirou-san." Rin addressed the possible enemy magus with cold unflinching politeness. "I would like to speak with you."
"Good day to you as well Magus-san." Shirou absently half bowed as his eyes scanned over the bounded field with academic interest. If he felt any kind of apprehension at Rin's tone of voice, he did not show it. "I had no idea that another magus my age lived in Fuyuki. Might I please know your name?"
"My name is Rin Tohsaka." The girl in red responded with barely restrained aggravation that also completely flew over Shirou's head. "And I am the Second Owner of this territory. If you or any other magi was planning to practice your craft in my territory, you should have approached me and asked for permission; especially when you keep practicing your mysteries in the presence of the mundane."
This comment finally got Shirou to stop examining the bounded field with a pensive frown.
"I apologize Tohsaka-san. I've only just begun my training in magecraft a few years ago so there is much about the Moonlit World that I am unaware of. I kind of remember my father teaching me about the role Second Owners have in our world, but it didn't have anything to do with actual magecraft so I kind of disregarded it. Also, my father and I have been living in Fuyuki for years now so I kind of assumed he had already made the necessary arrangements to live here with the Second Owner; either you or maybe the one before you?"
This time it was Rin's turn to frown as the unconcidered possibility crossed her mind. While she had overcome the morbid feeling of utilizing her deceased father's workshop, mostly by only referring to it as the Tohsaka workshop in her mind, she still felt a pang of loss whenever she changed something or looked through storage that was the same way as it was when her family was still whole. As such she rarely went through Tokiomi Tohsaka's old files and had never felt it necessary to look into those about his time as the Second Owner of Fuyuki.
"What's your father's name?" The Tohsaka heiress asked, her tense shoulders finally relaxing as the possibility of conflict dwindled. "And while we are at it, what is your name? It's rude to ask a lady her name and not give one in return after all."
"Ah, how rude of me, I apologize." Rin's playful teasing flew right over the Shirou's head much to her annoyance. "My name is Shirou Emiya, the adopted son of the retired magus Kiritsugu Emiya. It is nice to meet you Tohsaka-san."
Rin frowned slightly at Shirou's tone. He was being extremely polite and was downright pleasant to speak to compared to the other magically inclined company that could be found in Fuyuki, but something about how he spoke felt off to Rin. Like, even though they were both speaking Japanese, there was some sort of quality about the language that was different between them. And that's not to mention the strange lack of emotion that the boy openly showed; his poker face was by far better than hers.
"Well, this meeting was much calmer than I had worried it would be, so I'll say that it was indeed nice to meet you as well Emiya-san. I'll look into whether your father ever registered with mine to reside here in Fuyuki and meet with you here again next week, does that sound ok?"
"That sounds fine Tohsaka-san. I'll see you next week." Then, with a polite bow, Shirou turned around and walked straight out of alleyway, flabbergasting Rin who hadn't yet dropped the layer of her bounded field which was supposed to prevent him from leaving with a harsh shock of magical energy. Even more surprising for the young magus was that she could feel her mystery trying to work against Shirou Emiya as he inadvertently activated it and it just flat out failed to affect him before collapsing from the strain of the attempt.
"What have I gotten myself into?" The twin-tailed brunette grumbled as she properly disassembled the rest of the bounded field.
Walking home Rin Tohsaka made a mental list of things to do regarding the Emiyas; dig up her father's records on their residence in Fuyuki and their field of study (if it existed), enquire with some of her family's old contacts about the Emiya Family, and lastly, she would have to speak with the False Priest about his failings as her proxie.
"Kotomine!" Rin called out towards the pew after she slammed open the doors of the Kotomine Church; completely unaware of a second, red pair of eyes that followed her as she entered the house of God. "We need to talk!"
"Ah, Rin…" Kirei Kotomine smirked as his one-time charge glowered at him, annoyance written plain on her face. "It is good to see you, my child; it has been weeks since you have last attended one of my sermons. Are you here to repent your sins? It is important to attend to one's spiritual health."
"No, Kirei. I'm not here for confession and, as for my 'spiritual health,' as you put it, I've found a different church to attend on Sundays. You know, one that isn't run by a dick that intentionally tried to ruin my family fortune and who I needed to sue."
"Your sinful desire for material wealth is showing dear Rin, but as you say it is no longer my duty to council you on the path of righteousness." Kirei's grin widened by just a hair at the sight of Rin gnashing her teeth in anger. "I doubt you came here today just to tell me about you changing your place of worship though, so why don't you tell me why you have sought me out this day?"
"You have been doing a poor job in your duties as my proxy Second Owner Kirei." Rin fumed while pacing. "I met another magus at the library the other day who says that he and his father have been living in Fuyuki for years. Years, Kotomine! As much of a bastard as I know you are, I know you aren't stupid nor incompetent enough to notice another magus family other than the Matous in Fuyuki. So why don't you bring me up to speed on the Emiya Family, Kirei?"
"There really isn't much to say, Rin." The sadistic priest kept his voice level and as benignly emotional as possible. "Kiritsugu Emiya was once considered one of the most dangerous mercenary spellcasters in the Moonlit World, not a true magus who sought the Root, mind you, but one that utilized his magecraft as an assassin of impressive ability. He was even known as the Magus Killer during his prime for his ability to bypass mystical defenses and murder magi whose skills with magecraft far surpassed Emiya's."
"Considering that he adopted a magus child my age and how you speak of him in the past tense, am I right to assume that Kiritsugu Emiya retired from the mercenary business?" Rin stopped her pacing and held her chin in thought.
"I assumed as much." Kirei admitted with a thoughtful frown. "He does leave Fuyuki every once and a while, often to visit Germany, but I would have heard if he had actually utilized his old skill set."
"And the reason you never told me about the Emiyas?" Rin glared hard at the priest and had to stop herself from trying to hit the man when he smirked at her.
"Kiritsugu Emiya came to Fuyuki when your father was still performing the duties of the territory's Second Owner." Kirei's dark eyes gleamed with malicious glee. "I had just assumed that you already knew."
"Well, I didn't." Rin glowered at her one-time guardian. "What about their Tithe then? Why haven't I ever been notified of the Emiya Family paying their dues for operating in Tohsaka territory like the Matous do?"
"Ah!" Keir exaggerated an unconvincing display of surprise and a snap of his fingers. "I knew there was something I was forgetting all this time!"
"… You forgot?" Rin fumed at the more than obvious lie. "I could have used that Tithe money to fix the problem you caused to my estate, and the best explanation you can come up with is that you forgot?"
"Indeed, my young charge. For so long a part of me has anguished over the feeling that I was somehow letting you and my dearly departed teacher down. You have my eternal thanks Rin for lifting that crushing weight from my shoulders." The priest gave Rin a cheesy and insincere bow. "But again, I despair at your blatant greed for material wealth instead of spirituality. I know you remember the scripture Rin, a wealth beyond measure awaits us in Heaven as long as we live our lives by the Lord's good word."
"Damn you Kirei," Rin clenched her fists and ground her teeth. "If you weren't my father's last student…"
The priest merely grinned at the girl's unspoken threat, not responding but waiting form the angered girl to continue the conversation.
"Damn, whatever; I'll just have to collect from the Emiyas directly." Rin cursed and planned under her breath, though she was unaware that both of the men that were in the church with her could hear her every word. "So, we have a former mercenary that settled down in Fuyuki and adopted a kid to carry on his name and magecraft. Assassin to Father; I wonder what his reasoning for such a drastic change was?"
"While it is impossible for me to say for certain…" Kirei faked a thoughtful pose as he prepared for a rush of amusement. "I would say that the end of the Grail War left Kiritsugu Emiya's spirit battered, and his magic circuits cursed from the Fire."
"He was there!?" Rin stared at her one-time guardian with wide, astonished eyes.
"Indeed, he was Rin, after all Kiritsugu Emiya was the Master of Servant Saber, fighting on behalf of the Einzbern Family. Infact, Emiya was the undisputed victor of the Fourth Holy Grail War but instead of making a wish he ordered his Servant to destroy the manifestation of the Greater Grail with their Noble Phantasm. An act that caused the Great Fuyuki Fire."
Rin looked absolutely horrified at the information that Kirei imparted on her.
"Emiya was a Master? He caused the Great Fire? He was the winner?...!" Kirei watched as Rin genius mind latched onto the details he was edging her towards. "Priest, did Kiritsugu Emiya kill my father?"
"I do not know Rin." Kirei turned his back to the emotional girl, his voice feigning concern and sorrow but the smile on his lips that he could not control would have given him away. "What I do know is that of the three Masters to survive the Fourth War; Waver Velvet, Emiya, and myself; Kiritsugu Emiya had the highest kill count of us survivors. Using his skills as an assassin he killed the Master of Caster, his Servant fought Servant Berserker to the point that Berserker's Master perished of prana loss, and he coerced the Master of Lancer into having the Servant to kill itself in exchange for not killing the crippled Master and his wife, but Emiya bypassed the geis by having an associate of his kill them instead. Emiya even tried to kill me, but I survived the encounter due to a miracle.
I don't know if Emiya killed Tokiomi but I do know that your father was found stabbed to death in his own study and Emiya is the only Master to have proven his ability to bypass even some of the strongest bounded fields in the past."
"… I see. Thank you Kotomine." Rin's face, shadowed by her hair, betrayed no emotion as she turned away from the priest to walk towards the front door of the church.
"Rin." Kerie's words paused the furious girl for a moment. "Remember that it behooves you to always have a trump card up your sleeve when dealing with magi, and should you need assistance for any tasks; I am ever at your service, as is my duty as your guardian."
Five minutes after Rin's departure from the Kotomine Church, horribly sadistic laughter floated from the door of the church as the building's inhabitance reveled in their dark mirth.
Hello every one, here is today's chapter. I hope you liked it. Longer than the last one and with more interesting moments I hope, but it is looking like the next chapter will outshine this one considerably on both fronts.
On an unrelated note... I'm somewhat concerned about how much I liked writing Kirei Kotomine. In all seriousness, I've always found his characterization a lot of fun in antagonist fashion. I've even been brainstorming on making a DnD character based on him; shout out to Fate and Phantasms tumblr, I love that some people like the Fate characters enough to think up how to make them into DnD characters. I'm currently playing a character I built using the Merlin build as a blueprint.
... Though Wyllt Emrys might end up becoming a more dangerous individual than the Chaos goddess that my DM currently has us acting against.
Anyway, back to the topic at hand; I'm sorry to say that the next chapter won't be out for two weeks. I apologize for the disappointment but I want to get my writing far enough ahead so that I can regularly release chapters every three days again as I did up until this point.
On the bright side, I can confirm that at least two Omakes will be coming alongside the next batch of chapters, so I hope you all look forward to that. The two I can confirm are a Shugengan Shirou in the Warhammer (Fantasy) World and a Warhammer (Fantasy) x Elden Ring short story that has been stuck in my head.
Oh ya, I've been playing Elden Ring and I love it. My current character is a primarily Sorcery user with Carian Royal Septer and the Moonlight Greatsword as my weapons, whom I based off of my Wizard DnD character who I based off of Merlin. My next character will be a Faith-Arcane Draconic Communion Character who will be appearing in the Omake; Radegast Roux the Devourer of Dragons. I think Roux will use the Bolt of Gransax until the Radan fight, then the Sacred Relic Greatsword and justify it with the headcanon I am currently writing in my head.
Anyway, that's enough from me, have a nice day everyone.
Glader out.