FateAlternative Records (Machine Translated)

by Dominatroy

Story is not mine. I repeat story is not mine. The translation by the author is slow as such I machine translated the next few chapters. The original author is Rinaru. Please give him a favorite/follow.

1. Chapters 11-20

P.S. I don't own this story. nor any of the characters used. I simply used DEEPL to translate the chapters. as the translation is slow. Might not be 100% accurate. If you're the author and want me to remove the story. Please private message me. And I'll remove it instantly from reality

Edit 1: Sorry I missed Chapter 13. Fixed now. Also the previous chapters have been translated in original author's fanfic list.

Chapter 11, Luck of rank E.

Once again, Shirou woke up at the same time, fortunately, he had no strange dreams this time. So he repeated the same routine, got up, cleaned up, and started preparing breakfast. Soon, he heard his roommate wake up...

-Uaahhh. Is it morning already?

-Yes, after you tidy up, can you go and see if we have anything in the mailbox? Also take the opportunity to pick up the newspaper, please?

She nodded. What are we having for breakfast?

-We're going to have a classic American breakfast, we've already tried European and Asian, so this will give us a change of scenery.

She nodded, "When you have a vacation, we'll go to the Arab countries so you can learn the cuisine there too, more variety is always good.

-We can't travel to a different country just so I can learn how to prepare a different kind of breakfast for you," the boy answered incredulously.

The Princess laughed, "Who said we would only go for that? There are many relics in those countries, you could learn a thing or two?

He knew that was just a way of tempting him; but that didn't mean it wasn't true. Well... I suppose, if the opportunity presents itself..." She smiled.

She smiled, "Well, if nothing comes our way, our next vacation will be in the Arab countries!

He sighed and gave her a resigned smile, he really doubted that such a vacation would happen; but, if it did, he would not refuse. He could learn a lot from those parts.

Altrouge left the apartment and he stayed behind to make breakfast. After a while, his companion returned carrying some things, she seemed quite serious and curious about whatever it was she was reading.

-Is it the newspaper?

She nodded.

-Is something wrong?

She passed him the paper. Judge for yourself...

Shirou took the paper and set out to read it, the news was varied; but there were some that caught his attention...

The expansion of the particle called Grain was slow, but steady. The death toll it was causing was increasing every day. Those who survived it, ended up with great mutations that, sooner or later, ended their lives.

-Grain... Where did it come from? -he muttered.

-Where did everything in this world come from, Shirou..." answered Altrouge.

He looked at her quizzically. What do you mean?

-Grain, that's the name humans have given it nowadays; but, its true nature, is something that wizards will discover sooner or later.

-And that is? -asked the boy.

She smiled as if she were a little girl keeping an important secret, the kind of secrets that are never told to anyone. Ether...

-What? But that doesn't make sense, ether is amorphous and also incapable of materializing by its own power. It is impossible for it to take physical form and begin to mutate living beings as a kind of toxin.

The Princess nodded, "That's right; but we're not talking about the actual ether, we're talking about pure ether.

-Pure ether?

-Ether is, in fact, the base component of all celestial bodies. I'll give you an example, and don't take it literally: let's put the planet as if it were the body of a human being. The actual ether is something like diluted blood, it is weak, and humans can use it to strengthen their sorcery, and it does not cause them any harm either. Next, we have the true ether, this existed in the era of the gods, if the current ether is diluted blood, the true ether is blood in its natural state, the humans of that era lived with it, just as humans in the present live with the current ether. Although of course, present humans could not survive surrounded by the true ether, they would not be able to breathe and would drown...

-I think I get it, pure ether would be something like concentrated blood, and it must have existed before humanity existed... And that's why it's toxic to present humans, right...?

-Jackpot. Now you know why it kills every living thing. Neither mankind, nor almost any living thing today, is prepared to live together with pure ether.

-... Why did she show up now?

She lowered her gaze. Tell me, Shirou, from where do you draw blood from a body...?

-Hmn? From a wound- -Shirou's eyes widened- -Don't tell me... The Aylesbury ritual in 1970?

She nodded, "The planet was already decayed, and the Aylesbury ritual was the final blow needed to open the wound, so that the blood would begin to flow. -Altrouge lowered his gaze so low that his hair covered his face, so he could not see what expression he was wearing at that moment.

Without a second thought, Shirou placed a hand on her shoulder comfortingly, "Don't blame yourself for everything. You never thought that the ritual would cause all this mess, and... it wasn't just you, there were other apostles too, weren't there?

-Yes; but one thing doesn't take away from the other. I must clean up my own mess...

-Well, that's what we're preparing for. And, considering you're the only one of those present that I see is trying to do something, I think you're pretty good compared to the others...

This embarrassed the girl a bit. What are you talking about, you idiot?! You may see me like this now; but I am a being created for the purpose of ruling or wiping out all of humanity to keep the planet safe. I have destroyed countless members of your species, to me, you are nothing more than walking sacks of blood...

Although a bit shocked at first, he still commented, "That may be so, but you're working with one of these "walking bloodsacks" to protect the planet, aren't you?

-I suppose...

-Well, at least to my eye, that makes you better than most members of your species.

She clicked her tongue. You're too naive, you know...

He smiled, "I prefer to say I'm an optimist.

-Idiot would be a better word to describe you.

They both finished eating, and Shirou got up from the table to wash the dishes...

-Wait, look at the bottom of the front page," said the girl.

-Hmn? This is...! Isn't this the place where the Mercury Type is located?

-That's right, this is worrisome...

Shirou nodded. What he was seeing was some sort of crystal area that had assimilated the entire area, transforming it into a surreal place, it was beautiful, no doubt about it, but horrible at the same time. As if all life had been stripped of its logic and transformed into something totally different. The news camouflaged the place as one of the places affected by the Grain particle, and warned not to enter it under any circumstances.

-The crystal zone increases with the simple movement of the Mercury Type. The fact that it is increasing, even if slowly, is really worrying," said Altrouge.

-Do you think...

-No, not yet, but he will wake up sooner or later, and we must be ready to face him.

-I understand.

Then she brought out something else. I also want you to be ready to travel in a few weeks.

-Hmn, what is this? asked the red-haired man with a letter in his hands.

-The letter came along with invitations, they're for the Rail Zeppelin.

-The train that collects mystic eyes? How did you get an invitation to that place?

She looked at him in surprise. You don't know?

-What?

-The Rail Zeppelin is run by a dead apostle.

-Really?

Altrouge nodded. Rita Rozay-en, she's number 15 of the ancestors. Although, I understand she fled after a battle with Touko Aozaki.

-Red?

Altrouge nodded.

-Number 15... Is she a friend of yours?

She shook her head, "Not especially, she's a typical upper class vampire with a taste for art. She is arrogant and generally does as she pleases, she also has a strange friendship with Sumire; they seem to have sworn to die by each other's hands.

-Sumire?

-Another of the 27.

-What do you think she wants?

She put her hand on her chin. Hmn... It could be anything. She is devious and never content with the completion of her own actions. Fortunately, she doesn't seem to know where I am, the letter is signed by old Caleido, she wants us to go and let her know if anything strange happens.

-What do you mean?

-No idea; but, if it's Caleido, it will be trouble, no doubt..." Then Altrouge sighed, "And, even so, we must go, it's important...".

-Why...?

-What do you know about the mystic eyes?

-Hmm... Only what the professor has told us in class:

Mystic eyes are a special kind of eyes, they grant the power to interfere with the outside world. As I understand it, the acquisition of mystic eyes occurs when there is some kind of mutation in the magical circuits located in the area around the eyes. These types of mutations can be created artificially through a process similar to that of forging a magical crest. However, I believe that only the mystic eyes of binding, enchantment, and whispering can be produced in this way. -Then Shirou made a contemplative gesture, "It is also my understanding that innate mystic eyes are rare. There are few known cases of this happening, but they are said to be powerful enough to intervene with fate itself. Also, mystic eyes usually function as single-action spells, so, they are difficult to predict and dodge...

-Anything else...? -Altrouge asked.

-Hmm... I also understand that these possess ranks: Less powerful mystic eyes glow red or green, powerful eyes are said to glow gold, while those with powers that reach the realm of the gods have a multicolored glow, as is the case with the jeweled and also the most powerful eyes, the rainbows.

-Exactly and, according to the information Caleido has given us, a pair of mystical eyes of rainbow rank are going to be auctioned and, if Caleido's information is correct, then I need to obtain them.

-Are they that important?

Altrouge nodded, "Yes. In fact, I think your bad luck is absorbing mine; because I never thought it possible to come across such mystic eyes. My luck really must be at an all-time high.

The boy snorted. Well, I'm glad to be of help... -Shirou got ready for his usual classes and, seeing that his companion wasn't getting ready, he asked her, "Aren't you coming today?

The Princess shook her head, "No, my impulses are a bit excited today, so I'll sleep to shut them up.

-I understand, then I'll see you later.

So it was what he imagined. The blood example and his earlier little outburst were caused by his vampiric urges. Shirou decided that, when he got back from class, he would give her some of his as payment for her help.

-By the way, here, it's for you?

-Another letter?

The Princess nodded before lying down. It has no signature.

Shirou opened it and read its contents:

"Dear little brother." These words confused and unnerved Shirou. The word little brother was written crudely and underlined several times.

"Receive cordial greetings from me, your dear sister, Illyasviel von Einzbern." It was only enough to read that name to put the boy on alert.

"I was really impressed to hear from you from old Musik, you know...? I mean... Why would the little brother who stole Kiritsugu from me have the audacity to use me as a screen? When I first heard that, I was quite angry. In fact, for a moment, I thought about sending some of our homunculi to take your head." This chilled his bones.

"Though later, curiosity overcame my anger... Why, why now, why is the person who stopped Kiritsugu from coming back for me treating me as if we were fraternal? I don't understand... And, that's why I'm writing this letter to you...

That was the reason why I decided to cover for you in front of old Musik, although, unfortunately, grandfather didn't like it at all and punished me; but that doesn't matter now...

So, little brother, I hope you will be kind enough to answer me. Otherwise, I will be forced to take action to protect the Einzbern name.

That said, in two weeks, Grandfather will send a group of homunculi to the Clock Tower. One of them will be one of my personal maids, she will be waiting for you that day in front of the main building premises, early in the morning, her name is: Sella. Give your answer only to her, and no other homunculus, otherwise, grandfather will find out, and none of us want that, do we?

I anxiously await your answer.

Signed: Your dear sister, Illyasviel von Einzbern."

Shirou took a big breath of air, the fact that his older sister was considering killing him chilled his bones. He could deal with certain powerful enemies, thanks to the weapons he possessed, but an attack by several homunculi created solely for battle was something he didn't want to face. If it were one or two, there would be no problem, but a whole squad, that was insane.

However, it seemed that luck was on his side. Old Einzbern had no idea about this letter, which meant he could communicate with Illya without Illya getting in the way. After reading the letter, he realized that some things he and Kiritsugu had feared had come true: Illya had been lied to and told that his old man had not tried to come back for her. But, with these letters, he could make her see the truth.

And, speaking of Kiritsugu, he had told her that he would write to her when he was in town, this really had him worried. Shirou had already simulated the conversation several times in his head; but that didn't take away his nervousness; besides, he realized something extremely important that he hadn't taken into account: His father didn't know anything about Altrouge.

For one thing, he really wasn't entirely sure if he would ever see the ancestor again and, secondly, Shirou knew of the path his father had taken, and the regret he carried. How the hell was he going to tell the man whose dream was to become a hero, an ally of justice, to him, who sacrificed his life and part of his family for the sake of many people having a better life, how was he going to tell him that, one way or another, his goal had become saving the world.

Even if his dream wasn't to become a hero, to help Altrouge, and to be able to create the sword that frees from fate, he would have to do it. Or at least try to...

Besides, he had another problem, should he tell him about the true nature of Altrouge and Fou? The logical answer was clear: No. But wouldn't he be doing the same as his father? Keeping secrets from her?

With those doubts he left his room and walked through the facilities of the Faculty of Creation. After leaving, he used a bus stop and headed towards the central building of the Clock Tower. Fortunately, there were no major accidents in his classes, although there were some relevant events...

In his General Fundamentals class...

-Something wrong, Shirou-kun?

The one who was talking to him was Ayaka Sajyou, who was also his partner in practically every assignment in the General Fundamentals class. Both of them were shunned in that class, either because of their ancestry, in the case of both of them, or because of the deeds committed by their father, or because of the recent deeds committed by himself. To top it off, neither of them was an enormously skilled magus, so they ended up being ostracized by the rest. If they had been alone, they would probably be forced to leave the section and move to another; but, since they were together, they didn't mind so much. They both supported each other and; besides, Lord Trambellio was quite permissive with both of them, allowing them to do the jobs in pairs that had to be solved in larger groups, something that, although it made many happy for not having to team up with the duo, angered others because it showed the tutor's favoritism.

Not like his peers could say much, the Democratic Faction rewarded achievement before anything else, and, recently, Shirou had been involved in the capture of Gurdoa, as well as solving the Marbury Workshop case. And both cases could have jeopardized the existence of the Moonlit World. In short, they could deny him; but they could not deny his accomplishments, which was why they could not complain too much.

Because they had worked together for so long, in the end, they had both abandoned most formalities. He called her Ayaka, and she referred to him as Shirou-kun. He still couldn't get her to drop the honorific; but it was a big improvement compared to when they first met.

-Look, Ayaka, there..." said the boy as he pointed to a ley line on the map that the Astrology Faculty had created.

-That ley line? -asked the girl.

He nodded, "It's the same ley line that's underneath the Marbury Workshop. It used to be able to power the entire workshop with ease, but now...

-Now that you mention it, it's been weakened a lot. Was it because of the overuse of the workshop?

-Maybe... -Shirou said that, but what he was thinking was quite different: "If what I was told is true, a portal to the Reverse of the World was opened in that place. It is just like when I traveled in the abbey. Apparently, in places where a portal is opened, after it is used, the ley lines lose an enormous amount of strength. It becomes increasingly difficult to get to the other side and, it seems, the cost of doing so is the extreme weakening of the ley lines. Moreover, this is not something that has started happening recently, it is a phenomenon that has been going on for almost three decades. 1970, really was the year the fate of the world was sealed...".

-Are you all right? -Did I measure the strength of the ley line incorrectly?

-No, don't worry. You measured everything correctly, in fact, you've improved quite a bit in the last few months. Much more than me at least, maybe you just needed someone to guide you?

She was a little embarrassed by the praise and quickly denied it. It's nothing out of the ordinary.

-But, still, you've improved a lot. And you're really good with Formalcraft.

-W-Well, thank you..." What she said next surprised the boy a little. I'm not like my sister, but I'm glad I'm getting better...

Unsure, he asked. Your sister?

-With an awkward smile and a slightly depressed expression, Ayaka said, "My older sister was a prodigy never seen before, I'm really not even close to her, but I'll try my best to improve as much as I can...".

Shirou decided not to ask more, it was pretty clear that Ayaka was depressed by the topic. But he was struck by two things: the fact that Ayaka referred to her sister in the past tense, and, strangest of all, was there some kind of law in the Moonlit World that said that, if you had an older sister, she must be an incredible prodigy never seen before? The same was true of Caules and, come to think of it, weren't Red and Luvia big sisters too? In fact, wasn't Red an older sister too?

-Shirou...?

-Huh?

-You spaced out again...?

Scratching his head, he apologized. Thus ended his first class and he continued on to the next few. His remaining classes were no different than normal, with the exception of the last one...

Now that he thought about it, he was happy for Caules. Apparently, during his time at Marbury's Workshop, his partner had formed a contract with a Black Dog, one of the dogs in the wild hunting pack. The Black Dog was not a particularly powerful familiar; but, for Caules, who could only contract with small familiars before receiving his family's crest, the contract with his new familiar was a great accomplishment. Moreover, the fact that they both used electricity as a medium helped with their compatibility. In a way this reassured him, he wanted to help Caules, but doing so directly would end up backfiring; because it was likely that the chestnut would see it as his achievement and not his own. That he had achieved it alone with Sieg's help helped to remove that doubt.

After his other classes and, therefore, putting up with Shinji's attitude and dealing with the confrontations between Rin and Luvia, the red-haired boy made it to his penultimate class. The self-defense class, for better or for worse, he did not participate in this one, the reason: no one wanted to face the son of the magus killer who, in addition, had injured one of the Dead Apostle Princesses. So, during the hours of the self-defense classes, he would try to book another room to train on his own. At least, when he could, because they were usually already occupied, and when it was not possible for him to do so, he simply took care of other things.

Arriving at the reserved room, he set up a target and projected his bow. In one of his hands, he held an "arrow," though it was really a sword twisted to the point where it could be streamlined enough to be considered an arrow. The transition from Eastern to Western style archery had been more complicated than he had imagined, from having to make changes to his stance, to things a bit more spiritual. In Kyūdō, whether the arrow hit its target didn't really matter, it was about a path of self-discovery with each shot, and these required mental and spiritual preparation before each shot. Ironically, when he practiced with Taiga, his arrows always hit the target. In Western archery, that was all that mattered, that his arrow hit the target. Considering his situation, that's what he needed...

That said, he fired the first "arrow", he clicked his tongue, it deflected slightly to the right, he would have to adjust the shape even more. Apparently, this was going to take a while...

After practice, Shirou headed to his last class. At first everything was going well, but, it was obvious that his teacher was not in the best mood. He literally gave Flat a wrestling hold just because he had a slight lapse in the materials needed to build a bounded field.

-Hey, Gray," the boy whispered.

-Yes? -she answered quietly.

-Is something wrong with the master?

The grave keeper looked down slightly, wondering if she should tell him about what she knew, finally, she relented. Well, you see...

She told him that the letter he had given to his master after receiving a big scolding from him contained a tiny piece of cloth. This was no ordinary cloth, it was a small part of the catalyst that his master had used to summon Iskandar in the previous holy grail war. Apparently, when they had all returned, they discovered that the Lord's office, as well as his apartment, were a mess. The bounded fields and barriers had been breached, and the catalyst had been stolen. The letter invited the Lord to retrieve the catalyst and, in addition to the cloth, there were also invitations to the Rail Zeppelin.

-And that's what happened. Since then, the master has been worried and uneasy.

-Again the Rail Zeppelin...

-Do you know anything besides what we have been taught? -asked the girl curiously.

Shirou nodded, "Yes, apparently it is run by one of the 27 Ancestors of the Dead Apostles. Also, she disappeared after she fought against Red.

-Red? You mean Miss Touko?

-Yes.

This got Gray thinking.

-Now that I remember, you guys went up against Red during the case of Iselma's Twin Princesses, didn't you?

She nodded, "Yes. Me, Svin, and Flat, we confronted her while being supported by Lady Reines and the professor," Gray spoke softly, as if afraid of something besides the professor's wrath.

Interested, he asked, "If you had to define in a few words the impression she made on you, what would they be?

For a moment, Gray remembered, when he confronted her in the case of the Princesses of Iselma, Touko's expression before releasing that horrible monster. Freedom and... -Then she remembered the look of her body breaking and transforming into that creature-. Terror...

Shirou was surprised to see Gray's expression, since he had met her, she had never looked so terrified. He knew Red was a prodigy and a monster without a doubt; but, to leave that impression on his companion... Who the hell was Red really?

He clutched her shoulder, trying to reassure her. You're unbelievable, Gray...

-Shirou smiled.

Shirou smiled, "You, Flat, Svin, the professor, and Lady Reines are. Among magus, Aozaki Touko is without a doubt one of the most dangerous people in our world. Simply surviving a confrontation against her is not something that many can say...

-Thank you, though... If I'm honest, I think she let us live. I'm sure she could have finished us off if she wanted to.

-You're probably right, but, still, it's still amazing. Besides, it's not for nothing that Red was the one who made the dead apostle who ran the Rail Zeppelin flee...

-Really?

Shirou nodded, "Rita Rozay-en, she's number 15 of the ancestors. As well as the person who manages the Rail Zeppelin, although, no one has properly seen her since her battle against Aozaki. Really Red is an amazing person to have accomplished something like that...

-Hmn? -Gray tilted his head and smiled slightly, "But didn't you do something similar? You managed to fight and wound number nine of the Ancestors of the Dead Apostles.

He answered quickly, "No, no, no!" Due to the speed of his answer, he forgot to keep his voice down. What I did was similar to what happened to you with Red. I simply got out of there alive because she let me.

-But according to you, that's still unbelievable, isn't it...?

Shirou sighed defeatedly. Touché.

Suddenly, a chalk flew and hit Gray in the forehead, Shirou turned around and the first thing he saw was his teacher's hand coming down towards his face. Suddenly, he was the one being given a steel grip.

-If my class is so boring, and your conversation so amusing, you can both leave the room! -said Waver as he held the boy's head tightly.

-Sorry, teacher, w-we won't do it again," said the boy.

-Excuse me, teacher," Gray commented.

-Focus from now on! he said after releasing the red-headed boy's head.

-We'd better not talk until the class is over," said Gray.

-Yes," Shirou replied as he turned off his cell phone to make sure that no noise would reawaken his teacher's ire.

In the distance he could see Flat gesturing to him, thanking him because the young Lord had released him to go after them. With a wry smile, he gave a thumbs-up.

Classes ended, and he joined Rin so he could go test the prototype of the Enjoyed Sword.

-Ready to try it out? -the redhead asked.

Rin nodded with a clear smile. Of course.

They both left for one of the smaller rooms and prepared to test the sword.

-Shirou, before we begin, there is something I must ask you..." said Rin after they had both arrived in the room. It's something I've wanted to ask you for a long time, but I haven't been able to until today.

He looked at her curiously. What?

-Remember when we were talking about the holy grail war, just before the vacations?

Shirou nodded, it was just before his father showed up in class.

-At that time, I prevented you from finding out more about the war; but, now that I know who your father is, I have to ask you..." Rin took a slight gasp of air, "My father, the former head of the Tohsaka family, also participated in that ritual...".

This did not surprise Shirou, he knew that a member of the Tohsaka family must have participated in the ritual. Considering that magus families were generally quite small, usually limiting themselves to three people and, knowing that Rin's mother was alive; but that she did not meddle in magus affairs, said Rin herself, it was very likely that it was her father who participated. Besides, she had said that she had tutors who were in charge of her education and, in the Moonlit World, that was totally unusual; for usually teachings were passed down from father to son...

-Rin, if your father was involved... don't tell me he...

Rin nodded seriously. That's right, he died in that ritual. What I want to know is: Was it your father who killed him?

Shirou was silent, he didn't know how to answer. "If we're talking about Kiritsugu...". His hands were shaking, the more he thought about it, the more it seemed possible, and the fact that his father had murdered his friend's father was something he...

-Shirou, relax, he didn't hold a grudge against you... -said the girl who, to his surprise, was quite calm.

-Huh? -he exclaimed in surprise.

Rin sighed, "My father went to that war by his own choice. He knew he could die at any moment, no one forced him, and a magus is obligated to walk with death. If it was your father who killed him, or it was any other participant, it was merely part of the ritual. To complain or try to take revenge, would be the attitude of an immature child and not of a true magus. That is also the reason why Lord Sophia-Ri has not acted against you, despite knowing that your father was to blame for his daughter's death.

-Rin, you really are ...

-Don't say it, it's a natural thing for the heiress of the Tohsaka family," she replied proudly.

She could say that; but, in his eyes, it only made her more impressive. Not because she would behave like a worthy magus, but because, even if Rin was good at pretending, Shirou could tell that she was hurt by her father's death, and, in spite of that, she was willing to hold no grudge against him, neither as a magus, nor as his friend.

Shirou tried to act serious and calm, if she was giving her all to keep control, so would he. I, I really don't know.

-Huh? -she exclaimed confused.

-It wasn't until a few months ago that I found out my father was a master in the war. I did know that he had killed the Dean of Evocation's daughter, and later I also learned of his involvement in the death of the previous Lord El-Melloi; but, he never told me what happened during that war, he never even told me that he was involved in the first place...

-But, why...?

-Do you remember when I told you about how I became an orphan, Rin?

She nodded, "Yes, you told me it was in the Fuyuki Fire, that fire was caused at the end of the holy grail war..." At that moment, Rin understood, "You don't think he caused it?!

-I don't know, nobody knows exactly what happened at the end of the war. It's something I plan to ask him about; but he went on a mission in the Middle East a few months ago, and since then I haven't been able to contact him...

-I see..." Rin then took a breath of air and tried to resume her usual attitude. Good! In that case, who caused the fire and who caused my father's death is something we'll have to find out, we can put it as our second secret project. -Then she smiled, "Thank you for being honest with me.

-It's the least I could do," he replied, making an attempt to act normal as well.

That said, Rin pulled out a short sword from her bag. It was off-white, along with a grayish edge, and its entire blade was made of a crystalline alloy, formed by mixing various jewels.

-Are you sure you want to try it yourself?" asked Shirou worriedly.

Rin nodded, "It is the task that was given to my family, after all.

-I understand, but, if it shows any kind of failure or out of control, be sure to throw it away.

-Relax, it's just a prototype.

Rin transmitted her Od towards the sword to activate the magic square. The sword began to slowly glow, soon, the magic square slowly began to work. Suddenly, the effect of the magic circle began: the phenomenon of multidimensional refraction. It slightly opened an opening in reality, connecting two different worlds, the magical energy from the parallel world began to be attracted to where they were.

-Shirou, it's working! It's working!

Although Shirou was also excited, as he was watching the whole experiment from the outside, he noticed that the magical energy began to fluctuate slightly.

-Rin! The magic energy is increasing too fast!

-Huh? -Rin watched as the magic square was attracting more energy than the sword could handle, while the opening collapsed in on itself.

She tried to deactivate the magic square, but the amount of energy was already too great. Having nothing else to do, she threw the sword and it released the magical energy channeled into the blade, it shot out in a stream of blinding light that hit a wall and exploded, shaking the whole place, and destroying the blade in its entirety. The magical energy destroyed half of the room, obliterating the barriers around it...

-Shirou...

-Yes?

-Sometimes we forget that we are building a weapon that was used to create a cannon of unlimited ether, and that has the power to push back a mirror image of the moon... I think, maybe we should be more careful...

They both heard the door to the room open and through it, several teachers entered, followed by many curious students.

Seeing the look on their teachers' faces, the redhead said, "I think you're right. I also think that the first thing we should do is to find a private place where we won't bother anyone...

That day there was no shortage of scolding...

When the scolding was over, somehow, they had ended up in Lord El-Melloi's office. Rin had been scolded by the Dean of the Faculty of Mineralogy, and Shirou by the Dean of the Faculty of Creation, as they were both intimately tied to both faculties. In turn, both ended up being scolded by Lord El-Melloi for the same reason.

The young Lord had finished with him a few minutes ago, and now it was being Rin's turn. Meanwhile, he was waiting for her outside the chambers...

-What were they supposed to be trying to accomplish? -Princess El-Melloi asked, to his surprise.

It wasn't that the two didn't specifically get along, but it seemed that Lady El-Melloi always went with extreme care and caution when it came to him. And she didn't blame him, her father had killed her uncle, though, for some reason, Reines called him brother; thus, she only interacted with him when it was entirely necessary; however, lately she seemed to be a little less on guard.

Shirou sighed, "We were trying to recreate an ancient mystical code. But we didn't foresee how dangerous it could become...

-Well, they destroyed half the room, shook the whole building, and wiped out several barriers. I doubt very much that I'll let them try it again inside the facility. -Then Reines smiled mockingly, "I'm surprised they didn't foresee this outcome...

-Excitement got the better of us, I guess...

Seeing that the scolding was going to last, Shirou took a small box out of his backpack.

-What's that? -asked the Lady curiously.

-Something tells me this might take a while, so I'll take the opportunity to try this...

-Sweets? -asked Gray, who had stood silently with the other two in the hallway.

-Yes, I tried to replicate the sweets we tasted last time. Would you like to try some?

Although Reines hesitated to take any, Gray remembered what Luvia and Rin said, so her curiosity overcame any other thoughts. She took it and, suddenly, her expression changed to one of pure happiness. Seeing this, Reines decided to take one too...

Lord El-Melloi II finished scolding his other student and opened the door to his office, he was ready to give them one last scolding before letting them go. Although, he was concerned that he hadn't managed to get either of them to confess what mystic code they were trying to replicate, all he had managed to find out, was that it must be an absurdly powerful one.

However, when he left his office accompanied by Rin, he saw something really strange. There they were: his sister, his apprentice, and his student, as well as Trimmau, who had turned into a table, and on top of it was a tray of sweets with some cups of tea. Were they having a tea party in the middle of the hallway?

Seeing her brother, Reines smiled and approached him, "Brother, try these, they are really delicious.

Although Reines was a teenager, she generally acted like a lady a little older than her actual age; so, seeing her act like a girl her age excitedly was, while not entirely strange, quite curious.

-A candy?

Waver took the sweet, ever since that day, he wondered what kind of mystery his student had to allow her to cook such exquisite things. Something similar to the mystical eyes of the charm, but in her hands? He didn't know, but he was going to find out...

Shirou finished with his business and headed back to his apartment, he needed to rest from everything that had happened and make sure Altrouge was okay.

The young apprentice magus arrived at his apartment to see a bundle wrapped in sheets on top of the bed. He couldn't help but smile a little, it was as if she was trying to get away from the sun, he would understand if she was a Ghoul or a simple Dead, but she was one of the Dead Apostle Princesses, something like sunlight wouldn't hurt her in the slightest.

-Are you all right, Altrouge? -the boy asked.

She stood up, almost as if she were undead, which, technically, she wasn't, or at least not quite. Yes, I just need to rest a little more. Maybe I'll just sleep in for a few days...

He sighed, was it so hard for him to ask her to help him by giving him blood? He didn't particularly care.

Dead apostles who can measure their lives over a millennium require a colossal amount of energy. This, surprisingly, has nothing to do with their strength: rather, it is simply the compensation required to maintain such a long-lived life. However, since Altrouge was not only a dead apostle, but was also a true ancestor, beings very close to immortality who generally will not die unless they are cut off from the world or are in places where they are unable to absorb mana from the environment, that the amount of blood Altrouge needed to subsist depended largely on the surrounding environment. London had excellent thaumaturgic lines, so she didn't need a large amount of blood, instead, it was her vampiric urges that were forcing her to suck blood.

And, although she hardly needed to suck blood, every month, someone, probably members of her faction, would send her a decent amount of blood packets. Thanks to Kaleidoscope, no one knew about these deliveries. All, as long as, the Mage Marshal found his association with the Princess interesting.

He unbuttoned his shirt exposing his collar, and approached the bed.

-What are you doing, you idiot?

-I'm going to give you some of my blood, that'll put your mind at ease, won't it?

Altrouge swallowed as he stared at his contractor's neck. D-Dumbass, it's not about the blood, it's-it's my urges.

-I know; but drinking some should calm your urges. Avalon should be able to regenerate my blood, just try not to drink faster than the pod can regenerate it, besides, remember he has a limit according to the mana he possesses at the moment, unless Gray is around. Oh, and be careful with its holy energy, it could do some damage to you...

-A-Are you sure? -she said, licking her lips and slowly approaching.

-Yes, it's my way of thanking you for helping me.

Shirou lay down as when she had tried to teach him to read the atmosphere and, in the same way, she lay on top of him. Now that they were face to face, the boy realized how embarrassing the whole situation was, his partner was not only on the verge of going into a famished state, but she was hyperventilating, flushed, and sweating slightly, almost as if she had a fever. He didn't know if it was from excitement, or because it was her body's way of letting him know that it needed nourishment to maintain its functions. The fact that he had half of her body exposed, and that she was dressed in a thin silk nightgown, didn't help the situation any.

Shirou turned his head to the side allowing her easy access. Well, make yourself comfortable.

-G-Good luck... -Altrouge lay down on top of her contractor. She embraced his neck and, with a quick bite, her fangs pierced his flesh, beginning to suck in the precious liquid he had so longed for.

They stayed like that for several minutes...

Shirou was really uncomfortable, he could almost fully feel his partner's body and, as mature as he wanted to behave, he simply couldn't help but react to the stimuli he was receiving.

It was really strange... the feeling of having your blood sucked out of you was absolutely disgusting, it felt like liquefying your whole life and then sucking it out with a straw. However, at the same time, he was also feeling his partner's body heat, as well as her attributes and other parts of her body. This caused a clash of stimuli, between an unpleasant and harmful one, and an exciting and addictive one, which made him squirm slightly, as his body reacted to the stimulation.

His partner, on the other hand, didn't seem to mind in the least how much he squirmed, she simply released some of the power of her first form and clung to him even tighter, making their bodies even closer together than they already were, if that was even possible...

At that moment, Shirou could not think of anything, his reasoning was totally lost in a thick fog. He could not concretize any idea, nor react to any stimulus other than one of those that his companion was causing him.

Maybe that's why he didn't hear the sound of his door...

-Shirou... Are you here?! I've been calling you, but you don't answer...?

The boy heard his name and, for an instant, all his senses were activated to their limits, that voice was not that of his companion and, the only person besides him and her who had a copy of the keys to his apartment was...

-Kiritsugu...? -Indeed, the person in front of the door was her adoptive father.

-Shirou...? said the stand-alone confused and surprised to see the situation.

-Kiritsugu? -She tried to pull away from him, but he immediately pulled her closer to his body, preventing her from turning around.

What would she tell her father if she saw Altrouge with blood running down his lips? His blood, to be specific!

-OLD MAN COME OUT FOR A MOMENT! -the boy shouted in desperation.

Though a bit stunned by the situation, Kiritsugu reacted, "Eh? Oh! Yes! Eh... I'll wait for you outside! -he said before leaving, slamming the door shut with a loud bang.

Shirou finally let Altrouge go, now he was the one who wanted to get under the sheets and never come out.

-Hmn... So that was your father... -Altrouge wiped the blood from his lips. He came in with hardly a sound, he really is an experienced killer. They're an interesting combination, you know?

-...

-Shirou? What's wrong with you? You look as if death has knocked at your door," she asked seeing his somber appearance.

-Like what's wrong with me..." he whispered, "How am I supposed to explain all this to you?!

Shirou looked like he was going to have a fit, but, ironically, Altrouge didn't seem to mind in the least. Relax, he didn't see anything out of the ordinary, from his point of view, you had a beautiful girl on top of you kissing your neck...

-And that's not bad enough?!

Seeing her contractor's desperate expression, she decided to take charge, putting a hand on his shoulder, Altrouge said, "Relax, I'll take care of it.

-Really? -he asked hopefully.

She nodded.

On the other hand...

Kiritsugu had just left the room. He was still a bit stunned by what he had just seen. For him, hunting magus and doing whatever he had to do to take their heads was an everyday thing, but, that was because he was used to it, so, even though what he had just seen was much more normal than his usual lifestyle, being unprepared, was the cause of his reaction.

He knew that Shirou was a "normal" teenager and must be past that age by now, and he also didn't think he was in the position to lecture him about relationships, considering his few romantic relationships, and that his closest romantic relationship was with Iri, who wasn't exactly the most mature person he'd ever met.

But there was one thing he had to make sure of, if the girl was a magus, which was most likely, Kiritsugu had to make sure she didn't want to do his son any kind of harm. Even if he trusted Shirou, he couldn't deny that sometimes the redhead was somewhat naive. Fortunately, the atmosphere of the Clock Tower had helped a bit with that, but he still wasn't distrustful enough of the rest of the magus, who only acted if there was any gain involved.

The door opened slowly, his son peeked out from the other side, it was quite obvious that he was nervous, and he decided to do his best to make this not so awkward for Shirou and the girl. Well, beyond what he wanted, of course.

-Pasa... -said the boy almost in whispers.

Kiritsugu entered the room, there was the girl already dressed in a more presentable way, and he sat down in front of her...

Shirou, for his part, sat down next to Altrouge. Old man, she is-

-Wait, Shirou, let me introduce myself," interrupted the Princess.

He gave her a worried look, but finally agreed.

-My name is Rouge Crimson, I am the girl who, lives, eats, and sleeps, in the same bed with your son for almost half a year. Nice to finally meet you! -she said with an innocent smile.

-...

-...

-...

Altrouge turned to the side and saw the emotionless face of the magus killer, then turned to her partner, he had his head down and his hands covered his face. Playing dumb and, holding back her laughter, she asked, "Did I say something wrong?

-Was it... was it really necessary to say that, ROUGE! -Shirou wasn't someone who lost control easily, but this situation was totally beyond him.

-But I didn't tell any lies, did I?

-W-Well, no; but..." She nodded.

She nodded- Exactly, don't you think it would be wrong to introduce me, obviating everything that has happened between us?

-I-I guess...

-So, what's the problem? -she asked innocently.

-That you should have said it with a little more subtlety!

Altrouge pouted. Moouuu, I prefer the direct approach.

As these two interacted, Kiritsugu couldn't help but think that this girl was similar to Irisviel in terms of that kind of "innocence", but this one went so far as to make her look like she was somewhat unstable, or even a bit insane, if this was an act, it was a really good one.

-So, what is your relationship? -asked the magus assassin, interrupting the duo's conversation.

Both were silent, neither answering.

-Is something wrong? -asked the freelancer.

-I wouldn't know how to define it... More than friends or partners; but we're not a couple or something similar, so... I'm not sure. I don't think there's a term that can describe us, at least, not yet. -said the boy.

This reflection surprised Kiritsugu, it was a sincere answer as he expected; but he knew that Shirou was not the most skilled person to judge the rest of the individuals around him, or rather, to judge them objectively, let alone to judge the relationships he had with these people. So the freelancer expected a simple answer: friends, lovers, or partner. That the guy had thought so much about what his relationship with the girl meant was a pleasant surprise, but had he grown so much in just half a year? Or was it because of the influence of such a person?

-Hmn... I guess we're defining her then..." commented Altrouge.

This surprised Shirou; for he thought only he had these doubts.

-What kind of magus are you? -asked the freelancer.

-None. I am not a magus. But I am acting as Shirou's apprentice.

Kiritsugu narrowed his eyes, "You're not a magus, but you're inside one of the Clock Tower's faculties, and you say you act as Shirou's apprentice, do you know how ridiculous that sounds? -Kiritsugu sighed. Where did you two meet?

-You know, these questions are starting to get annoying. -Then she smiled and her eyes turned golden, at that moment Kiritsugu tried to cover his eyes; but it was too late. Just accept our relationship as it is, and don't ask any more questions, will you? The single-action spells were undoubtedly terrifying, they could not be predicted, and it was hard to avoid them.

Kiritsugu nodded without a second thought.

-What did you do to him? -Shirou asked in confusion.

-They are my Mystic Eyes of Enchantment, all of us dead apostles possess them. I used them on you with much less strength when we first met. However, I can only use them continuously if I have my first form released. -Saying so, his eyes turned crimson again, and Kiritsugu returned to normal. Well, Shirou, I'll leave for a moment, I know you and your father have things to talk about...

The redhead nodded, still not having processed everything that had happened.

After saying that, she left the room.

-She's right, Shirou, we'd better talk about everything we've discovered so far, I understand that she's your apprentice; but it's better that we keep this between the two of us.

-Huh? Oh, yes," he said coming out of his stupefaction. You're right, how are things in the middle east?

-Not so good, the manna is getting progressively depleted. Although life is still viable, thanks to the Grain, it will cease to be so in a few decades. All this, mixed with the political strife and armed conflict in the area, makes for many lawless places, and smuggling is one of the most common things.

-The collective stress must also be getting to them...

The magus assassin nodded, "Also, the closest countries can't handle mass immigration, so, immigrating from those countries has become a real challenge. -Kiritsugu sighed. Ironically, that has caused the most desperate magus to head to these places to hide. The constant chaos serves as cover.

-But, did everything go well?

-Yes, and thanks to fulfilling contracts, I was able to obtain this...

Kiritsugu pulled out a piece of metal from his briefcase.

-That's... The tip of a sword?

-That's right. I managed to ruin a smuggling operation from India to Turkey, thus saving several important relics, in addition to the payment for the job, I was able to obtain this. Use Structural Analysis to see what it is...

Shirou used his Structural Analysis and was surprised by what he saw-. The Blessed Sword by which the Force is Killed, Ascalon. The sword of Saint George!

Kiritsugu nodded, "Yes, Saint George was born in Turkey, and several of the main temples that worship him are in India. It is said that his sword slayed a dragon in Egypt, and that the sword changed shape once, whether it was because of the magical capabilities of the weapon, as legend says it was given to him by a witch, or it was because it was strengthened at some point, is not known. But, what is known is that it fragmented at some point, losing its tip and obtaining a diagonal edge.

-This is really incredible! -At that moment, Shirou looked like a kid at Christmas, which wouldn't be too wrong to say really, since said holiday would happen next month. Though he hoped he would never have to face a dragon...

-I'm glad you like it, it'll add one more to your arsenal.

Shirou nodded, though his smile was short-lived, now he had to broach that subject. For a moment, he thought about backing out, but if he didn't ask now, then when?

Seeing his expression, Kiritsugu asked, "Is something wrong?

Shirou nodded. I... I've also discovered several things...

-Like what? -asked the magus assassin intrigued.

-I found out that in Japan there is a ritual called the holy grail war...

These words alerted the freelancer.

-I discovered that the end of the last war provoked the great fire of Fuyuki. I found out that my master participated, that the former Lord of the Animusphere family also participated, that the ritual where you killed the former Lord El-Melloi and his betrothed was inside this one, and, of course, I found out that you lied to me, that you didn't come to Japan after a failed mission, but came to Japan to participate in this war, didn't you, Kiritsugu?

A tense and uncomfortable silence fell over the room.

-Shirou, I...

-Kiritsugu," the red-haired man interrupted him sharply. I know your reasons, and I can understand them, and I've even come to admire them; but, there's something I need to know: Was it you who caused that disaster?

-I... No, it couldn't have been me...! -I would never wish for a disaster like that, not something like that...! -Kiritsugu seemed desperate to deny those accusations.

-But you would cause it if it would save more lives..." Shirou whispered, "Right, Kiritsugu?!

-I..." Kiritsugu wanted to answer immediately; but his son's gaze stopped him in his tracks, the emotions on his face were clear: pain, sadness, anger. Worse, he couldn't deny it, he couldn't... The same grail had taught him, the decisions he would be able to make in order to save the most people. But, even with the words stuck in his throat, he answered. Y-Yes, he would...

-You said you didn't wish it; but you didn't deny that you could have caused it. -Shirou took a breath of air, this hurt him as much as it hurt his adoptive father; but he had to know the truth, or he could never see Tachi's face again, not even his memory, or his parents, who had sacrificed their lives for his. What does that mean, what do you mean?!

Kiritsugu wanted to say that he didn't say anything to protect him, but that would be a lie, it was he who was protecting himself. After all, for him, it wasn't Shirou who was saved that day, it was him. Shirou was his salvation, the only thing he could save from his mistakes, and he didn't want to lose him over these. Knowing this, and even if it cost him, he had to do it, he had to tell him and hope that he would forgive him- You're right, I participated in the holy grail war and, on the last day of it, I discovered that the grail was corrupted. It had been corrupted since the third war, it turned out to work like a monkey's paw, no matter what you wished for, it would always cause as much destruction as possible. And, also... I also discovered something important that day, even if you choose to save the majority, and even if you do, you may not succeed in the end...

-So, what did you do?

With his head down, he began to explain. I managed to reunite with Saber when I was fighting Archer. Because we were engaged in battle, Assassin took the opportunity to steal the grail while we were trying to defeat Archer. He noticed this and chased Assassin, which gave me time to meet with Saber and explain the situation. We both agreed that the grail should not be used, and we chased Assassin and Archer; but the grail started to release black mud everywhere and I could not follow where the final battle was taking place. So, the only thing I could do, was to use my last command spell to order Saber to do everything possible to destroy the grail. The last thing I saw was a great clash of energies, just before the grail overflowed and caused the great fire of Fuyuki.

-Couldn't you see the end?

He shook his head, "I couldn't; but I was always left with the doubt. Was it a mistake to have ordered Saber to destroy the grail? Was it what caused the mud to overflow? Could I have done something else? Those doubts have tormented me for almost a decade...

Shirou let the pressure and anger leave his body, he couldn't pour everything on his adoptive father, it wouldn't be fair, and even less if he himself didn't know if he had caused the fire-. Sorry, old man, I... I said a few things too many.

The magus killer shook his head, "No, it was logical for you to react like that, it would be strange if you didn't. I shouldn't have kept it from you to start with. I shouldn't have kept it from you to begin with, but, I was always afraid of what you would do when you found out. -Kiritsugu clasped his hands together in front of himself. That day I went through a lot of things too, they made me rethink various aspects of my life... I just wanted to leave it all behind...

-But I can't move forward... not without knowing what happened, that's why I need to know... Please, tell me everything you know about the last war of the holy grail, this time, without hiding..." -More than a request, it seemed that Shirou was begging.

-Well, but first... There's something else you need to know...

-What? asked the red-haired man in confusion.

-The corruption inside the grail has a name: Angra Mainyu, when I was about to reach the grail, I met him and, at the end of our encounter, he cursed me...

This worried the young man. A curse, what kind?

-A curse that devours you until it causes death, it has been consuming me ever since...

This alarmed the red-haired man. Then we must-!

Kiritsugu shook his head. It is a curse too powerful to be removed by current sorcery, one specifically made to kill humans...

-But!

-It's too late now, at first, I thought I had somehow avoided it; but, as time has passed, it has gained strength. Almost half a year ago, I had about a year and a half to live; however, it seems that this curse accelerates the more I use my magical circuits, it atrophies and destroys them as it consumes me and, the greatest proof, was my stay in the Middle East during these last months...

-How long? How much time do you have left!

-Half a year... I'm going to die in half a year, Shirou.

Shirou couldn't stop several tears from spilling from his eyes, even if he came to feel anger for the actions his father had committed, it also didn't change the fact that he was the one who saved him from that hell, and who had raised him for the past few years- N-Nothing to...?

Kiritsugu denied with a sad smile, "No, there isn't, this is the punishment for all the lives I sacrificed, so I have assimilated it. -Then, he showed a peaceful smile. But I am glad, you have grown up well and, if we manage to rescue Illya, even if I leave with regrets, I will not take any regrets with me. So, don't cry for me, thanks to you I have hope.

Shirou tried to dry his tears uselessly, he got up and looked for a piece of paper in a drawer, he handed it to Kiritsugu.

-This is it, a letter?

Shirou nodded, "Yes, I want you to read it and be the one to answer it.

Reading the letter, Kiritsugu couldn't help but feel his chest tighten and his heart shrink. Tears began to well up in his eyes, he hadn't cried for almost ten years on that fateful day, but now he couldn't help it. The words he was reading came from his daughter, the one he once thought he would never see again. Illya...

Chapter 12, The Rail Zeppelin.

Two weeks had passed since his meeting with Kiritsugu, that day he learned an enormous amount of things:

For starters, he learned about events in the present:

Kiritsugu only had half a year to live, and this had forced them to move up their plans; fortunately, most of the preparations were already complete. Kiritsugu would no longer go on any more missions until, according to him, he had finished finalizing the last preparations for his assault on the Einzbern castle, and while doing so, he would keep a low profile, staying on the outskirts of London.

In his stubbornness, Shirou had researched as much as he could about the curse; but, unfortunately, his results had been the same as his father's: the curse was too powerful and; moreover, it was already too advanced to be able to do anything.

According to Kiritsugu, it would be about a month and a half to two months before his assault on the castle, which was fine with Shirou, as it would allow him to attend the Rail Zeppelin.

However, the most important thing was not what he had learned about the present, but, about the past?

Kiritsugu had told him all about his experience with the Einzbern family. He told him how, 9 years before the holy grail war, he was hired by that family to be their representative in what would be the last war. The Einzbern family intended to regain the Third Magic, which they had lost centuries ago. But Kiritsugu had his own goals; although he refused to talk much about them, according to him, those dreams were something only he should bear.

Through his association with this family, he met the woman he would marry, and, a year later, the two would have a daughter. This would be his older sister by one year, Illya.

Subsequently, the nine years passed and Kiritsugu prepared to enter the fourth war. It turns out that, two years before associating with the Einzbern, Kiritsugu had taken on an apprentice: Maiya Hisau, after joining the Einzbern, he entrusted her with all his equipment, including his Thompson Contender, just before leaving with the German family. However, the two were reunited after nine years to participate in the ritual.

Kiritsugu gave him a list of what he had discovered about the old masters and about the servants, based on what he had researched almost a decade ago:

The first was Tokiomi Tohsaka, Rin's father, he had summoned the Archer-class servant. Kiritsugu described him as an arrogant King fully clothed in golden robes. What was really important about it, however, was its absurd ability to fire weapons from what appeared to be portals. Moreover, even at a glance, Kiritsugu could assure that each of those weapons were, at the very least, treasures of the highest quality.

These claims made Shirou want to meet such a Servant; however, Kiritsugu dismissed it, saying that this was nearly impossible, and even so, he warned him to never face someone like him. Especially since he had been able to face Saber on a one-on-one basis as if he was no big deal.

The second master had been Kariya Matou, apparently, he was Shinji's uncle, as well as the last Matou to be born with magic circuits naturally. From Kiritsugu's observation, he was an inexperienced magus and, moreover, a rather unpredictable master.

He had been Berserker's master, a knight in black armor who did nothing but roar to the four winds against anything that came his way. Besides, he seemed to have some kind of ability to turn anything he touched into his own. Or something like that...

The third master turned out to be the former Lord El-Melloi, he traveled with his betrothed and summoned a Lancer-class Servant. Kiritsugu told him how this one wielded two spears and, according to what his wife had told him; he seemed to have some kind of charm curse on his face.

The fourth master was none other than Lord Animusphere, who, while he was a magus skilled enough to deserve his title of Lord, the really troubling thing about him, was the Servant he summoned. Kiritsugu described him as a Caster with brown skin and white hair tied in a braid. The magus assassin classified him as the pinnacle of all magus, someone as skilled and as talented as he was powerful, to the point that he could not be less than a Caster of the Age of Gods.

The fifth master was his teacher, Waver Velvet. Kiritsugu described him as... well, a naive child who somehow ended up getting involved in a war of legendary heroes, and who, the only reason he was able to survive, was because of the heroic spirit he summoned: Iskandar, the King of Conquerors.

If the fifth master was an incompetent with the good fortune to have summoned a great heroic spirit, then the sixth master was his total opposite. His servant was no big deal, in fact, even among Assassin-class servants, she wouldn't be considered particularly strong, at least from what he had seen. However, she was still a servant, a far more powerful existence than normal humans and, Maiya's death, due to the touch with her poison, was proof of this.

However, beyond that, Assassin did no greater or greater deeds, besides stealing the grail in the last stretch of the war. His teacher, on the other hand, was one of the greatest dangers Kiritsugu had to face during the war and, even so, he could not discover her identity. She always communicated by remote means and, most of the time, it was to "play" with the other teachers.

Lastly, there was Kiritsugu, who had summoned King Arthur. To Shirou's surprise, the Servant that Kiritsugu had summoned did indeed appear to be a man, which directly clashed with what Shirou had seen with his Structural Analysis. After some discussion, they both agreed that it was probably because the grail system was connected to the Throne of Heroes, and that it was "outside of time and space", hence you should be able to summon heroic spirits from other realities.

In addition to all this, an emergency system was activated for this war, thus, an eighth servant was summoned, Ruler class. It is a non-standard servant class for the purpose of presiding over the holy grail wars. When there are circumstances that encroach on the grail's authority, or are deemed abnormal, the grail uses its own logic and, independent of other mediators, such as those of the Church, presents a Ruler to protect the concept of war. Ruler takes no side in the battle, and only acts in the interest of the grail. Ruler class servants are given command spells to use against the other servants. However, perhaps it was because of the corruption of the grail, or some unforeseen factor; that the Ruler of the previous war was an aberration, this one did have an interest in the grail and used every resource at his disposal to get it.

There was also something else that affected the war, the church mediators: Kotomine Kirei and Kotomine Risei. Although, at first, these acted impartially, this changed as the war progressed. Apparently, the Church had some sort of alliance with the Tohsaka family; so much so that when Tokiomi Tohsaka was killed, it was Kotomine Kirei who took his place as Archer's teacher.

At the mention of Rin's father's death, Shirou couldn't help but ask him if he knew who had killed him. For his peace of mind, Kiritsugu denied knowing this fact, he said that they had made a non-aggression pact until they could deal with the other two big problems of the war: Caster and Assassin's master. And, sometime after that pact, Tokiomi had been killed.

His father told him that the war was really complicated, almost all the servants and masters made it to the last day of it. The only exception was Lancer, who was killed before reaching this day by Kiritsugu's own plans. But, save for this exception, all the servants had survived until this day, as for the masters, only Rin's father and the former Lord El-Melloi were killed before reaching this one.

According to the information he had been able to gather, his father and the former Lord El-Melloi had been killed before he came to this one.

-So, what is it you wanted to talk about? -asked his father sitting in front of him.

-I want you to teach me more about the Temporal Manipulation Sorcery of our crest," said Shirou as he searched for some papers in his backpack.

This surprised Kiritsugu, "What specifically do you want to know? I've already taught you to accelerate your own innate time, thanks to Avalon you can use even Triple Accel safely and, as long as you're close to the girl, you can use Square Accel without any major repercussions, except for the pain. I guess now I can teach you the Temporal Stasis...

-That would be very useful; but... -Shirou took out some papers-. I meant this...

The magus assassin took the papers and examined them. These are the principles of temporal Manipulation Sorcery..." Kiritsugu had already read them when he set out to create the Innate Time Control. But this is impossible in normal situations, the amount of preparations required, as well as the enormous expenditure of energy, makes it impractical and non-functional...

Time flow manipulation is the type of sorcery that the Emiya family spent generations researching and seeking to control. It is the ability to separate the passage of time from the flow of time in the outside world within a designated space. It is classified as high thaumaturgy in the form of a bounded field that can be considered a type of reality marble of sorts. It allows for a "time adjustment" that can only stagnate time that has passed or speed up time in the future. Generally, it is used with large-scale rituals that require a great deal of magical energy and planning to activate.

-I know; but I've found a way...

-What do you mean? -asked the freelancer intrigued.

Shirou looked around. How good are the barriers around the apartment?

Kiritsugu gave a slight smile, "Don't worry, I've prepared this place to be undetectable, just like I'll prepare your apartment's defenses. Nothing we talk about here will get out.

-Good, because no one must know what I'm going to tell you...

-What?

Shirou looked at him seriously. I'm developing a reality marble...

-What! -asked Kiritsugu, surprised and worried in equal parts. Are you serious?

Reality marbles are taboo in the magical community, simply having one means receiving a Sealing Designation.

Shirou nodded, "Yes, I've kept it hidden for a few months. I found out I had it after I started my second year. But fortunately, no one has noticed.

Quickly, the freelancer replied, "And no one must notice, because if they do, you'll have the Association chasing your neck.

-I know. It's still developing, so it's impossible for me to fully manifest it, but, in time, it will eventually be complete. When I started thinking about it, and when I remembered the research inside the ridge, I thought that, perhaps it would be possible...

Kiritsugu understood what Shirou was referring to. Emiya sorcery was impractical for combat and, even during the practical phase of the research, it required great rituals as well as a great consumption of magical energy to create the designated space where the passage of time would be separated from the flow of time in the outside world. However, if that space was created by a reality marble, then all the necessary resources, as well as the ritual, were expendable, the only thing that would still remain would be the consumption of magical energy. However, with its magic circuits, added to those of the Emiya crest, it should be possible that...

Kiritsugu looked at his son seriously. Shirou, are you planning to...?

-To achieve the goal that the Emiya family has been pursuing for centuries?

Kiritsugu nodded.

Shirou smiled, "Well, since I seem to have a chance of achieving it, wouldn't it be a waste not to try? Grandfather doesn't mind either.

-Rarely do things fit so well together, Kiritsugu, it would be a waste not to take advantage of it," Muramasa spoke.

Kiritsugu sighed, "Sometimes I think that, having left them with the magi, it could have been very dangerous, in more ways than one...".

Shirou replied falsely offended. Hey, I would never harm anyone indiscriminately in order to achieve the pinnacle of my research.

The freelancer smiled faintly again. I know, and that's why I'm not worried. You may have spent the last few years in the Clock Tower; but fortunately, that hasn't changed your core...

-He's stubborn as steel," Grandfather scoffed.

However, Shirou looked worried. I understand that you don't want to help me with this, I know what happened to your father for obsessing over his research, so...

-I'll do it, I'll help you get it.

This surprised the red-haired man. -What? But...

-You said it yourself, you would never think of hurting anyone to get the results of your research. If there's one thing I can be sure of, it's that..." Then, Kiritsugu showed a serious expression. However, we would need a place where we can work without arousing suspicion, and without being disturbed... Thanks to my contracts and the sponsorship of the Valualeta family, we have been able to save a good amount of money; however, properties in London are not specifically cheap...

Shirou nodded, "I know, in fact, I've been thinking about it because of a certain accident..." Then, he went back to look for something inside his bag, when he found it, he took out a pamphlet, "What do you think of this? It's not inside the city, but in the outskirts, so its price is not so high, the ley lines have weakened; but they are good enough for what we need...

All that was true; but, more importantly, it was the price. It's pretty cheap, how did you find out about this place?

-Well...

In the brochure there was a picture of the Marbury Workshop. Apparently, rumors about the reason for the murders inside the workshop had spread like wildfire. That, along with losing three family members, forced the Codrington family to get rid of the shop in order to clean up their name; however, due to the rumors, no one had made them an offer, which forced them to lower the price.

-Legislation took care of dismantling the mechanism that turned the spirits into artificial fairies, there don't seem to be any spirits around either after the Wild Hunt passed through the place; so now it's nothing more than a normal property," Shirou explained.

-I see... with this price... We could make them an offer. However, even if we get the workshop and start studying ridge sorcery, as far as the reality marble is concerned, I'm not able to help you with that...

Shirou smiled- Relax, Rouge is helping me with that; however, I can only manifest it in a very reduced form, so it's really useless at the moment...

-Are you able to manifest it?

Shirou nodded, "Yes, but I'm not able to expand it to create the entire bounded field.

-Then, maybe it's not useless...

This confused the apprentice magus. What do you mean?

-Do you remember how my Bullets of Origin work?

Shirou nodded. Yes, of course.

-Perhaps we could use the same method along with your reality marble. That way, even if the marble is small, when it explodes from inside the body...

-The damage it would cause would be enormous...

Kiritsugu nodded, "Also, thanks to your projection magecraft, you probably don't need to be constantly creating bullets. But, even so, we'll still need the necessary materials... Fortunately for you, Avalon will take care of regenerating whatever we use.

Shirou nodded with little encouragement, even if that was true, Avalon did not eliminate pain...

-But, if you want to accomplish this, you'll need the rest of the ridge. You'll only get it with the full research.

Shirou nodded, "Yes, I'll have to dance on Barthomeloi's palm for a while longer. On the other hand, I think I'm starting to get used to using the new crest circuits...

-How do you know?

-When the whole Marbury Workshop thing happened, I used Neocaliburn twice and still managed to stay on my feet, I think it's because of the new circuits.

Kiritsugu nodded, "Your magical energy production must have probably increased.

An alarm sounded and Shirou looked at a watch on his wrist. It's already late, I have to go or I'll be too late for the department. We will be able to perform the operation in a few weeks, after the work on the train is finished...

-Be careful, while magicians are troublesome almost by nature, those who usually board that train are often even more dangerous.

-I know. It's not for nothing that Red boarded it back in the day...

Since that conversation, a week passed...

Shirou met the homunculus sent by his sister, he handed her a letter written by Kiritsugu. He didn't know what his father had written in this one; but he hoped it was enough to at least make his sister doubt his grandfather's words. If Illya was on their side during the infiltration, it would be much easier for them to deal with old Einzbern.

And so, the day finally came when they would have to board the Rail Zeppelin.

Shirou, Altrouge, and Fou, had packed their bags and were on their way to the station, as they walked, he recalled the information he had managed to obtain about the train...

The train is composed of twelve cars; three that make up the locomotive section, including the main car, as well as a dining car, another used as a vestibule, five for guests, and two freight cars. The train originally only ran in the heart of northern Europe; but, after being repaired, it began to appear all over the continent, even in Great Britain, despite being surrounded by the sea.

-Is it here? asked the red-haired man.

-Yes," answered Altrouge.

They had both reached one of the entrances to the London train station, yet no one seemed to notice or be aware of it.

-By the way, Rouge, that's...

Altrouge nodded with a smile as he showed off his new accessory, "Yes, they were difficult to acquire, but I managed to get my hands on a Mystic Eye Killer.

Mystic Eye Assassins were special magical constructs with the power to block and suppress the power of mystic eyes. For a train full of mystic eyes, it was adequate protection.

Thus, the trio crossed the entrance and noticed how the world changed around them...

Earlier in the day...

Young Lord El-Melloi stood at the train station, right in front of the Rail Zeppelin. Beside him stood his apprentice and one of his students, Rin. Both he and she were looking at their surroundings...

-This is going to be trouble..." said Rin.

-What do you mean, Miss Tohsaka? -Gray asked politely.

-Can't you tell, Gray? Look around you..." Rin looked at several of the people in the station. This place is full of trouble. -Then she turned to the gravedigger. By the way, you can call me Rin if you want. We've already known each other for several months and we'll be studying together for several years, so it's better if we get to know each other better..." Gray smiled.

Gray smiled. I understand, Rin then...

-Rin is right... Be careful Gray, this train was created by one of the 27 great bloodsuckers. One of the people who will board it is the one who stole the relic from me, and even if the thief didn't show up, the people who board it aren't specifically charitable souls.

-That's why you wear those glasses, to nullify the mystical eyes, isn't it, Lord?

The group turned around and could see a woman approaching them.

-Hishiri Adashino, you again? I knew you would mobilize after I analyzed Wills' files?

-Hmn... So the other Lord who was rumored to be boarding the train would be the one from Theories of Modern Sorcery.

The whole group turned to watch as a young girl approached.

Like Reines, this was a young teenage girl. She was a young girl with a fair complexion, long ashen hair and amber eyes. She wore a long black dress with orange and gold accents and an orange bow.

-This is the Lord of Astromancy," Waver said to Rin and Gray. How do you do, Lord.

-So the Norwich careerist remembers my name, eh? -Crossing her arms and striking a pose that showed her importance, she introduced herself. I am Olga Marie Animusphere, enchanted. Have you come for some special mystic eye? Lord El-Melloi II...

-Who knows? -Waver answered.

-I warn you, this time it will be Astromancy who will win the bidding, even if we face another Lord.

-You overestimate me...

Another woman approached the group, she was blonde, tall, fair-skinned and green-eyed. She wore a formal blue-black dress. My lady, it is time...

-Trisha... All right, we'll see you at the auction Lord, don't get in the way of the Animusphere...

Adashino covered her mouth with one of the sleeves of her kimono and elegantly said. So scary... So scary...

With that said, they both headed to another part of the station.

-It's strange for the Animusphere to come out of their mountain," said Adashino.

-It makes sense that it is the Astromancy Faculty who are most interested in eyes that can reveal mysteries," replied El-Melloi. Also, considering the Animusphere family's situation, it makes sense that their heir would want to make the most of this event...

-What do you mean? -Rin asked.

-That girl's situation has been one of the toughest and most complicated in the Clock Tower.

Waver nodded, "Yes. Lord Animusphere died when she was three years old, for five years, the stability of the Animusphere family hung in the balance. They were represented in the Clock Tower by a provisional Lord, and there was no shortage of internal squabbling. When everything was on the verge of being lost due to the disputes, at the age of 8, she took over the position of Lord and, during the last years, she has managed to keep the Animusphere family stable until today...

Suddenly, the train lights came on and the train doors opened.

-Be careful, this train is basically another world," he began to walk towards the entrance. Let's go...

The group entered the train, inside the train, Gray was surprised at how big it was, Rin was also surprised; however, she didn't show it.

Waver sat on one of the chairs surrounding a table, next to him sat his students. To his misfortune, Adashino sat across from him.

Frustrated, the young Lord slyly scanned the other passengers...

"I know half of them and they're all monsters...".

Suddenly, the door of the carriage opened and, from it, a man entered. He was a dark-skinned and rather elderly gentleman, about seventy years old, with a tall and imposing figure. He is dressed in holy church attire. He also has a prominent scar running across his forehead and right eye, occupying much of his face.

All the magicians became on their guard...

-Enough, I have no intention of starting a fight..." Then, he reached into one of the pockets of his attire, pulling out an invitation. I will also participate in the auction. Is there a problem?

-No, sorry," said the young lord.

The man shook his head, "It doesn't matter, it's a natural reaction...".

Having said that, they were all surprised to hear a familiar voice...

-Oh? It is an honor to have Lord El-Melloi, I was waiting for you..." said a lively young woman entering through the same door as the man from the church.

-Yvette? -Gray exclaimed.

-What are you doing here? -asked Rin.

In an animated manner and greeting several of the passengers, she approached the group, "My family is possessed of mystical eyes, we are regulars on the eye collecting train," she said as she flashed an invitation, Yvette approached the group and said, "I was hoping you would come too. Although I didn't expect you to come too, did you hit on the professor, Rin?

-He asked me the favor of accompanying him, since Flat couldn't come due to extracurricular activities and Svin is preparing for his promotion ceremony. -Then, she smiled, "Mystic eyes also interest me, so I decided to accompany him.

-Hmn... With two students... Both women... Well, well, don't be unfaithful to me professor. -Afterwards, she looked thoughtful. Although... No, well, maybe..." Smiling she declared, "Excuse me professor, I'm not an expert in multiplayer mode.

Adashino smiled, "How cute, do you want to be his mistress?

She nodded, "Yes, I usually visit him at night.

-Shut your mouth and, if possible, throw yourself out of that window right now," replied the Lord.

-Sorry to disturb you...

All the passengers turned around, from the entrance opposite to the one Yvette had entered, two people started talking to each other.

One of those people was a woman with blonde hair combed to one side. She was wearing a large, long, vertically striped jacket and a black suit underneath it. The most striking feature of her outfit was the red bandages around her eyes.

Next to him was an older man. If he were to be defined, he was a serious, stone-faced man who apparently spoke little. He was wearing a driver's uniform.

She introduced herself. I am Leandra, the train auctioneer.

-I am Rodin, the conductor. The Rail Zeppelin will depart at the stipulated time.

Then Leandra gave a slight smile, "Over the next three days, we will be auctioning off several of our treasured mystical eyes. I hope you will enjoy your stay on the train...

With that said, they both left the carriage...

The rest of the day, Waver spent watching the passengers, unfortunately, nothing else happened. At the end of the day, Waver, Rin, and Gray, went to their room. Gray asked the Lord if they should actively search for the suspect; but Waver said it was not necessary, as whoever had brought them would have something planned for them.

In another carriage, hours ago...

-We made it in time," said Shirou.

-Yes, it would have been problematic if we didn't manage to board it at the station," Altrouge replied.

They both sat down on one of the train's chairs and began to observe the passengers slyly...

"Do you recognize anyone on the train?" Altrouge asked through the contract-generated link.

"Yes. The ashen-haired girl, the one watching us like a hawk, do you see her?".

"Kind of hard to miss with the intensity she's looking at us, who is she?".

"The Lord of Astromancy, Olga Marie Animusphere."

"Isn't she too young to be a Lord?".

"Yes, but the previous Lord Animusphere died when she was young. I understand they survived through a proxy for a time, but the stability of the family was so endangered that she had to take over at eight years of age."

"That's surprising enough; but why is she looking at you so intently?"

"The former Lord Animusphere was her father and, do you remember where he died?".

At that moment, Altrouge understood. "Do you think she thinks it was your father who murdered her father?" he asked.

"It's possible, there were some mysterious murders in the war, like Rin's father or Lord Animusphere's, and murders that were discovered through investigation, like Lord El-Melloi's. It's hard not to be suspicious of the man with the title of magus killer."

"But he didn't do it, did he?".

"No, Kiritsugu met Archer and his master on the last day of the war, just like Assassin. On the other hand, Saber encountered Berserker as well. But neither of them met Lord Animusphere, his Servant, or Assassin's master."

"Do you think she's trying something?".

"I doubt it, the magus of the main families of the Clock Tower are proud and "honorable" aristocrats, at least for the most part. Rituals of the same nature as the holy grail war, such as false wars, where the participants may die and the participants know beforehand, are not so strange. The act of one family attacking another family that has killed a family member in such a ritual would tarnish the honor of that family. In fact, it is more feasible for aristocrats to blame the ability of that member who died and thus cleanse their family name, than to further tarnish it by attacking the other magi."

"I understand. If it's aristocracy, I think I can foresee what he'll do: no alliances or contracts, he won't make it easy for us either if we need anything from his faculty, and if we give him the slightest excuse..."

"He'll come for my neck. Yes, that's most likely. He might also hire assassins so that it won't be known that it was his family's doing; but since he hasn't done that so far, I doubt he will do it in the future."

"Do you know anyone else?"

Shirou slyly looked around. "Yes, you see that man over there."

"That old man who looks like a mobster?".

"He doesn't look like a mafioso, he is. He is Galvarosso Scladio, the Scladio family is a mafia organization, founded by him, whose roots go back to the Sicilian mafia. Although it calls itself a mafia, it is very different from the traditional mafia. It has absorbed and joined many other organizations, increasing its size. This has created a faceless mafia, which is not related to national borders, lineages, or ideologies."

"Hmm... I'm not much interested in the affairs of humans, is it very dangerous?".

"His organization is, but I don't know what skills he possesses as a magus. We'd better be careful.".

Soon, Leandra and Rodin arrived at the carriage and informed the rest of the passengers about the train's departure.

"What do you think of the auction on the first day?".

"It will be a bait. Even if there's an auction every day; I'm sure they'll save the best eyes for the second and third day." The Princess smiled, "I already want to see what they will auction, besides the mystical rainbow-ranked eye...".

"So, will you be participating in the rest of the auction?".

"Maybe, it depends on what they auction... But I'll pass on the first day.".

Shirou and Altrouge spent the rest of the day exploring the train, analyzing the passengers, and investigating if anything interesting or out of the ordinary was going on; but they failed to find out anything. However, when night came...

The duo found themselves in their room inside the train.

-This day was more normal than I thought..." said Shirou.

-Coming from old Caleido, I was expecting more, too," Altrouge replied.

-Well, there are still two days to go. Who knows what might happen..." Altrouge smiled.

Altrouge smiled, "Well, with what I've seen of your luck, nothing good...

-I won't deny that that may be true...

Knock, knock!

-Hmn, who could it be at this hour? -Shirou took his sword and prepared to open the door. Excuse me?

Lord Animusphere's companion stood in front of him.

-Good evening, Mr. Emiya, my name is Trisha Fellows.

-Good evening, you are Lord Animusphere's companion, aren't you?

She nodded, "That's right, I come on behalf of Lord Animusphere, my lady invites you to dine with us... If you accept, meet us in a few minutes in the dining room of the train. -After having said this, she bowed slightly and said goodbye.

-That was unexpected..." said the red-haired man.

-The dining room is a public area, I doubt she would try anything," said Muramasa.

-Did you wake up, grandfather?

-Yes, I've been keeping an eye out for anything interesting, but since I didn't notice anything, I went back to sleep.

The red-haired man nodded, "You're right, it would have been easier to eliminate me now. -Shirou turned to his companion, "Are you sure you don't want to go to the auction? -Afterwards, the young man looked thoughtful. Although, now that I think about it, I don't think you need other mystical eyes...

-I don't need them, the only ones I'm interested in are those of the rainbow rank. However, on the second day, although I doubt they will show the jackpot, they will show better eyes, so I will go, probably.

-If you are only interested in the rainbow rank ones, why will you participate in the second day?

She smiled, "Who do you think will need all the help they can get to survive what we're about to face, you or me?

This surprised the blacksmith apprentice. Wait, you want to buy me some mystical eyes?

-Only if they offer something useful.

Shirou was unsure, "I don't know if that will be any good.

This caught the Princess' attention. Why?

-Do you see my eyes?

She nodded, "Yes, they're silver, as always.

He denied. No, at first they were a more coppery color, they became that way over time.

-Really?

Shirou nodded. Grandfather and I have a theory...

-We think his eyes were transformed by carrying my karma and that of our entire lineage. It's not something that hasn't happened before; but it's the first time it's shown so strongly..." spoke the master blacksmith.

-Pure silver eyes? It makes sense, and more so when they allow you to analyze any weapon in fine detail through Structural Analysis, a rather useful skill, for a blacksmith. -Altrouge smiled, "Relax, the mystical eyes are related to the body, the pure ones to inherited karma, they won't cause problems if you combine them, unless of course, they have a lousy match. So, shall we go?

-Will you give me another option?

-No, that sounds like fun.

Shirou smiled with a hint of irony. I think few people would consider it fun to go to dinner with a person who probably wants to kill you.

-In fact, there are more of us than you think, you just haven't met many who have.

-By the way, brat, wake me up when it's time for the auction.

-Hey? Are you interested in the mystic eyes, Grandpa?

-Not specifically; but we might find something good...

After saying this, they both walked to the dining car of the train. It had several tables and chairs from side to side. At one of them, there were Trisha and Lord Animusphere.

They both approached the table.

-Good evening..." said Shirou.

-Emiya. Please take a seat," said Lord Animusphere.

Shirou and Altrouge sat down and, suddenly, the menu appeared out of nowhere.

-To be honest, I didn't expect you to call me directly, Lord Animusphere.

They both ordered and the menu disappeared.

-I admit I was rather doubtful of this approach, but any major altercation within the train that jeopardizes the auction will result in those involved losing access to it, and I imagine that, like the rest of the passengers, you are coming to get a mystic eye, aren't you? -said Olga Marie

-It is possible..." answered the boy. By the way, this is Rouge, my apprentice.

-Pleased to meet you," said the Princess.

Marie nodded in acknowledgement.

The food arrived at the table out of nowhere.

-If you sent for me, I must assume you want something from me, how may I serve the Lord of Astromancy?

-Trisha...

The woman nodded, "I understand. -Trisha stood up and, using her finger, traced a circle around the table. Suddenly, the area changed.

-An imaginary number pocket, that's the first time I've ever seen one. It's a curious way to use it..." exclaimed Shirou in surprise.

-It's much more practical than creating a barrier so they can't hear us," said Marie.

-Certainly. So, what do you want?

-Information. Of course, I'm willing to pay for it. It's about a common event between our families," she said before passing him a contract.

"A Geis, it prevents me from lying about the information given, in return it obligates Lord Animusphere to reward me in some way. Too vague, but the information I'll give you isn't really important, so I won't lose anything and may be able to gain something." He took the contract and passed it to Altrouge for her to examine, not for nothing was she the Master of Contracts. Altrouge looked it over for a few moments and, with a gesture, told her there were no holes in the fine print, so he accepted it -. I see. The previous holy grail war, wasn't it?

Marie nodded, "That's right, I'll get straight to the point: Was it your father who killed the former Lord Animusphere? Or, do you know how he died? As much as we've investigated, we haven't been able to find the answer. If not for my father transferring his crest before participating, our family would have fallen from grace, just as it happened to the El-Melloi family back in the day.

Shirou shook his head, "No, although my father was the assassin of the former Lord El-Melloi, he had nothing to do with the death of Lord Animusphere, however, there are things that I can confirm...

-Speak...

-Your father made it to the final day of the war and only died at the height of it.

-But how? We didn't even find the remains of his body..." Marie asked, for a moment, her expression wavered and showed a small hint of weakness.

-I have a theory. Nowadays, it is common knowledge that the grail of the ancient war was corrupted; but, what the magus ignore, is the size of the corruption. This agglomeration of curses spread like a blackish sludge that devoured everything without exception, the Church, the Association, and the government, covered it up like a fire; but that cannot be further from the truth.

-¿Y?

-That corruption emanated from the grail itself, and if your father was close to it, it is possible that the corruption...

Marie swallowed. You mean, the mud from the grail..." Shirou nodded.

Shirou nodded, "It's almost certain, about five hundred people died that way, and it's likely that your father was near the grail. That would explain why they found no trace of him.

She looked down. I see...

-Forgive me for not being of more use.

Marie shook her head, "No, even if I had the exact information about his death, it wouldn't change anything.

-In that case, I think this ends our meeting.

Marie nodded, "If you need anything from the Astromancy faculty, come to my office, as long as it's something reasonable, I'll see what I can do. Trisha...

The woman removed the pocket of imaginary numbers by writing a password.

-Valuay, will you participate in the auction? -Marie asked.

-Probably..." answered Shirou.

-In that case, I warn you, we plan to win it, it wouldn't be wise to get in our way," she said with a smile.

-Oh? Is that a challenge? -Altrouge asked.

She shook her head, "Not at all, I don't think you have enough money to compete against us.

Altrouge smiled, "Well, we'll see about that..." he said before walking away.

Shirou smiled tiredly as he shook his head. You shouldn't have done that.

-I'm confident..." Marie replied.

-I know, but she has that and more, probably..." he said before walking away following his partner.

Thus ended the first day on the Rail Zeppelin for its passengers; but, outside of it, in one of London's local...

Kairi Sisigou walked through these streets looking for a particular establishment. On his way, several people turned away from him, fearing his appearance, finally, he reached a door, it had a small sign: closed for some event.

He smiled, "This is it," he said before opening the door and entering the establishment.

-Welcome, Kairi Sisigou...

-I didn't expect you to make me come to such a refined place, though I doubt it would be to your liking, Miss Reines.

The Lord's sister smiled, "My brother loves this place; besides, their sandwiches are good.

Kairi sat down. And what does a lord's sister want from me?

She took a cup of coffee. You know my brother participated in the previous holy grail war, don't you?

Kairi nodded, "That's the rumor...

-Well, they stole the catalyst he used.

-The object used to summon the heroic spirit?

Reines nodded, "They took Iskandar's cloak.

Kairi whistled. It's no small thing.

-No, Kayneth got it by a miracle.

-The King of Conquerors' cloak must be able to form a bond with him, or one of his vassals.

Reines nodded.

-Any evocation magus would want it.

-That's right, and my brother boarded the Rail Zeppelin to retrieve it.

This surprised the mercenary. Wait, are you going to ask me to come up to help him?

She shook her head, "No, you can't go in without an invitation. And I need clues as to who's responsible.

-I see, it's my turn to play detective.

-It must be someone capable of robbing a lord, and I need someone who can take care of himself.

Kairi nodded, "I understand, but why doesn't someone from the College of Modern Wizardry solve it?

Reines smiled, "Because those closest to me are the prime suspects. I was going to ask two of my brother's students to investigate the case; but one of them was already committed; however, she should be arriving soon.

A few minutes later, the Edelfelt heiress walked through the door.

Thus, the first day ended in its entirety.

The next day...

Gray had just entered the dining car.

-Hey, Apprentice, over here, over here," Yvette said from one of the tables, she had just eaten breakfast.

Gray walked over to the table and sat down across from the girl.

-Why don't you order something?

-No thanks, I'm not feeling very well.

-I see... Where's the professor?

-He's not ready yet...

Crossing her arms on the table, Yvette said, "I'm sure he asked to sleep five more minutes...".

-Ha ha ha, you know him very well..." She smiled.

She smiled. Of course, I want to be his mistress after all.

-Do you want to be his mistress? Of the master? -Gray asked as if she wasn't very familiar with the word, not that she didn't know what a lover or a loving relationship meant, it just wasn't something she related to very much.

-With that reaction- -Yvette sighed- -You must not be my rival.

-Hmn?

She held up her patch, "My mystic eye reads emotions, my sorcery consists of carving jewels and transferring them to my mystic eye, so I see people's feelings...

-I see...

-I'm sorry, I shouldn't have gotten upset, you don't have feelings for the professor...

Gray denied with a smile, "No, I like him very much, but I don't have those kinds of feelings for him.

-Yes. It's not worth competing with you that way. -Yvette lay down on the table, "You don't have those kind of feelings for him... for him... Hmn? For him...?

-Is something wrong? -asked the gravedigger in confusion.

Yvette smiled. Gray...?

-Yes?

-If not for him, maybe for someone else...?

At first she didn't understand his question, however, after some thought, she blushed slightly. In the beginning, she might have felt some kind of crush on her teacher for rescuing her, and there were even very handsome men in her eyes, like Melvin, but if she now thought of love, the image of someone else came fleetingly to her mind...

-Oh? A reaction...

-Huh? -Gray exclaimed.

Yvette looked excited. It's small, like a flower in the process of blooming.

-Excuse me?

Yvette happily clasped her hands. I'm rooting for you, Gray, I'm sure you'll make it!

-Yes? -she replied, losing the thread of the conversation.

Suddenly, the door opened and the young Lord entered through it.

-Welcome, professor!

Waver's face showed discomfort as he noticed the girl. Yvette..." She stood up, leaving a seat beside him.

She stood up, leaving a seat next to him. Come, professor, your apprentice is here too!

To his dismay, Waver preferred to sit next to Gray.

-How did it go? -Gray asked.

-I asked the driver about the invitation I received. It's an unsigned invitation, the kind they hand out to several people. He doesn't seem to know who received it either.

-I see...

-They hand out several of those invitations," said Yvette.

-Really? -Gray asked.

Yvette nodded, "Yes. If they don't add new people, the auction gets boring. They must give out about ten every year.

-So it's impossible to keep track," the Lord declared.

She nodded, "You should have consulted me about the train and not brought Rin.

-Ask yourself why I didn't last night," he replied grumpily.

Yvette began to stamp her feet. You're a bad teacher!

In the distance, Adashino looked at them with a grin. Play your baiting role well, detective.

On the other hand...

-Shirou-kun? -Rin asked, walking out towards the end of the last car of the train.

Shirou was leaning on the railing looking at the horizon, when he heard his name, he turned to see a familiar face-Rin?

She nodded

-I didn't know you had come to the Rail Zeppelin?

Rin moved closer to the railing to feel the wind hitting her face. It wasn't something I planned, the teacher came a day before and asked for my help. He offered to give me private lessons, so I didn't refuse his offer, besides, I'm also interested in mystic eyes. And you?

-I received an assignment, and Rouge is also interested in mystic eyes.

-Hmn... Mystic eyes are extremely expensive..." -Rin smiled-. Do you think you can compete in the auction?

He shook his head, "Not at all; but Rouge can.

-Really? I won't deny that she bought some very expensive things the last time we went shopping...

-He's apparently amassed money over the years.

-Oh, so his family is from quite a long lineage, does he have magical patents like mine?

"Well, I won't deny that her lineage is ancient; but I wasn't referring to her family." Shirou shook his head, "No, I think they've simply amassed it over the years.

-Hmm... Though, I never thought she needed mystical eyes...

"She doesn't really need them." Then, he approached her- By the way, Rin...

H-H-Huh? -she exclaimed as she saw how the boy came so close.

-Since when do you wear glasses? -he asked, looking curious.

-Oh, these... They're not ordinary glasses, they're used to cancel out the mystic eyes. -Rin held them in his hands and showed them to him. I imagine you brought something similar, right?

"Hmm... So they're mystic eye killers like Rouge's." Shirou nodded and showed her the gloves he was using- Look...

-Runes, a combination that diverts people's gaze momentarily. It's simple; but effective. -His companion analyzed.

-Yes, I just need to activate it with a little Od and that's it. I wouldn't be capable of anything much more complicated.

-Hmn, come to think of it...? -Rin put on her glasses. Pfff, yeah, you're right, you'd better keep wearing the gloves.

-Hmn? -exclaimed the boy in confusion. Actually, now that I see you, there's something I need to talk to you about...

-About what?

-About what you asked me last time.

Rin looked serious. Did you find out something?

Shirou nodded, "Yes, I talked to my old man and found out some things. You see, my father didn't kill your father, they were both in a ceasefire pact until they could deal with other dangerous magus.

-I see...

-But, what struck me as strange, was what happened after his death. Rin, does your family have ties to the Church?

She nodded, "Yes, about 200 years ago we were hidden Christians living inside Japan when the country was intolerant of foreigners. Because of that we have good connections with the Church.

-I understand. When your father was killed, a Church executioner took his place. He was Archer's teacher for the rest of the war.

-What?!

He looked at her quizzically. Didn't you know?

She shook her head, "For a few years now, getting information about the war has been very complicated, as if someone was covering it up.

-What about the professor? Why didn't you ask him?

She looked uncomfortable. Shirou, did the professor invite you to play video games?

-Yes, I'm no expert, but we've played several games. I've also played some with Flat and Caules. From time to time, the teacher invites us all to play.

-Well, I'm not good at that kind of thing... When he asked me to play with him, I turned him down, and he said something like, "Fuck! You're the worst Japanese in the world," she explained as she mimicked her teacher's voice topically. Then he said something like, "I won't give you an ounce of instruction. Eh, well, at least I'll send letters of recommendation to the other departments."

-Really?

She nodded- I don't know how you and Ayaka make me pay more attention to them.

-W-Well I think it's because of our similar conditions?

-Similar conditions?

Shirou nodded- Yes, sometimes I've heard Gray, or Svin, say that, despite being one of the best teachers in the Clock Tower, the professor is annoyed that he has no achievements of his own as a magus. This is due to his lack of talent, and I think that's why he gives us a bit of an edge... -Although, inwardly, he thought, "It also has to do with her teaching Ayaka how to play before he asked her to, but how was she supposed to know that Rin didn't know about video games? I mean, it's Rin, she always knows about everything..."-. Anyway, the name of the person from the church who took your father's place was Kotomine Kirei, an executioner.

-So it was him..." said Rin showing some hatred in her voice.

-Do you know him?

Rin nodded, "Yes, for some reason, my father left me in his care. I've known his family for a few years now...

-His family?

-They take care of the church in Fuyuki, it's made up of three people: Kotomine Kirei, Hortensia Caren, his daughter, and?

-¿Y?

-Shirou...

-Yes?

Rin shook her head, "No, I mean the last person's name is Shirou, Kotomine Shirou. You could say he is Kirei's adopted brother.

-Oh, I understand.

-The three of them take turns around the year to maintain the church, so- -The three of them take turns around the year to maintain the church, so-

Rin was about to continue; but Shirou stopped her. Wait, Rin, why are you talking as if Kotomine Kirei is alive?

This surprised the young magus. Because he is, obviously.

Worried, the red-haired man exclaimed, "That's impossible...".

The young Tohsaka looked at him as if she didn't understand his words. What do you mean?

-My father told me that he killed Kirei on the last day of the war.

To Rin this was like a bucket of cold water. Th-That doesn't make sense, I've seen that fake priest for almost the last ten years! Are you sure he killed him?

The apprentice magus nodded, "Shot him in the head. My father checked, there's no way he survived.

-But, if so, who is the Kirei who has been watching over me?

The boy scratched his head, trying to understand the situation. I don't know, I don't even understand how they allowed a member of the Church to replace a magus in the middle of the war, I guess it makes some sense... they must want the grail too.

-Still, this is too strange..." Rin looked thoughtful. I didn't want to come back early; but... Shirou, next year, would you mind coming back with me to Japan? It will only be a quick visit, it will serve for several things, such as making your stay in Fuyuki official...

And to find out what the hell is going on, I understand; but, don't you mind waiting a few months?

-I don't mind, but... is something wrong?

The red-haired boy shook his head, "No, nothing, but, in a few weeks, I'll have to make a very important trip, I can't miss it.

This piqued Rin's curiosity. Where to?

-Germany. I have business to deal with there...

She narrowed her eyes. I see, I understand. Then we'll plan it after you return from Germany.

-Thank you. By the way, have you found out anything about the person who stole the relic from the professor?

Rin shook her head. No, nothing so far.

Suddenly, all the passengers on the train heard a warning:

"The train will stop for two hours, you can stay inside this one or go for a ride if you prefer."

-The auction will probably start later... I think I'll go down for a walk," said Rin.

-I'll go and wake Rouge up, she's not very good with mornings.

Rin nodded, "I'll probably stop by my room before I leave...".

With that said, they both parted.

On the other hand, a few minutes ago...

-Lord El-Melloi II...

Waver was still in the dining car; but he was no longer with Yvette. The one who was speaking to him was none other than Lord Animusphere.

-May I speak to you for a moment?

Lord El-Melloi stood up, "I don't know if I can offer you what you are looking for. I am not an auction customer.

-You're the best man in the Clock Tower to hear it," Marie declared.

Waver sighed, "Fine, I'll listen to you...

That said, Waver and Gray escorted Marie and Trisha to their cabin.

-So, what does astronomy want from me?

-We're after an astronomical object?

This caught the lord's attention. Here? The Rail Zeppelin only has mystical eyes. I didn't think the Animusphere would be interested in such mundane matters...

-Both looking at the earth and looking at the planets beyond the sky are the same, in both cases you observe celestial bodies," Marie answered.

-We believe he came to this train to obtain a mystical eye and use it as a means to increase his power in the Clock Tower, we also believe he is being supported by the Sophia-Ri, are we wrong?

Hiding his intentions, Waver replied, "They are not too far from the truth, however, the El-Melloi and the Sophia-Ri are not getting along as well as they used to. I thought you would know..." Marie smiled.

Marie smiled, "I heard that Princess El-Melloi had an argument with Lord Sophia-Ri and the grudge still lingers, but since they didn't sever connections, I figured it was nothing serious. -Then she became serious. I'm going after the star item of this auction: The mystical rainbow eye.

This surprised the Lord. Rainbow? The ultimate celestial controller of the human body.

-Rainbow? Is it that good, master? -Gray asked.

-Yes, as I taught you, mystic eyes have ranks. The high level ones are golden or jeweled, the rainbows are even higher. -Waver was impressed. So they really exist..." Marie smiled.

Marie smiled, "Even in the Clock Tower, there aren't many who have seen one.

The train wobbled and Gray covered his mouth with one hand.

-If they're auctioning off that mystic eye, don't you think I'll buy it?

-I doubt you have enough money," Lord Animusphere declared confidently.

-You don't mince words," Waver said as a small drop of cold sweat trickled down his brow. I gather you're sure they'll auction off that rainbow eye.

-Show it to him, Trisha. We'll speed things up if we reveal some of our cards.

-All right.

-I saw it myself," said Trisha as she took off her glasses and her eyes began to glow violet. Lord El-Melloi II, can you raise your right hand?

-Like this?

She nodded. Three, two, one...

Gray couldn't hold back his nausea. Excuse me, I'll step out for a moment." However, as Gray ran away, the train wobbled, causing her to fall on top of the Lord's arm.

-A mystical eye that sees the future," whispered the Lord.

Trisha put her glasses back on. I saw the eyes being auctioned off.

Gray wasted no time and left the room. Excuse me.

Waver turned to the two of them. And what do you want me to do?

-When they bring out the mystic rainbow eye, if any other fool bids on it, I want you to bid on it, too," Marie replied.

-Well... Weren't you the one who said I didn't have enough money?

-There are no magus stupid enough to take on the houses of two lords," Marie said with a smile. If he withdraws when the rest withdraw, the damage will be minimal.

Waver pondered for a few seconds. For now, I accept your proposal.

-Thank you, I'm glad this was a constructive conversation. If you cooperate, I will reward you appropriately. -Marie smiled, "That puts my mind at ease...

-Is there anyone willing to bid against you?

-I doubted it until yesterday, although I doubt very much that the Emiya family has enough money to challenge me... But... Your student's apprentice, I have a bad feeling about her.

-Emiya? Are those two on the train?

Marie nodded, "I thought you brought them with you?

-No, they must have come on their own...

With Gray...

The young grave keeper was watching the scenery sitting in one of the wagons. Just as a man came up to her...

-Are you all right, miss?

At the sound of the voice, Gray stood on guard, the one speaking to her was the Church agent. He held up his hands as a sign that he meant no harm.

-I'm sorry, I got dizzy.

-This train does not run on normal tracks. -Taking a few steps toward a fruit bowl, the man picked up an apple as he said. The Rail Zeppelin travels on magic tracks. It gets dizzy if you're not used to it. -Stretching out his hand, he offered her the apple. Drink some water and eat something with sugar, it will make it a little better...

-Thank you very much.

Gray reached out to take the apple and the moment he touched the man's hand, the man's mystical eyes activated causing him to stagger backwards.

Gray got up and rushed to his aid. Are you all right?

Between gasps, he said, "I didn't mean to look, so you're not a magus. You're the spitting image of that king, aren't you?

-H-How do you know?

-I'm sorry, my mystic eye can see the past. Even if I don't want it to.

The man staggered, but Gray held him.

-Thank you. I'm all right now...

-He's right... I'm not a magus, being a disciple of the master is only a title.

-That's why you're worried if you can be useful to him.

-Yes...

-Don't worry, you're the kind of person he needs. I assure you.

The man began to walk away.

-Did he use sorcery again? -Gray asked as he watched him walk away.

-No, I say that from experience. I knew someone like that once, someone obsessed with the past needs someone who is trying to move into the future.

With that said, the man walked away and exited the carriage.

In another carriage...

The young Lord found himself in a carriage with a small bar.

-May I sit next to him? -Trisha asked.

-Would you like anything else?

A drink appeared in front of the woman. When I researched the Holy Grail War, I met a young man named Waver Velvet.

-It must have been a hard read.

Not much, I wasn't able to find out much; but from what I discovered, he was a third-generation magus, and not particularly promising. However, he survived the war and, upon his return, inherited the title of El-Melloi, and became Lord with a purpose.

Waver lit a cigarette. It's just a title...

-Something happened during the war that changed his life. For example, an encounter with a former hero," he said, looking at him slyly.

Waver exhaled the smoke from his cigar. An interesting deduction.

At first, neither realized that Gray had entered the car...

-And I have more. If I were to summon the same heroic spirit again, that servant probably wouldn't retain his memories...

-I'm surprised that someone from Astromancy would be interested in things like that, no relation to the stars...

-It is said that the connections are like the stars themselves...

-I also want to ask you something: What kind of mystical rainbow eye did you see?

She turned her gaze, "I don't think it's necessary to share so much information. Not even the Rail Zeppelin could offer two mystic rainbow eyes at the same time.

-I see... It makes sense. Humans depend on information in life and die bound by it. And sight gives us the most... Sight was mankind's first form of sorcery, and obtaining information is the basis for all sorcery," Waver continued smoking. That's why memories and information control us. Having a mystic eye will mean accepting that it will bind you, so if you decide to buy one, keep this in mind.

-Thank you for the warning," Trisha stood up and walked away.

"The train will stop for two hours, you can stay inside this one or go for a ride if you prefer."

Gray stared as she listened to the whole conversation, she didn't know what to say to her teacher. But, finally...

-Master?

-Did you hear anything about me and the holy grail war?

-No, but..." she answered.

-Even if there was a new war, the servants do not keep their memories after their invocations, I have known that for a long time...

-But when you appreciate a person, it's normal to want them to remember you! -Gray replied.

-Yes, it's not that I don't mind him forgetting me. But, still, there's someone I want to see. I want to check something... I want to put an end to something so I can move on after these almost ten years. That's all, a simple mania.

Gray looked down.

-If we could both keep the memories and share them, it would be the ultimate happiness. It would be such that I could never pay for it. Not in my lifetime...

-Master...

After a few minutes, Rin walked through the door. She walked past Gray and approached the Lord.

-Professor, I found this under the door of our cabin.

-Hmn?

Gray walked over to the two of them.

The Lord read the letter, "I am honored that you received the invitation and came."

-I see, be attentive, it seems that they will begin to act.

In a cabin...

-Altrouge, are you awake?

-Five more minutes...

Shirou removed the sheets and opened the curtains. It's been daylight for quite a while, you have to get up.

-Is breakfast ready? -He curled up in bed, refusing to get up.

-We're on the Rail Zeppelin, there's a dining car.

-Isn't it your food?

-No, they wouldn't let me in the kitchen..." Altrouge grumbled.

Altrouge grumbled, "I've lost 50% of my motivation. Has the second day's auction started yet?

Shirou shook his head, "No, not yet.

-Now I've lost the other 50%.

Shirou smiled, "That's fine with me, it's been a very quiet trip.

Lazily, the Princess got up and began to dress. Enjoy it while you can, if I know Caleido as well as I do, he wouldn't send us here if something wasn't going to happen; besides, Rita hasn't contacted us yet.

-Do you think she knows you're here?

-No doubt about it.

Suddenly, there was a loud scream: "AAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!

-Do you hear that, Shirou?

Worried, he answered as he opened the door, "How could I not hear a scream like that!

They both left the room heading towards the source of it.

-I wasn't talking about the scream, I was talking about Caleido's laughter after saying something like: Let the show begin!

He was going to respond; but if I knew anything about the old ancestor it was that he could, in fact, do things like this and worse.

When they arrived at the origin, there were several people outside the room. But more importantly, it was what was going on inside, making room for each other, they both entered...

Trisha had lost her mind... ... literally, her beheaded body was lying on the floor painting the floor with her blood. Next to her was Lord Animusphere, the professor, and Gray...

Chapter 13, Murder on the train.

-Trisha... Trisha? What are you doing lying there...? Trisha, Trisha?! I-It can't be... Get up and water me like you always do! -Marie begged as she tried to move the decapitated body of her assistant.

-Olga Marie..." Gray whispered.

-Professor..." said Shirou coming to his side.

-Shirou, Rouge? What are you doing here? -asked Gray.

-Oh, so you didn't just bring women, Professor! -Yvette exclaimed cheerfully.

-We received an errand," replied Rouge, ignoring the girl.

-So you actually boarded the train," said Waver looking at his student, then looked at the corpse. It was like this when we arrived. Rin went to tell the driver...

-That won't be necessary.

On one side of the room, there were Leandra and Rodin. They appeared out of nowhere...

-Did you do this to him?! Or, was it you, Karabo? -said Marie, addressing the man from the Church. You are one of the Church's magus assassins!

-It wasn't me," the man denied. Would you allow me to examine the body? I'm used to seeing them...

-No way! -Marie raised her palm and a black sphere formed in her hand and shot at Karabo; but he blocked it with one of his black keys.

-With an agile movement, Karabo hit Marie in the head with the hilt of his weapon, knocking her unconscious. Then, he turned to Shirou. You know each other, don't you? I saw them having dinner together last night.

Shirou nodded.

-Take care of her, please.

-I understand," then the boy turned to Altrouge. I'll take her to our cabin. Can you stay and let me know what you find out?

-Leave it to me.

Shirou left, taking Marie in his arms while she was unconscious.

-He was commissioned to perform the autopsy without hesitation," Gray said as he saw the church agent treating the corpse.

-As a member of the Church, he must be used to dealing with bodies," Altrouge said.

-On this train, magus murders are not unusual. The organizers don't worry too much, so it's everyone's responsibility," said Yvette.

-I suppose they only intervene if it turns into some kind of pitched battle that damages the train or endangers the auction," the Princess speculated.

-Exactly! Those who do that lose their right to participate in the auction.

Lord El-Melloi approached the Church agent. May I ask you something?

-Go ahead.

-You are part of the Holy Church, so don't you hate magus?

-I think their souls should burn in purgatory. But that doesn't concern us now. -A large amount of smoke began to cover the corpse and Karabo used it to analyze the body. My black keys are not meant to pierce a lady crying for a friend.

-It seems to attract cases like this, don't you think so, Lord El-Melloi II? -said Adashino entering the room.

-Just like you," replied Waver.

-I was inside the train the whole time, so does that mean I don't have an alibi?

-You know better than anyone that it doesn't work that way with magi.

Adashino smiled. I breathe easier.

-We were on the train too.

Raising her arm as if she were in the middle of a class, Yvette said, "I was outside with Mr. Karabo. There were several magus who could also confirm it.

-He died in the last hour. He bled out when his head was cut off, there's no sign of a struggle, so it must have been an instant death," Karabo spoke.

-Why cut off his head? -asked Adashino.

-His mystic eye could see the future, I checked it myself. Maybe the assassin cut off his head to steal the mystic eye... -the young lord theorized, then he looked around the cabin. The head is nowhere to be found.

-Is it possible to extract the mystic eye from his head? -asked Karabo.

-For the Rail Zeppelin, it would be no problem," Leandra replied.

-I would like to examine the body," said El-Melloi.

On the other hand...

Shirou had left Marie on one of the beds in the cabin. He wasn't sure what to do, if he wanted to investigate, he would have to leave Marie here; but, if there was a killer, it was possible he was after her.

Shirou walked towards the door, perhaps he could ask someone else to look after her, some member of the train or another magus associated with the Animusphere family should be willing to do so, because, if he stood by and did nothing looking after her, the killer would have more leeway.

-Wait.

Shirou turned to see Marie waking up.

-Are you better? -asked the boy approaching her.

Marie let out a wry laugh as small tears spilled from her eyes. One of the people who was by my side since I was a child... the person who supported me all these years, was killed... How am I supposed to be okay?

-I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. I understand what you've been through...

This angered Marie, she stood up and slapped the boy- What are you supposed to understand? Everyone knows and says they understand what I've been through, but that's a lie! No one knows what it means to carry the weight of the whole family and the whole faculty! Trisha... She was the only one who had always been there for me...

Shirou didn't react violently, he realized how hurt Marie was, and thought that, perhaps, his words were not the best to explain himself. "I see, she was their pillar, the reason Olga Marie Animusphere was able to manage to keep the whole family together, was because there was someone who, honestly, had faith and trust in her. And now that she's gone...".

Marie clenched her hands tightly as tears escaped her eyes filled with sadness and helplessness.

Shirou lowered his gaze, the expression Marie had at this moment, would it be similar to the look he had back then? Now that he remembered, Kiritsugu had a look of pure happiness the day she saved him, back then, he wondered if he could have that same look if he helped more people. Even as the years passed, that thought remained, perhaps that was why he agreed to help Muramasa so easily and, perhaps that was also the reason why he decided to help Altrouge despite knowing that everything she was dealing with was far beyond him.

However, this thought had changed slightly over time, while as a child he might have easily given up his life for someone else's; now it wasn't quite the same. He carried the hopes of his ancestor, as well as the mission to help Altrouge, and, ultimately, he had a goal, even if it was an inherited one, this made it no less valid. His grandfather, a long time ago, had told him some things that stuck in his mind: he was a sword, like a sword, if overloaded, it would splinter and end up breaking; on the other hand, a sword without any objective was also worthless; so he should know when to stop, and always be clear about what his objective was, even if he didn't know how to reach it.

Although, that didn't change the fact that he was the kind of person who liked to help others whenever he could...

-It's true, I don't know everything you've been through; but, I can understand it a little. After all, the reason that brought us to our current situation, is the same...

Marie looked at him strangely. What do you mean?

The holy grail war, remember?

Lord Animusphere nodded, "Yes, what does that have to do with what you're saying?

-Not only did my father participate in that war, as you probably know, I'm adopted. My father adopted me after the Holy Grail War.

-¿Y?

-I told you, didn't I? At the end of the war, corruption spread and devoured everything. I lived in the vicinity of where the disaster occurred...

This surprised the lady. That means you...

Shirou nodded, "I lost my family to that ritual and, like you, I clung to one person in order to move forward. -And, inwardly, he concluded, "And, like you, I will lose that person soon too. The only advice I can give you, is to live twice as hard for both of them, and don't let their death be in vain..." -Saying this, Shirou proceeded to leave the room; but...

-Wait! -Marie tried to stop him in vain, "I told you to wait, didn't I!

Shirou stopped in front of the door. Do you need anything else?

Marie got up from the bed. The Emiya family are mercenaries, aren't they?

-Well, yes, I suppose so.

-In that case, I want to hire you.

-To protect you while you're on the train?

She nodded, "Trisha helped me get here, if I let it all fall apart just like that, then everything we did will have been for nothing. I can't afford to die inside this train.

Shirou nodded. I understand; however, I have one condition.

-What is it?

-I was sent to investigate anything strange happening inside the train, so I can't stay to protect you all the time inside this room. If I accept the contract, then you must accompany me while I investigate what is going on.

Marie took a breath and managed to regain some of the firmness she had shown before the murder. Give me a few minutes to get ready and I'll be ready. We can discuss your pay after the trip is over.

-Okay, I'll wait for you outside.

On the other hand...

-He has a sensitive mystical eye, doesn't he? -Lord El-Melloi II asked Karabo.

-Why do you think so? -asked Karabo as he watched the Lord analyze the body.

-Considering his age, it would be logical for him to come to sell a mystical eye, not to buy it. Besides, he offered to examine the body because he thought it would be useful, didn't he?

-I can't hide anything from you, Lord. -Karabo instinctively covered one eye. My eyes see the past.

-He saw mine a while ago," Gray commented.

-Although I'm not able to see a precise time and place.

-That is to say, the mystic eye has greater authority over your body than you do," said the Lord.

Karabo nodded, "Lately it's been dragging me down more than ever. I got on the train so I could get rid of him.

-Did you get a look at the culprit?

The church member looked toward the window, "No, I couldn't see him, maybe he protected himself somehow. I saw the woman sitting in that chair, but I didn't see anything clearly before she lost her head.

-That means that maybe Trisha Fellows didn't see anything either.

-What? -Karabo asked in surprise.

-Had she been aware of the danger, she would have taken action," the Lord surmised.

-At the very least, he would have warned Olga Marie," commented Adashino.

The Lord waved his hand. The assassin can't be traced in the past or in the future. As if he were invisible in time.

-You can't be sure I'm telling the truth.

Waver turned to him. No, but I choose to trust a man like you.

-He does not speak like a Lord of the Clock Tower.

-Mystic eyes are a physical characteristic, not a technique. Therefore, they determine the way of life.

Karabo looked down. Because we are prisoners of what we see, aren't we? -Closing his eyes, he said. Because the world we see cannot be shared with anyone...

Waver turned his gaze to the window. Recently, I watched a friend caught in the dream that his mystic eye was showing him.

-Seeing the past means you don't live in the present. I never lived in the present..." stated Karabo to Gray's surprise and sadness.

"Hey, Shirou?" Altrouge asked through his contract.

At that moment, the red-haired man was standing in front of his cabin. "Altrouge, did something happen?".

"Nothing very special, Karabo has a mystical eye that can see the past; but even with that he said he couldn't see the killer."

"Not even with that!?".

"Although he may be lying; however, El-Melloi has decided to believe him. On the other hand, did the girl wake up?".

"Yes, she just woke up."

"Good, I'm on my way." Altrouge turned and proceeded to leave the room.

-Rouge? -Gray asked as he watched the girl walk away.

-The girl woke up, we may get more information from her," she said and left the room.

-Master...

Waver nodded. Let's go.

The group headed into the room to see Lord Animusphere in front of the cabin and next to Shirou. Rin had joined them on the way saying that she couldn't find the driver, and getting angry that he appeared inside the room right after she had left to look for him.

-Excuse me, Lord, do you have a moment? -Waver asked.

-El-Melloi II? What are you looking for? -Marie asked.

-I want to ask him about the murder, if you don't mind..." Marie sighed.

Marie sighed, "We'll have to investigate later," the lady said to Shirou.

-I understand, besides, the professor is a great detective, so it will be good to know if he has discovered anything," answered the red-haired man. Come, come in.

Everyone present came in and sat down.

-Do you intend to curry favor with the Animusphere for this?

-I don't intend to," Waver replied, to which Marie looked at him curiously. Consider it part of my creed.

-Your creed?

-When I was young and inexperienced, a comrade told me that inexperience was a military symptom. "Glory waits in the distance," Waver clutched an apple. We fight because we aspire to something we don't have. He told me that whether we want to or not, we always end up with a glimpse of our path. -For a moment, it seemed that his gaze was directed toward some distant, unreachable place, then he closed his eyes and said confidently. I cannot forgive a young woman who has not found her way to throw her life away.

-Did they tell you that in the holy grail war? Was it Iskandar, professor? -asked Shirou interested.

-Yes," said Waver, smiling.

-It's true, you also participated in the Holy Grail War, didn't you? -asked Marie.

-That's right.

-But that's stupid, you shouldn't have been so influenced by an assistant!

-That's not...! -Gray tried to say; but the Lord stopped her.

-We humans are still bound by what we see. Take care of her, Gray, I'll go talk to the driver and have her changed cabins.

-That won't be necessary, I've already hired Emiya to act as my bodyguard.

-Now that you mention it, what are you two doing here? -asked the Lord.

Shirou scratched his head a bit, "We received a commission with an invitation to the Rail Zeppelin, for certain reasons, we couldn't refuse.

-Hmn, they only give out about ten new invitations a year. It must have been difficult to get that invitation?

-I guess our contact is pretty influential.

Altrouge nodded, "Caleido is pretty persuasive when he wants to be.

-C-Caleido? You mean the Marshal Wizard? -Rin asked in surprise.

Altrouge nodded, "Yes, the same one.

Rin turned quickly to the red-haired man.

-Before you ask me a question, I have no ties to the Jewel Wizard. He hired us through a third party, I don't even know him.

-Well, that's a bad sign," said El-Melloi in surprise.

Gray looked at him quizzically. Why, Master?

-It's no secret that the Wizard Marshal tends to be interested in everyday matters; but extremely problematic. If he has taken an interest in the Rail Zeppelin, it means something really annoying is going to happen," Waver sighed. Anyway, they'll need a bigger cabin. Come, Rin, come with me...

-Huh? Again?! -complained the girl.

-It doesn't really matter much, we could still use this room," said Altrouge.

-But there are only two beds... -said Gray.

-Exactly! Olga Marie can sleep in one, and Shirou and I will sleep in the other, just as we do in the dormitory, there is only one bed there.

That statement caused the previous mood to be completely destroyed. It was as if the whole atmosphere had become absurdly heavy.

"She really loves torturing me, doesn't she?". Thought the red-haired man to himself.

-As I said, I'm going to negotiate to get them a bigger cabin," said the Lord again as he left the room in a hurry.

-I'll follow you, professor," Rin said with a cutting coldness.

-In that case, I'll go investigate the rest of the train," said Altrouge leaving the room.

-W-Wait Rouge! -said the boy as he tried to stop her; but it was too late.

He really didn't want to turn his gaze away, he felt that, if he did, something horrible would happen.

-Emiya, I can assume that you will not perform such acts as long as you act as my bodyguard, right?

-You have my word, Lord. She and I don't have that kind of relationship yet...

-Still...? -Gray whispered.

He turned around fearfully, Marie wasn't looking at him, she was directing her gaze to the window. Gray, on the other hand, had his face covered with his hood. He knew he had to fix this; but he felt that, whatever he said, it would only tangle things up even more.

-I'll be right back, I'll get everyone something to drink.

-Huh? But! -Marie shouted.

Shirou turned around before heading out the door, "Relax, Gray is really capable. I'm confident she's capable of protecting you even better than I would. I'll be back in a few minutes..." Marie sighed.

Marie sighed, "That Lord and all his students are very strange. -Then, she turned her gaze to Gray, seeing how the girl still had her eyes down and, knowing that she would not get any information from her in that state, the lady sighed again and said, "If you're so worried about it, then you should do something.

-Eh...? -Gray exclaimed in surprise.

-If I've learned anything from being a Lord, it's that no one is going to wait for you. If you want something, you have to do something to get it, if you stand by and watch from a distance, then you won't get anything.

-I...

Marie sighed again. Don't think about it so much, take it as advice. If you want something, isn't it natural to work for it?

-I suppose so...

The Lord nodded, "On the other hand, what is your relationship with Lord El-Melloi?

Gray smiled, "I think he's a good teacher.

-But you're not a magus, are you?

She shook her head, "No, but still, it's enough for me to follow my master. At least, I think so...

-Really?

Gray nodded.

-I see. Well, if you follow a weirdo like him, I guess you're just as weird, although, come to think of it, it seems to be the same with the rest of your classmates...

On the other hand, in the Clocktower...

In Reines' office.

-I see, thank you. Sisigou is in the Dean's office in Slur. Don't worry about it," Reines said over the phone. What about the card? Well, you can use it without reservation, it will only increase the debt. -Reines had to pull the phone away from his ear at the loud noise from the other end before hanging up. Ahhh, my brother gives me a lot of work...

Back on the train...

Lord El-Melloi II was walking down one of the corridors of the Rail Zeppelin, for a moment, he ran into Adashino.

-What are you planning this time? -asked El-Melloi.

-Are you interested in legislation? Or am I? -Adashino answered.

-Don't play dumb. You took the documents from the Codrington house, and now you're here. There must be a reason.

Adashino smiled, "You remember Gurdoa Davenant.

-Yes, he was a troubled old man.

-Gurdoa's pattern is the same as Codrington's." This surprised young Lord.

This surprised the young Lord, "Huh? And does it have anything to do with the Rail Zeppelin?

Adashino turned and spoke in his ear. Who knows. Besides, finding the answer is your job, isn't it, detective? -After saying that, she went on her way.

In one of the "warehouses" in London...

Luvia was analyzing with her gems the place where Iskandar's relic had been kept.

-I didn't find a single trace," said the Edelfelt heiress.

-With evocation either," said Kairi. The person responsible took the relic with great care.

-Maybe he didn't destroy the barrier," said Luvia.

This puzzled the mercenary. What do you mean, Miss Hyena?

-What's with the nickname? -asked the Edelfelt heiress a bit annoyed.

-Edelfelts are spell scavengers, aren't they?

Though still a bit indignant, Luvia didn't protest. I won't deny that. -Then she turned away. I'd say the person responsible had a key to the barrier.

-So it was someone close.

Luvia smiled, "This is getting interesting.

Back on the train...

It was getting dark on the second day of the Rail Zeppelin.

Gray, Lord El-Melloi, and Rin were in the last car of the train.

-It is almost the hour appointed by the thief," said the Lord as he read the letter sent by the thief. It is impossible to escape to the outside.

-What does he mean? -Gray asked.

-This train is, in part, another dimension," Waver put the letter away. It's very complicated to get on and off this one.

-That's why the invitations," Rin said.

-Exactly. The invitations are keys to this dimension. If we open a door using the invitation by torc travel...

-Master," Gray woke him up.

-I'm sorry, being absorbed in my thoughts is a bad habit of mine.

Suddenly, the sky was covered with storm clouds.

-The sky clouded over...

-Something is coming..." Rin spoke.

Red lightning began to descend from the clouds.

-Let's go! -Gray said before climbing onto the ladder that led to the top of the train.

She was followed by Rin and the Lord.

Lightning struck the roof of the Rail Zeppelin...

-You really came... -In front of the three, wrapped in the lightning was a hooded figure, unlike Shirou, they had never seen her without it. It's stupid to dive headlong into what is obviously a trap. Or, is it a feat that only the strong can accomplish? -The person who was talking to them was the same person they had met that day at the Fargo's house, although this time, she took off her hood to reveal her true appearance, the same woman who had helped Shirou, Faker.

-You're the one who stole the relic from the master?

-I serve the one who stole it," she said, folding her arms.

-Gray was about to transform Add, but the Lord stopped her.

-You are Hephaestio's younger twin sister, aren't you?

The woman clicked her tongue. That boy should learn to keep his mouth shut. I guess you know the rest then... Well, it's not like it matters too much. -Then she smiled menacingly. You, on the other hand, seem to be a: Stingy, exentic, rude-awakened, delicate... Yes, no doubt these are the qualities of a wise man, but you turn out to be much more annoying than that. Did I get everything right?

This produced some discomfort in Gray, Rin remained calm on the outside; but she couldn't help but be uneasy on the inside. What she had ahead of her was a servant, if Fuyuki's leylines hadn't weakened, sooner or later, she would have ended up participating in the holy grail war and summoning one of them.

-I wanted to see what the magus Iskandar served was like. But he turned out to be useless...

-He was of no use to me. I am a vassal of the King of Conquerors," Waver replied.

-His vassal? You? -she said as she narrowed her eyes.

-I followed his back because I shared his dream. And his last order was for me to live?

-That's absurd. -Faker drew his short sword. I only called you out of my own curiosity. But it wasn't worth it, I've had enough! I've never been so fed up! -Faker pointed his sword at the trio. So die!

Faker lunged at the three and Gray transformed Add into his version of a scythe. In this way, the two clashed weapons.

-You..." Gray exclaimed.

-Remember, being able to fight doesn't make you a warrior. -Faker applied more pressure pushing Gray back with ease. To be a warrior you need to deliver, body, will and soul!

Faker applied more force forcing Gray back even further, almost overwhelming her, however, she was forced to jump back as curses in the form of black shots flew towards her.

-I can't help you melee, but I can cover you," Rin said.

Gray nodded.

-Be careful, she is a Ghost Liner, the materialization of a historical heroic spirit.

-That warning... It's of little use! -Faker charged magical energy around his entire body and, in one swift motion, swung his sword and, although Gray jumped back to dodge it, he ended up with a slight cut on his leg.

-Huh? -Faker watched in surprise as the magic power he had used disappeared. That's an interesting trick, did you absorb my magic power?

Gray stood on guard.

Faker smiled, "Okay, I'll show you something to keep us entertained.

Faker's eyes glowed gold and reddish.

"That mystic eye, was it the same one he used in the Fargo's workshop, some kind of eye of petrification?". Thought the Lord.

Out of his control, Gray turned on the Lord and Rin.

-You call it mystic eyes of compulsion, don't you? -Faker laughed. He's perfect for this situation, I revere Dionysus, and the god values madness. I wanted to see a death match between master and disciples. -But those glasses render the mystic eyes useless..." She then looked annoyed.

"Mystic eyes of compulsion? That means!". Rin prepared to stop the attack, but Waver's hand stopped her. Look.

Gray lunged to cut them both down; but, at the last instant, she stopped. Add began to glow and a light expanded.

-Hmn... I see, you learned something from our last encounter, didn't you? The scythe purified your magic circuits. Not bad, but I was hoping you'd work it out between the three of you.

Faker raised his hand to the heavens.

-I won't let you! -Gray shouted as he lunged at the heroic spirit.

-Too late! -The lightning bolts went towards the grave guardian, throwing her backwards. Fortunately, Waver was able to catch her before she flew away.

The same chariot that Shirou rode on together with Faker descended from the skies and planted itself in front of the trio. It was shrouded in red lightning.

-No, no, no! Gray, we can't fight it! -Add shouted.

-C-can't be, is that, Gordius Wheel? Iskandar's heroic treasure?! -asked the Lord.

The Wyverns took to the air and began to fly.

-Master, do you have a way to deflect the beams?

-Deflect them?

Rin nodded, "If you can eliminate the beams, then I can attack it with my jewels before it hits us.

-Will that be enough? -Gray asked, "If not, then I can use...

-Wait Gray, using it in such an unstable place could put us in danger! -Then he turned to Rin. I'll take care of the lightning.

Waver used a knife and cut his hair; on the other hand, Rin held three gems between her fingers.

-I am the right hand of Iskandar the great conqueror first, I am his shadow, you have no right to call yourself his vassal!

Using her hair Waver deflected the rays towards the earth and, when they stopped covering the chariot, Rin fired the three gems between her fingers, she did so in such a way that they overloaded and exploded releasing all their power and maximizing her sorcery. When the gems were about to hit Faker, a huge white light burst out before a huge explosion was unleashed on the train's roof...

A few minutes ago, in one of the carriages of the Rail Zeppelin...

-We have already searched all the cars and there is no trace of the killer or anything abnormal," said Marie.

-He must really be an experienced magus to be untraceable even by your means..." said Shirou.

Marie nodded, "Not even two Lords have been able to track him down, it can't be just anyone.

-What if he didn't use sorcery? -Altrouge suggested.

-No, he had to have used sorcery. Remember, he couldn't have been seen by Karabo, and if he hadn't used sorcery, the only way he could have committed the murder would be with some kind of trap already set.

-But the room was intact, so that's not possible," said Altrouge.

-But, maybe you're not entirely wrong," suggested Marie. That is, if you decide to believe Karabo, of course.

-What do you mean, Lord? -asked Shirou.

She folded her arms, striking a typical pose for self-importance. It couldn't be tracked using common sorcery; but, it couldn't be done using conventional means either, is there something on this train that can produce this phenomenon?

-A mystic eye... but, it would have to be one that could function at a distance and, activate the effect at a specific location.

-And, so far, we haven't met anyone with a mystic eye with that ability," Altrouge stated.

-That means they're hiding it," said Marie. It would be easy if we had the auctioneer and the manager's help, but they don't care about the murder as long as it doesn't damage the train or the auction.

-But, if our assumptions are true, then..." whispered the red-haired man.

-So? -Altrouge asked.

-So no one entered the room after Trisha was killed, otherwise Karabo would have seen it.

-¿Y? -Marie asked.

-The head! -exclaimed Altrouge. If no one entered, then the head must be inside the room.

-But that's impossible, we looked everywhere," said Shirou.

-If Trisha had seen the attack coming," whispered Marie.

-Are you talking about her mystical eye? -asked Altrouge.

She nodded. Trisha had a mystical eye and, in short, it allowed her to see the future. -Marie explained to the redhead, then looked down. That's why I was surprised when I found her dead body, of all people... I never thought it was Trisha who could be killed.

-But, it makes sense, a mystic eye is like a single action spell, there are no preparations, or anything to alert you. If Trisha saw the future, she could only see the effect, therefore, she wouldn't know how to block it," Shirou repeated what he had learned in class.

-And yet, the head is gone, that means she must have done something," Altrouge spoke.

-If they were coming for Trisha, it stands to reason that what they wanted was her mystical eye. If I had been her, I would have done something to stop them from getting it," said Marie.

-If she had been standing when her head was cut off, it would have fallen forward and hit the floor, but she's not..." spoke Altrouge.

-A way to hide her head..." whispered Shirou.

At that moment, Marie opened her eyes, "There is a way! If it didn't fall on the floor, but inside one of Trisha's imaginary number pockets, no magus could open it without a password.

-That means the head should still be in the room! -said Shirou.

-Let's go! -Marie started to run towards the room; but, as she began her run, the train wobbled heavily, the three of them had to hold on to the chairs to keep from falling off. What was that?

-Something on top of the train," said Altrouge.

And, before they could do anything. The train shook violently again.

-Again? -Marie asked.

-What's going on? asked the red-haired man,

-No idea; but we'd better go to the cabin," said the Princess.

On the railroad...

-What happened, Mr. Rodin? -asked Leandra.

-It's hardly credible, but someone tampered with the tracks," answered the conductor.

-Where are we headed?

Rodin swallowed. The Predator Forest.

This worried Leandra greatly. Are you saying...? Number 7 of the True Ancestors of the Dead Apostles.

Rodin nodded.

-Frene!

He shook his head, "I can't, I already tried. Someone is not only tampering with the tracks, they're tampering with the train.

Leandra gritted her teeth. How long? How long until we reach the forest?

-In a few hours, in the morning of tomorrow.

Leandra turned and spoke to what seemed to be nothing. My lady Rozay-en! What shall we do now?

Although to anyone else it would appear that she was speaking to nothingness, she was actually speaking to a certain existence. To her eyes, a ghostly-looking woman appeared in her sight, her skin a mixture of colors: light blue, dark blue and white.

The emanation smiled, "Don't worry, I have an idea.

-An idea? -Leandra asked curiously.

The emanation showed him what the people he had to look for looked like.

-These two? -asked the auctioneer.

The emanation nodded.

-Shall we inform our passengers of our new destination, my lady? -Rodin asked.

-No, not yet. Not before we speak to our guests. -Rozay-in, or rather, his emanation, pointed toward the door. Now, Leandra, when everyone is asleep, go get them.

The auctioneer nodded.

Elsewhere on the train...

-Lord...? -said Shirou, seeing how Marie hesitated to open the cabin door.

She took a breath, "Yes, sorry..." Marie took the key to her old cabin and opened it.

They entered and the mess from the afternoon had been cleaned up.

-The corpse was lying here..." said the Princess as she pointed to the spot. That means she must have been standing here and her head must have fallen over here...

Marie approached the spot pointed out by the girl and set about examining it. Let me see...

She placed a hand on the spot and a golden mark appeared in the air, as well as a small opening of a pocket of imaginary numbers.

Shirou smiled. Is that...?

Marie nodded smiling. It's a spell fixed exactly at these coordinates, it's neither on the floor nor on the ceiling, it's right in the air, at the relative coordinates of the train..." Suddenly, a mark began to glow on Marie's forehead.

-Lord, is that it?

-The magic crest is reacting. This spell is from the Fellows family, they are a family affiliated with us, the Animusphere. -Marie lifted her arms forward and a huge magical seal appeared in front of her. I'm going to try to open it using my crest...

The other two nodded.

Suddenly, the opening expanded and Trisha's head came out along with an amulet of a naked man and woman embracing.

Marie took several steps back, even if she knew it was possible for this to happen, still, it was no less shocking. T-Trisha, really, you...

-Watch out, Lord! -Shirou stepped in front of the girl and Altrouge just looked under the bed in boredom.

-Hey! -Marie exclaimed.

An albino snake crawled out from under the bed.

Shirou pulled Vorpal out expecting it to be some sort of ghostly beast. However, it did not attack them.

-Hmn? It's not attacking us? -Shirou asked.

-It must be some kind of familiar," said Marie.

-We've seen it before, remember, Shirou? At Marbury's workshop," said Altrouge.

-Sure, she's...

-My relative..." The door to the room opened and Adashino walked in, she smiled. I'm sorry if she startled you.

Marie tried to keep her composure against the Legislation envoy. You left her to watch.

Adashino nodded, "I thought something was missing, and that the assassin might return, so I left my familiar to guard the cabin. -Then she looked at Trisha's head. The Rail Zeppelin must have the necessary facilities to keep the head, if you come with me, Lord Animusphere, we can make sure it doesn't go bad.

Although nervous, Marie nodded, "Yes, c-course. -However, she could not pick up the head, her hands were shaking too much.

Seeing this situation, Altrouge took the head as if it were no big deal. Shall we go?

Marie nodded, "Thank you.

-I'll meet you in our cabin, I'll wait for you there. -Shirou looked at where Trisha's head had fallen, there he noticed it, the amulet. This is...? -After looking at it for a few moments, he turned his gaze-. It has some kind of spell, but I don't know exactly what kind, maybe Rin or the professor can tell me... -Saying this, he took the amulet and left the cabin.

After a walk, the boy arrived at one of the telephone booths inside the train. His cell phone did not work inside the train; but the phone booths inside the train did. Shirou dialed a number and let the phone ring.

-Yes, Luvia?

-Shero? You're on the Rail Zeppelin right now, aren't you?

-Yes, how are you Luvia?

She smiled, "Well, I took Lady El-Melloi's job, so now I'm investigating the thief of the professor's relic. And you?

-I see. I'm fine, but, you see, I had to take a job from Lord Animusphere, and I need to ask you a favor...

-Lord Animusphere? A favor? -What do you need...?

-Do you know the Fellows family?

Luvia nodded, though only Kairi could see her. Yes, it's a family affiliated with the Animusphere, why?

-Lord Animusphere's assistant was murdered; at first, I thought it was an attempt to steal her mystic eye; but now I'm not so sure, do you think you can investigate if Miss Fellows was involved in something before she got on the Rail Zeppelin?

-Hmn, it will be difficult; but I'll see what I can do; however, I want compensation...

-How can I help you?

Luvia smiled, "I have a certain matter to investigate in a few months, when the summer comes, will you come with me?

-There's still a long time to go before summer; but, of course...

-Well, I'll send you the information later, call me tomorrow and I'll tell you what I've managed to find out.

-I understand, thank you, Luvia. See you in a few days.

-See you later, Shero.

Once he hung up, he headed towards his cabin, after a few minutes, Altrouge and Marie entered the room. The latter was carrying some kind of black box, most likely, the container for Trisha's head.

He was about to ask if everything had gone well, but suddenly there was a knock in the room.

Shirou went to open the door and was surprised when Gray and Rin came in carrying an unconscious Waver.

-Please step aside," Gray asked.

-Sorry, this cabin was closer," Rin explained.

Gray laid the professor face down and ripped off his shirt, a large burn could be seen on his back.

-It's a bad burn! -said Marie.

-What happened? How did the professor end up like that? Did the killer attack them?

Gray shook his head, "It was Hephaestio's sister, the same one we confronted at the Fargo house. She attacked him for personal reasons.

Rin took one of her jewels and placed it on the burn. I'll take care of him.

-Will he be all right? Will he get better? -Gray asked nervously.

-I'm not an expert in healing sorcery; but I'll do my best.

Gray began to tremble as tears began to spill from her eyes. Master...

-Unbelievable... as a disciple of a magus, you should be prepared for this.

This annoyed Shirou a little; but he smiled after seeing Marie's action.

-Why don't you use this? -Marie was holding a small glass container with a greenish cream.

-What is that? -asked the tomb guardian.

-Druid medicine," replied Marie.

-Druid medicine? A panacea, the omnipotent remedy? -asked Rin.

-Trisha gave it to me just in case; but I didn't need it.

-Thank you very much! -said Gray.

Marie lay down on the other bed. Now, the Animusphere owes you nothing. Good night!

Gray went to use it; but Shirou stopped her.

-I think you better save that for another time.

-What, but the master!? -Gray shouted in exultation.

-I know; but there is another way to cure him. If indeed our enemy is Faker, that may serve us for another time.

-Another way? -Gray asked.

-Faker? -said Rin.

Shirou nodded, "She introduced herself as Faker the second time we met, that time was at the Marbury Workshop. For the second way to work, I need everyone, except Gray, to leave the room.

Rin looked at him incredulously. Forgive me if I look skeptical, Shirou-kun, but you're really bad with anything that doesn't involve swords.

-I know; but you don't think I've survived all this time without a way to heal myself, do you, Rin?

-Ohhh...? -Rin smiled. So hiding your mysteries?

-It was the first thing you taught me, did I learn well, teacher?

Rin sighed with a smile, "Okay, you win, I'll get out...

-Will you use that? -asked the Princess.

Shirou nodded.

-Okay. -Altrouge walked over to the other bed in the room, pulled Marie out of it, and carried her away like a sack of potatoes.

-Hey! Let go of me!

-What are you going to do, Shirou? -asked the gravedigger.

-Give me a moment," Shirou stretched his arms out in front of his chest and, hovering above them, a divine golden-colored construct came into existence.

Something stirred inside Gray. That's...?

Shirou nodded, "Avalon, although it is only a replica, it is the only divine construct that I can project faithfully," then the boy brought it close to the Lord and it vanished inside him.

Quickly, a beautiful golden light emerged from inside Waver and the burn decreased until it disappeared.

-Ready, he should be fine after resting.

Gray had watched the short process in amazement.

-Strange, I can tell I know that feeling somehow, and yet I'm sure it's the first time I've seen it...

Even stranger for both of them, was to see Add speak in a serious manner.

-By the way, boy! -He returned the mystic code to its usual booming form.

-Huh? -Shirou exclaimed.

-How were you planning to return Gray's sheath, if you've merged with her to the point that there's no difference between you and her! -Add asked.

-Now that you mention it, it's true. Avalon dissolved inside me for the last ten years, to the point where I don't even know if it's possible to separate us...

-Ihihihihihihi! At this point, you and Avalon are no different!

-Really? -he asked hesitantly, "I guess you're right...".

Then it was Muramasa who spoke. Ironic, I thought I'd get you a pod, and in the end it was you who became someone else's pod.

-Yes, I suppose I can be considered Gray's pod...

-Huh? -exclaimed the girl in surprise.

Taking it more seriously than he should have, Shirou began to mutter. As a pod she should protect Gray and the people she wants to protect, shouldn't she?

-Shirou? -Gray asked quizzically.

-Don't overthink it, even if you're a sheath to a person, that doesn't mean you're not a sword first and foremost, remember!? -his ancestor complained.

Shirou nodded, "I know, grandfather. Besides, I would have helped Gray as much as I could even if I didn't have Avalon inside me. So there's no need to overthink it.

Those words made the gravekeeper happy; but she couldn't help remembering what Altrouge said in the afternoon, nor what Marie told her afterwards. If you want to get something, you've got to do something?

-Are you all right, Gray? -asked the boy when he saw the girl's eyes fixed on him.

-Oh? Yes!

-Well, in that case, I'll tell the others to come in.

In the meantime, Gray stood by his master's side. She was there; but part of him was still self-absorbed...

Outside the Rail Zeppelin, in a car...

-I can't believe I'm playing detective with you," said Luvia.

-Well, it looks like you were having fun. Especially while you were talking on your cell phone..." Kairi smiled.

-You can't explore the center of Modern Wizardry every day," Luvia replied. And the previous dean was full of mysteries...

-Kayneth El-Melloi? -asked the mercenary.

-No, he was the Lord of Mineralogy. Didn't you know that?

-The Clock Tower is above me. Who was he, then?

Luvia looked out the window. He wasn't a Lord. -Suddenly, her cell phone started ringing. Excuse me... Lady Reines?

-Yes, it's me, apparently my brother was seriously injured.

-Shall we continue with the mission?

Reines nodded in his office. Yes, go ahead. Apparently, Lord Animusphere had his family mobilized as well?

-Get out of the way! I just want to talk to Reines El-Melloi Archisorte.

Princess El-Melloi sighed. I'm sorry, I have to go.

The door was abruptly opened. A tall man with grayish hair, black coat, white shirt, and grayish pants entered the room.

-What is the meaning of this, Lady? -the man asked indignantly.

Trimmau transformed his arms into mallets; but Reines stopped him.

-Would you please clean up the blood you spit out?

Trimmau wiped the blood from the floor that the man had spat.

-I'm sorry...

-Melvin Weins, my brother is not here. But I can relay your message to him.

-I didn't come to see him! -I want to know what Waver is doing on the Rail Zeppelin!

-What's the need?

-As a friend of his, I deserve to be informed of these things," he said before spitting blood.

-I only found out a couple of days ago," Reines declared.

-And you didn't go with him, Reines? -asked Melvin, surprisingly serious, then wearing an extraordinarily excited expression. It must be hilarious!

Amused, Reines waved her hands. As you can see, I'm busy working.

-In that case, I'll have to go alone.

-You'll have to go alone?!

Melvin laughed- I have to account for Waver's whining. -Then he raised his hand. Look at that," he said as he held out an invitation to a surprised Reines. This is the Weins' money power.

Back at the Rail Zeppelin...

To avoid being easily attacked, everyone had decided to stay in the same room. Since Waver had negotiated for a larger cabin, the room had three beds. Two girls shared a single bed, and Shirou would sleep on the couch. By this time, everyone had already gone to bed, and yet...

-You can't sleep? -asked the Princess.

Shirou shook his head, "No, this situation is quite problematic: an assassin, Faker, and a train full of dangerous magus..." Altrouge smiled.

Altrouge smiled, "Well, I would expect nothing less from Caleido.

Shirou laughed-. I guess you're right, how is Fou? I noticed him rather strange a few hours ago.

Altrouge saw the "little dog" sleeping on the other couch. Yes, I noticed him too, he was looking out the window for quite a while. He and I are both sensitive to certain things, so I imagine he noticed something strange.

-You too? What did you feel?

She frowned. The Rail is approaching a very dangerous place, but I doubt they're headed this way, that would be suicide.

-A very dangerous place? Which one?

-The Predator Forest, remember? I told you about it before.

Shirou frowned worriedly.

-Relax, like I said, I don't think he'll go into it, that would be suicide.

The boy nodded. I understand, by the way, are you okay?

-About what?

He pointed to his neck and she understood.

-Relax, the urges haven't kicked in yet; besides, it would be problematic to do it here.

Shirou nodded.

Knock, knock!

-Who could it be at this hour? -asked the boy.

-A person who will bring a lot of trouble, that's almost certain. But I don't think it's an enemy.

Shirou opened the door and, who was on the other side, was the auctioneer.

-Good evening," said Leandra. Sorry to disturb you so late at night.

-So Rita finally wants to see us? -asked Altrouge.

Leandra nodded, "My lady has requested your presence, would you be so kind as to accompany me?

-Shall we go? You know her better than I do... -Shirou asked the Princess.

She nodded, "Yes, let's go. I feel like talking to her again; besides, if during these two days she didn't look for us, something tells me that she's not doing it just because she feels like talking...

Leandra smiled at this statement. Then, follow me.

Seeing that no one had woken up, Shirou, Altrouge, and Fou, left the room and followed Leandra.

She led them to the auction room, a room with several seats, like a large stage. The center of the room was set up for a large lecture and, on the far wall, there were many containers for various mystical eyes. The most striking thing in the room, though, is the ghostly-looking woman who stood at the podium. Usually, she was not noticeable; but she decided to show herself.

She smiled, "So the rumors are true, who knew that one of the Dead Apostle Princesses would become attached to a human. The end of our world really is near, don't you think so, Altrouge?

She nodded, "It looks like you're still recovering. Did that magus hit you that badly, Rita?

This seemed to hurt the apostle's pride, she smiled arrogantly. And what about you, Altrouge? Wounded by a simple magus?

The Princess smiled, "It's one thing to be injured in a simple game, but it's quite another to be made to run away from your own train. I know you won't die so easily, though, not unless it's at Sumire's hands.

The emanation smiled- Exactly, I won't accept any other kind of death. The magus simply caught me by surprise, obviously, she took each and every provision to confront me. I have recovered, I have simply decided that it is not necessary for me to expose myself to any more unnecessary dangers. Although, of course, I am not satisfied with the outcome of my encounter with that magus...

-I see, that's why you left this emanation here. I imagine you'll go after her in the future.

The manager nodded, "Of course, I will make her pay for this humiliation.

Altrouge smiled, "Considering the time... By now, you must be in your castle taking your nightly bloodbath, right?

-I never thought I'd see you here Altrouge, I always thought you shared Fina's resentment of me.

She raised her shoulders and hands in denial, not giving it a thought. That's your business, I'm not particularly interested in it.

Rita's emanation smiled, "That's good, because I need your help right now.

-I figured, you know it won't be free, right?

She smiled again, "Anything in this life is?

-So, what's going on? -Shirou asked, seeing that the conversation was dragging on too long.

-Someone is tampering with the tracks and the train, they've changed our course," Leandra replied.

-Please tell me we're not headed where I think we're headed," begged the red-haired man on the verge of resignation.

Altrouge smiled, "Well, it looks like it.

-To the Predator Forest," Rita replied.

The princess smiled good-naturedly, "The seventh dead apostle, who knew he would be active at this time? The seventh dead apostle, who knew he would be active at this time, he only appears every 50 years, you really have bad luck. Well, you're in quite a mess, I don't think, even if you come with your real body, you can face it alone on your own, sweetheart.

Though again annoyed by her wounded pride, the emanation smiled again. Yes, that's true; but that's why I'm glad to have the help of the Twilight Princess and her companion.

-And the payment would be? You don't expect us to save your train without a payment, do you?

The emanation shook her head, "Of course not, with the exception of the rainbow-ranked mystic eye, you may choose any mystic eye on this train.

This did not please the Princess. One or several? -asked Altrouge. Considering you're not willing to give us the top prize, several of jeweled rank shouldn't be a problem, should it? -she said reluctantly

-Codicious... -whispered the emanation, then smiled mischievously- -I know, how about we do this: if you don't participate in the fight against the seventh, and your partner defeats him on his own, I'll not only give you the rainbow rank eye, I'll also give you a mystic eye of your choice, although, of course, Primate Murder can't participate either, the boy must do it on his own.

-That's it..." said Altrouge hesitantly.

Shirou gave it some thought; but finally declared, "I'll do it.

This surprised the Princess, "Shirou, what the hell are you saying, he's one of the twenty-seven!

-I know," Shirou spoke confidently. You've explained about this one, and I've also read about the Predator Forest on my own. Precisely because this is the ancestor we're dealing with, I think I have a chance.

-Are you sure...?

Rita smiled teasingly. It really is strange to see the Twilight Princess worrying about a human. Rumors are spreading like wildfire, you know? This may negatively affect your faction, Altrouge. However, if the boy kills the forest, the bad rumors will turn into interest from the rest of the apostles. -Then she smiled mischievously, "Wouldn't that be good for you, honey?

She glared angrily at the fifteenth. Just as devious as ever, you really do what you want.

-So, do you accept? -asked the emanation as Leandra approached them with a contract.

Altrouge turned to the red-haired man, "Can you really do it?

Shirou nodded resolutely, "If I can't handle a dead apostle, even if it's one of the twenty-seven, how am I going to handle helping you deal with everything we have to deal with?

Altrouge frowned worriedly. That's true, but...

-Don't worry, I won't let you go down either.

At those words, she couldn't help but smile. Well, if you're so confident, I'll leave it in your hands.

After the Contract Master studied the one Leandra was offering them, and discussed some clauses with Rita, which caused it to be slightly modified, both Shirou and Altrouge signed it.

It's done, if the boy can't handle it, you will, Altrouge, but you won't be able to get the rainbow-ranked eye.

The Princess nodded, "Considering that tomorrow's auction will be the last one, I take it you will let us choose which other mystic eye we will take before the auction takes place?

She nodded, "Of course, please do.

Altrouge turned to Shirou. Go ahead, pick any one, I'll take the rainbow.

-How greedy of you, you'll leave the consolation prize to your partner.

Shirou shook his head, "Such a powerful mystical eye will only get me into trouble, it might overrule my authority, I prefer one that matches my sorcery.

-Then which one will you choose?

Shirou took out his katana, "What do you think, grandfather?

At that moment, Muramasa woke up. I'm not an expert on mystical eyes, so I'll ask for the manager's help, if you don't mind.

-Hmn, a spirit possessing a sword...? Not at all, what are you looking for?

-The boy's style of sorcery requires him to be able to use his eyes to analyze complicated structures, sometimes difficult to understand, plus alterations in the environment and himself that exceed the recognition speed of his brain, do you have anything that can help him with that?

Rita's emanation smiled- Leandra...

As if she knew her teacher's thoughts, the auctioneer nodded, "I understand," Leandra went to one of the mystic-eyed containers and brought it in front of those present. This is what you are looking for...

-What are they? -Shirou asked.

-Glam sight: Fairy eyes," answered the auctioneer.

This confused the duo.

-Fairy eyes? What good would it do the boy to be able to perceive fairies and have a connection to their world?

Rita shook her head, "There are different types of fairy eyes, derivations of each other. In general they allow us to perceive what we normally cannot. A few decades ago a man came to buy some like the ones you say; but these are slightly different.

-What do they do then?

These allow you to easily perceive and adapt to any information that the brain cannot normally process; for example: high-speed movements, things incomprehensible to human reason, etc. Don't they seem adequate?

Shirou smiled and nodded.

-Well, then, tomorrow morning, they will take it upon themselves to assassinate the seventh dead apostle: the Predator Forest of Ainnash. We will pierce their eyes after the job is done.

They both nodded and retired to their quarters...

-This day has been long," said Shirou.

Altrouge nodded, "I hope you are sure of your decision, Shirou. I still don't understand why you did it.

-Well, it seemed like you really wanted those mystical eyes, so I decided to take the opportunity and get them for you, did I do something wrong?

-You idiot! You shouldn't go on suicide missions just because of a whim of mine.

-It didn't look like a simple whim to my eyes..." he said, quizzical. It really looked like you wanted them.

Although still annoyed, she smiled gratefully, "Thank you, it means a lot to me.

-Well, you said it, we're in this together, aren't we?

She nodded, "That's right...

-But why are you so interested in those eyes?

Altrouge looked to the sides of the corridor, "I'll tell you when our trip is over, on this train, the walls have ears.

Shirou nodded, "I understand.

They both entered the cabin and got ready to rest, tomorrow would be an even longer day.

Shirou closed his eyes and, after some time, he reappeared in that place: the park where he played as a child. Suddenly, his sight darkened, someone spoke in his ear.

-Who am I...?

Instinctively, Shirou could not help but smile, the following words would produce great reactions in the person who covered his eyes.

-We have a lot to talk about, Mana-chan.

Manaka walked away in astonishment, she didn't think Shirou would ever call her like that again. At that moment, she was dealing with mixed feelings, on the one hand, she was extremely happy to hear him refer to her again; on the other hand, she was extremely worried. His calling her that meant only one thing: he had remembered, the question was: how much?

-I guess so, Shi-kun?

Chapter 14, The Predator Forest.

They were both silent, looking at each other.

Finally, despite the possible danger posed by the girl in front of him, Shirou decided to take a chance, anyway, if what Altrouge had told him was true, then Manaka wouldn't kill him without thinking about it.

-Why are you trying to hide it? -I don't understand...

-Shi-kun, how much do you remember? -She asked interested; but calm, or at least, she seemed to be, because deep down she was extremely worried.

If she had had this conversation years ago, he would have answered immediately and without much thought; but, having lived with magus for several years, had taught her a certain caution-. I remember that you are part of a magus family, and that I met you in this park almost a decade ago. Am I correct?

This was a lie, the only thing Shirou knew for sure was that Manaka and he had met in this park; that her younger version had caught his eye and, that, for almost a week, he had been trying to talk to her so that she would begin to open up to him. He knew that, over time, they had become close and constantly played in the park together with Tachie and Ayaka, which, oddly enough, was the name of Manaka's younger sister. She bore the same name as her classmate, which was not very strange.

However, both his survival against the black mud, and his claim that he had made his Od force him to walk when he had no strength during the accident, were more than enough evidence to let him know that Manaka was related to the Moonlit World.

-I see... -In the back of her mind, she had been reassured. "Just remember that...". Then, she smiled again with her typical smile that denoted innocence. Yes, it's as you say. I guess the right thing to do would be to reintroduce myself, my name is: Manaka Sajyou. You and I met in this park almost a decade ago, here we became friends, and we hung out together until the accident happened, and since then we've been together.

"Sajyou, just like Ayaka!? But what is the probability that there are two magus families with the same surname in the same country?". Logic said that, considering the number of people in Japan, the odds were high; but, considering the magus' pride, it was unlikely that they would agree to share their surname with another family; besides, hadn't Ayaka told him about her enormously talented older sister?

"Should I...?" He looked doubtfully at the girl-. Mana-chan...

She smiled radiantly. Yes, Shi-kun?

-Ayaka, my partner at the Clock Tower, is she your younger sister?

It was only for a few moments, Manaka's gaze showed a really worrying coldness; however, she returned to her usual attitude as quickly as she came out of it. That's right, Shi-kun. I'm also as surprised as you are, our father wasn't very fond of the Clock Tower, so seeing her studying there came as quite a surprise to me.

-But that doesn't make sense, I didn't recognize her because of my amnesia; but why didn't she recognize me? -asked the boy.

Manaka made a thoughtful gesture, grabbing his chin, "Maybe she suffered from something similar to what you suffered from? Maybe her memories of what happened before the accident have been erased?

If what he knew was true, he was the only person who came out of that fire unscathed, if Ayaka had been involved in the accident that represented the end of the war, then wouldn't she also have been counted along with him as the only ones who came out of the disaster unscathed? On the other hand, it is possible that she would not have been taken to a hospital and her family would have taken over.

-I see... But why did you try to hide our relationship from me? I don't see any reason to do so.

She looked down. I was hoping to spare you bad memories.

-Bad memories? -he asked confused. It's... it's true that, seeing everything I've lost... It's a painful thing; but..." Shirou smiled, "They're still part of me, important memories that I treasure. I may never see my parents or Tachi again; but, at least I can see you and Ayaka. Remembering the times I spent with both of you, even if it brings some pain, is not something I can just skip over...

-Shi-kun... -Manaka smiled, even if he had lost his memory, he was still the same boy who helped others with a smile and was extraordinarily stubborn when he set his mind to something- -You haven't changed much Shi-kun, you're even still chasing the same dream.

-Huh? The same dream?

Manaka nodded, "After we had known each other for some time, you confessed to me that you had inherited the dream of your ancestors, the dream of creating the ultimate sword.

-Really?

-Yes, yes. And I promised you that I would help you achieve it.

-That's why you were talking about fulfilling my dream?

She smiled. Exactly! I will help you fulfill your dream of creating the ultimate sword. After all, I'm a really amazing magus, you know?

-Ayaka said you were truly a prodigy like no other.

She nodded happily.

-By the way, Mana-chan...?

-Yes?

He was careful not to directly implicate her with his next question, he didn't know how she might take it. Do you know anything about the holy grail war? Since your family was present in the city when the ritual took place..." She nodded.

She nodded- Yes, my father did quite a bit of research on that ritual; but he didn't tell me much about it.

"So, it's like with Rin? Her family participated, but she stayed away? I guess it makes sense, by the time the war took place, she must have been just entering her teens."

-"By the way, Shi-kun," she said as she sat down on one swing and invited Shirou to sit on the other.

He accepted the invitation. Yes?

-I was awake for a while before you fell asleep, so I could hear and see some things, tell me: How are you going to kill Ainnash Forest? You have a plan, don't you?

Shirou smiled somewhat nervously- Yes, something like that.

Manaka narrowed her eyes. Shi-kun...? What's your plan?

-Well, Ainnash Forest isn't the apostle itself, is it? I mean, it's a reality marble that's being controlled by the dead apostle at the center of it.

Manaka shook her head, "You're wrong, Shi-kun, Ainnash was a magus who became a dead apostle. He was killed by the White Princess of the Dead Apostles, and she left his body near a blood-sucking tree. It took the blood from Ainnash's corpse, which transformed the tree, and subsequently the forest, into the second generation of the dead apostle.

-Really? -This took Shirou by surprise. Still, the key to eliminating Ainnash, whether the forest or the apostle, remains the same: it is not to destroy the entire forest, but to destroy the original blood-sucking tree that absorbed the blood of the dead apostle.

The girl nodded, "But there are things you don't seem to have taken into account, Shi-kun?

-Like what?

-The forest is a ghostly species, it feeds off the environment and magical energy, so it is nearly impossible for sorcery and similar abilities to be used within its confines. Even if people possess magical circuits, they will not work because the magical energy of the ley lines is dominated by the forest. Only personal abilities can be used, while supernatural powers that rely on outside energy are sealed off. Simply put, you can't use sorcery.

-I know; but I hope this will make a difference.

-This? -he said as he swung around and looked at Shirou.

-Vorpal, it's one of my swords, and it's specifically strong against the ghostly species. -Shirou began to swing as Manaka did. I'm hoping that carrying it will make a difference and weaken Ainnash's hold enough to be able to use my magic circuits.

-Hmn, not bad, but there's still something else...

-Shoot.

-How do you plan to guide yourself inside Ainnash? Its core is impossible to find due to the constant movement of the forest. Its size is not incredibly large, but it is not possible to locate something that does not remain in the same place within the time it remains manifested.

-If I manage to use sorcery inside the forest, I will be able to use Berkano and Raidho to guide me, as well as to hide inside the forest; moreover, I will be able to use the rune I recently learned to improve my speed, I hope it won't take more than a few hours to reach the core.

-Not bad; but it all depends on that weapon working. Even so, I'll teach you something else, use it in case you find yourself in danger...

-Huh? What...?

Manaka began to draw a rune in front of the boy. This rune is CWeorþ, the concept of it refers to the sacred fire that burns and consumes the body of the fallen. Under this approach the rune of CWEORÞ represents the purifying and reducing action of fire itself, in a very close relationship to Myspell or the primal fire of creation. Against the murderous forest that feeds on those it murdered, this purifying fire is extremely effective.

-CWeorþ? I don't think I've ever heard of this one? -said the boy in confusion.

Manaka smiled, "Didn't I tell you? I'm an amazing magus, now, I also want you to learn this one: Yr.

-Yr? What does this rune mean?

Manaka began to explain, "The exact meaning of this rune has not yet been precisely established, however, it is described as "part of the war machine", although it is not entirely certain what it refers to. The rune has been given two possible aspects, the second aspect, and where the deeper meaning of the rune is heading, is the discipline and responsibility that comes with carrying and knowing how to use any of these objects. In short, the rune helps to use the weapon more efficiently.

Shirou nodded, "I understand, if I use it with Vorpal, it can be of great help.

-Exactly, but I suggest you use it when you are close to the original tree, if you use it from the beginning, the forest will recognize you as a much bigger threat, and will try harder to kill you. -Then, she approached the boy, standing behind him. Now I'm going to teach you how to record them, and more effects they can have depending on how you use them...

-Y-Yes... -At this moment, Shirou felt a little uncomfortable, Manaka was too close to him, and he was sure she was doing it on purpose. This feeling wasn't just about having a beautiful girl so close to his person, but despite everything, he still doesn't forget how dangerous she could be, and yet he was sure that pushing her away would only bring him even more trouble.

During the time the dream lasted, which for Shirou seemed much longer than it should be, Manaka kept explaining to him everything about these, how to record them, their different meanings, their effects depending on how he used them, etc. To the boy's surprise, Manaka turned out to be an excellent teacher, making sure he understood her explanations and adjusting her teachings to his learning pace, so they stayed until the world began to whiten...

-It seems that our time is over. Moouu... I already want to see you again...

Shirou smiled, "Well, it's not like we haven't been seeing each other lately..." She smiled.

She smiled-. That means I'm recovering. Soon we'll be able to see each other in reality and not just in dreams, look forward to it, Shi-kun. I'll take you as mine when the time comes... Don't you dare die until then.

Those last words gave him a certain shiver, they were too sweet for the meaning they contained; however, he could not answer her, for the world vanished in a matter of moments.

When he opened his eyes, an announcement came over the loudspeakers:

"Dear passengers, much to our regret, this train has wandered into the Predator Forest of Ainnash. While we fix the problem, we kindly ask you to take care of your own safety."

Shirou stood up knowing that was his cue.

Marie jumped out of bed and rushed to the window, there she could see it: a totally black forest, almost like a strange world shrouded in darkness, even in broad daylight. Everything flashed with a dark reddish coloration that made the trees resemble the entrails of an animal. If a person looked closely at the trees, they could tell that the trees were covered with snow due to the weather and, more importantly, the roots of the forest and trees were secreting blood like sap. For a moment, grunts seemed to be heard from within it.

Gray, for her part, stood up in confusion muttering the word Faker?

-T-This is the seventh dead apostle? -asked Marie in terror.

Even Rin, with her rude awakening, got up immediately and her reaction was not unlike Lord Animusphere's. H-How the hell did we end up here?

Gray walked over to the windows in confusion. This forest... there's something wrong with this forest -For a moment, the image of a certain magus and the monster she became appeared in her memory; but, in comparison, this was actually worse-. I-I'm going to see.

-Wait! -Marie shouted, "Do you want to die?

-Gray..." said Rin in a whisper. Look out for a little while longer...

Three magus had left the train despite the warning. It seemed their pride was too great to listen to reason.

-Incarnation of desire, noble spirit! -shouted the three.

Normally, this spell would summon flames that would surely be used to burn the forest. But no flame was generated... And, in a matter of seconds, the branches of the trees attacked the magus, impaling them and devouring their blood in a matter of seconds.

-This is the Predator Forest of Ainnash, sorcery is useless here," said Altrouge, as Shirou handed him what appeared to be some kind of amulet.

-I found it while we were looking for the head, give it to the professor when he wakes up, maybe it will help...

The Princess nodded.

-How are we going to escape? -Gray asked, "Maybe if we work together..." Marie shook her head.

Marie shook her head, "It won't be enough, I understand that the Rail Zeppelin has a trump card; a mystic eye projector, but even I doubt that will be enough to free us from the forest," said Lord Animusphere worried, about to lose his self-control. W-What do we do?

-We can't do anything, the train has already been rooted by the branches of the forest, it won't let us go. The only thing we can do is wait for the driver and the auctioneer to give us a solution," said the Tohsaka heiress worriedly. What do you think, Shirou-kun? -Rin turned to look at his partner. What are you doing?

They all turned to look at the boy. Shirou was picking up his swords. Getting ready to leave...

-What? What the hell are you talking about?! -Rin asked.

-Are you out of your mind, Emiya? Didn't you see what just happened! -What about our contract? You have to protect me! Or have you forgotten!?

-Of course not Lord; but, in this case, the only way to protect her is to eliminate the enemy itself; otherwise, it will be a matter of time before the forest consumes the Rail Zeppelin.

-And how do you plan to do that, Shirou-kun? Do you even have a plan?!

Shirou nodded, "Yes, not the best; but I have one. I'll go deep into the forest. Thanks to the tools I have, it should be possible for me to make it to the core, once there, I just have to destroy the original tree.

-Original tree? Do you know how insane that sounds! -Rin asked surprised and worried.

-Yes; but it's our only option. I doubt very much that, even by mobilizing the Animusphere family and the El-Melloi family, we will be able to get out of this mess easily and, to be honest, this is the train administrators' answer.

-What do you mean? -Gray asked.

-We were called last night, we were hired to kill the seventh apostle," Altrouge replied.

This surprised everyone present. That's crazy! -said Marie.

-Quiet, let's just say that the administrators have a backup plan in case I fail, but this is our only option, at least for now. -Then, he turned to Marie, "I'll raid inside Ainnash, meanwhile, Rouge will stay here to protect you, that way we'll still fulfill our contract.

Shirou took both Vorpal and Neocaliburn, then looked at his third weapon: Black Barrel. He didn't know if he should carry it, unlike his swords which, while heavy, were still light compared to the weight of his rifle. Shirou could awkwardly use Neocaliburn with one hand, and Vorpal was easy to use that way; but the Black Barrel had to be used with both hands, it was bigger and longer than his swords, so he had to carry it on his back and, on top of it all, it was heavier than a normal rifle, and this could slow him down; but, on the other hand, he was facing the seventh dead apostle, he couldn't skimp on expenses or, rather, on weapons.

He took the big rifle and loaded it on his back. See you later. -Shirou left the room.

-Aren't you going to do anything to stop him? -Rin asked the Princess. Even you must know it's madness.

-I know; but it was he who decided it. -Then she smiled, "Besides, just because I let him try, doesn't mean I'm going to let him die.

Rin felt like she was going to get a terrible headache. What do you think, Gray? -But, to her surprise, the girl was no longer in the room. Gray?

-He left shortly after Shirou left," Altrouge said.

In the corridors of the train...

-Shirou!

-Gray? What are you doing here?

The girl came and stopped behind him. If we both go, we have a better chance of beating the forest.

Shirou shook his head, "Yes, you're right, but if we both go, who will take care of the teacher?

This made the girl lower her gaze.

-If Faker attacks again, Rin won't be able to fight her alone, the only one who can face her is you. -Shirou didn't doubt that Altrouge could crush Faker with her eyes closed; but he also didn't doubt that the Princess really cared little or nothing about her teacher's safety.

-But...

-Relax, I'm not planning to die just yet. I wouldn't even consider something like this if I didn't have a slim chance of making it," after saying this, the red-haired man opened the door, the icy wind rushing into the train. Well, I'll see you later.

Gray was about to grab her hand; but stopped at the last second. She could only watch as the boy walked deeper into the murderous forest...

-Insecure Gray! Indecisive Gray! When are you going to step forward!

Normally, Gray would shake Add's box to shut him up; but, this time, she believed he had a point, again, Marie's words echoed in her head. Also, the image of Touko living as freely as she wanted, that she saw during the case of Iselma's twins, hit her head on... Still, there was nothing she could do anymore, Shirou was right, at this point, if Faker were to attack, she was the only one who had any chance of beating her. Knowing this, she returned to her room.

On his side, Shirou went into the forest, once he took the first step, he felt a shiver run through his whole body and a sense of apprehension enveloped him. The red-haired man tried to turn on his magic circuits; however, they did not respond.

-Well, as I imagined... Now let's hope it works as I expect it to.

Shirou unsheathed Vorpal and raised it in front of him, suddenly, he felt a change, something inside him changed and the feeling that the forest had given him disappeared around him. Well, let's try it again.

Once again, Shirou tried to turn on his magic circuits and, unlike the first time, this time they turned on. Vorpal's weakening effect worked by overriding the forest's domain and allowing him to use his circuits, however, it seemed that the forest's power was so great that Vorpal's effect could only weaken the forest's domain on him alone.

Suddenly, three branches lunged at him trying to impale him; but, using Vorpal, he quickly cut them off. Without delay, he picked up a small stone that had the Berkano rune carved on it.

Berkano, he remembered his researches, on this one, "The most obvious Truth is hidden in the deepest, and only you will know it", it is a rune that could be used in several ways, among its uses, it can be used as a tracking rune, although this was not its most favorite use.

Later, he wrote the rune, Raidho, to guide him, with his shoes. Raidho, "The journey is the destination", this is a rune more focused on travel, and can also be used as a form of tracking along with Berkano, Raidho will expose hidden dangers along the way so that no strange place or new circumstance can haunt him during travels. Together with Berkano, they form a sort of protection that favors a safe journey to the indicated destination.

Then, with Ihwaz written in front of his eyes, "The road is hard and lonely and there is no end in sight", Ihwaz is said to represent the flow of mental energy from the root level (the chakra) to the crown level in the mind, bringing cosmic consciousness; obviously, with his level of mastery of the runes, the most the boy could do, was to increase his vision even more, besides giving him some help in terms of spatial vision, increasing it.

After having everything ready, he said the aria-. Time alter, Double Accel.

The less time he spent inside the forest, the better. So he launched himself at full speed into the deepest part of the forest...

Outside the Rail Zeppelin dimension...

Some "zombies" were getting dangerously close to a "cook" dressed in white who, from inside his clothes, pulled out some guns while saying: "Zombie cook with Jean-Mario Supinerra! -He then proceeded to shoot the zombies in the head. Let's enjoy another day of good zombie charring. -All this while cooking a steak. This is the end of zombie cooking!

-Cut!

The cook, Jean-Mario Supinerra, was a tall blond man. He possessed great charisma and a thin beard. He wore an all-white suit.

Kairi applauded Mario's performance, while Luvia looked at him in surprise. Apparently, they were recording a cooking show.

Kairi and Mario hugged each other, the former congratulating the latter.

-Good job, Jean-Mario!

-Thank you, Kairi.

Luvia looked at them in confusion. Does this man really have information about the Clock Tower?

-Of course he does. This is my old friend, Jean-Mario Supinerra.

Mario raised his hand in greeting. Pleased to meet you, miss, I know all about gastronomy and the press," he said as he bowed. While we're talking, would you mind if we had something to eat?

Luvia, Kairi, and Mario sat down at a table. Mario served a steak to each of them.

-How delicious! The meat is just right and the sauce gives it just the right flavor," said Luvia pleasantly as she tasted the food. But this served to remind her of something: "Now that I remember, I still haven't tasted Shero's food...".

Mario was happy for the praise. Thank you very much, the sauce has Madeira wine and a little soy sauce.

-That's great, but can we get down to business? -said Kairi.

-Go ahead.

-I understood you were going to board the Rail Zeppelin, I don't think you abandoned the idea for a last minute recording, did you?

Mario became serious at the implication. Of course not; but, Kairi, do you know who is inside the Rail Zeppelin at the moment?

-I don't know all the passengers, but I'm working for one.

-Then let me enlighten you: two Lords, a Church assassin, the head of one of the most dangerous mafias today, the son of the magus killer..." Mario smiled. -Once I heard that all those names were gathered in one place, I decided that this mix was too explosive for my taste and I preferred to let it go this time.

-I see, remember the case of the decapitated bodies in London 10 years ago?

-I do, every magus connected with the press does.

-A similar case was repeated in the Rail Zeppelin," said Kairi as she finished eating her steak.

-I see... In the past there were seven victims. They were all believed to possess a mystical eye.

-I don't remember hearing about such a case," said Luvia.

-The Clock Tower and the church hushed it up. They only talked about it a couple of times on the local networks. And the Clock Tower keeps the tapes.

-Did they solve the case?

-They investigated together with the Church and they solved it, a friend from Scotland Yard confirmed it to me. But...

-What's going on? -asked Kairi.

Mario placed a hand on his chin, "It seems that this case is causing a furor... Recently a woman from Astromancy came to ask about this one.

"A woman of Astromancy?" Luvia slid a check to Mario. Could you tell us her name?

Mario took the check and said. Trisha Fellows.

This made Kairi and Luvia look at each other in surprise.

Back on the train...

Marie and Altrouge had left the room.

-It's really cold..." said Rin sitting on one of the beds. I don't think the train's heating is enough.

-How is the master? -Gray asked, she was sitting next to the bed.

-He's fine, I don't know what you and Shirou did, but the damage is all gone. All it takes is for him to wake up.

Suddenly, a bloody hand smeared the window.

The two girls were surprised, however, Gray calmed down a bit when she saw that it was Melvin who, for some reason, was standing outside the train.

-Why is someone outside...? -Rin asked as she watched Melvin bleed out.

After a few minutes, the tuner was drinking hot chocolate inside the train.

-When I heard that Waver was here, I came by helicopter. But suddenly this forest appeared and knocked him down and engulfed him, for a moment, I thought I would die, but I managed to survive the crash and luckily I was close to the train and even so, the branches attacked me and I almost died several times.

-Well..." exclaimed the grave keeper.

-It's surprising that the master knows the legendary tuner," said Rin.

-Yes, we've known each other for years," Melvin stood up and walked over to where Waver was standing. What a fool you are, really, you're still as foolish as ever. You could choose to live a much easier life," Melvin put a hand to the Lord's forehead. Gray, can I ask you a question?

-Yes.

-Who left Waver in this state? -Melvin flashed a rather aggressive smile. If not me, who?

-You see...

However, there was a knock on the door...

Melvin opened it and, outside the room, stood Karabo, Yvette, and Rodin.

They asked to be escorted to one of the wagons...

-Do you want our help to free the train? -asked Rin.

-Not exactly, it is impossible to free the train, the forest has already trapped it in its entirety. Soon, the Rail Zeppelin will be consumed within the domain of the forest, and even inside the train we won't be able to use our sorcery," explained Rodin.

-So?

-We are seeking to move the forest domain away from the train, if only momentarily," Yvette spoke.

-But how are we going to do that? -asked the young Tohsaka.

-I have some knowledge about the forest of Ainnash, it is sometimes talked about in the Holy Church.

-In the Holy Church?

Karabo nodded. We have been trying to destroy it for centuries. Ainnash, the forest itself, is a living thing that thinks and devours. It is said to be a reality marble that has mutated and is controlled by a dead apostle of the same name. -Karabo took several of his black keys. If we mark several points on the ley lines near the train, we can reactivate them and momentarily move the forest domain away from the train.

-We asked the rest of the passengers for help; but they have all locked themselves in," said Rodin.

-The snake lady and Lord Animusphere also refused to help. How uncooperative they all are...

-It's better to have reinforcements," Karabo said. Will you help us?

Gray and Rin looked at each other for a few seconds and, seeing they had no choice, both nodded.

-We'll do it," Gray said.

-Will you let me join too? -asked Melvin.

-No," said Rin. Someone has to look after the professor, it's better if it's his friend, don't you think? -Melvin nodded, though a little depressed. Then she turned to Rodin, "How are we supposed to fight the forest if we can't use sorcery?

-I think I can help you with that..." Melvin took a small case he had with him and took out a violin, he started to play it.

-Is this it? -Rin asked as she felt her magic circuits activate.

-My body is warming up..." said Gray as his circuits also activated.

-The sound resonates in our magic circuits and activates them," said Yvette as her circuits activated as well. How nice. You're Melvin Weins, the legendary tuner?

-Well..." spoke Karabo as he watched the circuits of all the magicians become "tangible".

-I tuned your circuits with the forest domain and increased their power, the effect is momentary and will only last a few hours. But I hope it will be useful.

-Thank you very much, but why do you do it? -Gray asked.

-I do whatever it takes to see entertaining things," replied Melvin with a smile.

So, the group exited the train and saw how it was almost completely covered by the branches of the forest.

-Be careful, it is likely that, when we least expect it, it will attack us. We are lucky that, despite being inside the forest, being in the vicinity of the train, its dominance is not absolute.

-What if it were? -Rin asked Karabo.

-The whole forest wouldn't let us see anything. We would have to improve our eyesight or we would enter a world of perpetual darkness.

The group walked a little away from the train until they reached a tree, Karabo threw a black key near the tree, without touching the tree's roots, because if they did, the forest would attack them immediately. At that moment, the line was reactivated and the tree glowed with a white light for a few moments.

-I'll look for the other lines," said Yvette as she made a peace sign and several spirits surrounded her.

-I thought your spellcasting was based solely on your mystic eye, when did you decide to learn Spirit Evocation? -Rin asked.

-A magus must try everything, so I decided to give it a try," The spirits began to point her to another place. Come on, they say the forest is starting to notice us; but it seems to be focused on something else more important, we must hurry.

-It would be good to find two more spots, let's go on," said Karabo as everyone followed Yvette.

-Gray...

-What's wrong, Add?

-This is bad, besides the forest, something else terrible is watching us. Run away right now!

-Huh? You don't say?! -Gray exclaimed, stopping.

-What's the matter, disciple? -Yvette said as she and the other two members of the group stopped.

-I'm sorry, go ahead.

-Why? Leaving you alone in this forest while it's snowing is a death sentence! -Rin said.

-Please, I assure you, I'll catch up.

-What do we do? -asked Yvette.

Karabo nodded.

Rin complained, "They're both just as stubborn when they want to be! -Then she was firm, but worried about Gray. Listen, don't go too far from the train, if the forest starts to react, run there.

Gray nodded.

With that said, Gray separated from the rest of the group. Then she turned around and, a few feet away, stood Faker.

She smiled, "That might have been the dumbest thing you could do, did you manage to sense me on your own?

-Add sighed.

Add sighed, "I figured we'd end up like this.

Add took his scythe form and Gray prepared to face the servant.

-The eccentric didn't come this time, I see.

-Why did you attack my master?

-Because I dislike him, as I said," Faker replied.

-There must be another reason for you to make him come.

-Well, try to make me talk with your weapon, that's how warriors understand each other.

-I told you, that's not my style.

-So you fight with your lip and not your fists," he said as he smiled. So what are you carrying that weapon for?

Gray looked at his scythe, "I... I can't bow down to you, I just want you to return the relic to my master by talking.

-I see, so that's all you're willing to do... -Faker didn't just think twice, he unsheathed his short sword and attacked...

On the other side, Rin, Yvette, and Karabo, were battling against the branches and roots of the trees.

Karabo cut down everything that came near with great and enormous speed for a man of his age. Rin was firing Gandr rapidly at any branch or root that came near him. Yvette, for her part, cast powerful elemental spells with fire-based sorcery to burn the trees, such as, for example, the spell, noble spirit, that the magi had tried to use before.

-It seems that reactivating the previous line made the forest consider us a threat!

-Let's keep running, the moment we stop, they'll finish us off! -shouted Karabo.

-The next ley line is on the right, at one o'clock, under a giant rock!

Karabo saw the rock and threw the black key.

Meanwhile...

Gray and Faker were exchanging attacks in the middle of the snowy field.

Faker was smiling. I thought there were no more warriors in this era, I'm glad I ran into you two. Even though you're still kids, you have potential.

-Potential? Who? -Gray asked.

-You and the boy. You walk between life and death while clinging to the former, and unlike magus, you fight straight as warriors.

-The master's pain has more value than that!

Faker laughed- I see, they are both motivated by different things; but it leads them to the same result. Whether it's your desire to excel in the face of past figures like me, or your loyalty to your precious master. If so, give it your all to prove yourself!

With the other group...

-There are too many of them! -Rin shouted.

-Something is wrong, the spirits are telling me that the forest is getting even more impatient?

-Quick, let's slide! -shouted Karabo.

The two magus and Karabo dashed down a hill avoiding being impaled by the branches momentarily.

-In the center of that hole! There's the last ley line! -Yvette shouted.

Karabo threw the last black key and, as in the last two places, the area glowed before the atmosphere changed slightly to momentarily drive Ainnash's domain away.

-GGGGGGGGGGROOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW!

-What is that? -Rin asked.

-Ainnash, we must run away fast! -said Karabo.

-But hadn't we released the surrounding area from their dominion?

-We have only released Ainnash's influence over the surrounding ley lines, that doesn't mean that the whole forest ceases to serve him," said Karabo as he ran with the rest of the group to the Rail.

The trees moved violently and attacked with twice as much fury as before, the roots shook the ground hard and the snowfall fell more fiercely.

-There it is, quick! -Yvette shouted.

But before they could reach the train, the branches of the trees, as well as their trunks, surrounded them, creating a sort of wooden cage bathed in blood. Karabo tried to cut the branches and Yvette tried to set them on fire; but they were too sturdy and replaced each other once removed.

-The air, it's getting heavy," said Rin.

-Are they planning to drown us before devouring us? -asked Yvette.

Several branches shot out from all angles and Karabo tried to block them all; but he couldn't and several branches stuck into his body. Ahhh...!

Little by little, the cage was closing and it was harder to see outside.

-We have to get out, quickly! -shouted the envoy of the Church.

Yvette had to jump backwards to avoid being impaled. For a moment, she began to whisper. Turn around...

However, all was silenced when a large amount of mana began to gather in a blade that Rin was displaying.

-A sword of Azoth? -Yvette asked.

The flow of mana increased and turned into a torrent of flames. Intensive Einäscherung! -Rin shouted, a magic circle appeared in front of the blade and the flames shot like a great flamethrower against the wooden walls of the cage, piercing it, and creating a huge opening.

-Let's go! -shouted the Church member.

A few minutes ago, in another part of the snowy field...

Clink!; Clank!

Gray and Faker were exchanging attacks; but, unlike Faker, Gray was panting from exhaustion.

-I'm surprised you can fight at my level. You're no ordinary girl, you really are to be admired!

-GGGGGGGGGGROOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWW!

-The forest? -Gray asked. An avalanche? -A huge avalanche of snow was coming toward them both.

-It's nothing more than the monster's rage. Having lost its grip on the ley lines, its dominion has been disturbed. -Faker turned and walked away from Gray; but, sensing that Gray was not moving away, she turned again and asked, "What are you doing? If you don't run away, you'll die.

-If I let you escape, the master will suffer later. I won't allow it.

-Wow...

-Addd, limit cancellation, first level! -Gray stopped holding his scythe, as Add transformed into a large hammer. You will not go near the master!

The heroic spirit smiled, "Well said!

With this exchange of words, the two threw themselves at each other as they were covered by the storm.

Meanwhile, deeper into the forest...

Shirou was running at full speed while being chased by the branches and roots of the forest, at first not many were chasing him; but, the closer he got to the center of it, the more branches and roots activated to hunt him down. At this moment, he had used Anzus on Vorpal covering the blade of the sword in flames, in this way, Shirou tried to drive away any branch or root that approached him.

-Dammit! -Shirou had to turn at high speed because a tree appeared out of nowhere. This forest really is totally against me.

-Actually, yes. What did you expect, though? You're trying to kill him.

A disembodied voice echoed throughout the place. The speaker was none other than another of the 27 Dead Apostles: Merem Solomon. He and Shirou had met a few minutes ago and, apparently, Merem wasn't really in the forest, but he was nearby, and he was projecting his voice to where the red-haired man was.

-So, you're just here to feed your demons?

-That's right. Believe it or not, the soil of this forest works well as food for my demonic beasts.

Shirou slipped, dodging some branches that were heading towards his head. And isn't getting close to the forest too dangerous to just feed them?

-Yes, that's why I let them go and eat, while I stay outside. By the way, Shirou-chan, do you know that Ainnash is dead?

-Shirou-chan? I thought you would hate me?

-Why? Because of your relationship with Altrouge? It's true that I hate her, and I'll probably kill you if you ever try to stop me from murdering her; but your relationship with her attracts my curiosity more than anything else.

Shirou shook his head, "Yes, I know about the death of the first generation, but what does that matter at the moment?

-Nothing, nothing, it's just that I plan to take you to the core if you tell me how he died.

Roots rose up from deep in the earth; but Shirou managed to dodge them just before they could pierce him. Then, he threw multiple stones with the Sowilo rune engraved on them and set the roots on fire to prevent them from following him.

-I already have a way to guide me.

-Or yes, so I see. But that way won't tell you things like, if you keep going in that direction, you'll enter a part of the forest where the air has become poisonous. Turn right, by the way.

-What?

-Turn right.

Shirou followed the apostle's advice and avoided having his arm torn off by a branch.

-Well, I'll tell you. Ainnash was killed by the White Princess; but she left her corpse near a blood-sucking tree and it absorbed her, that's the origin of the forest.

-Ohhhh, so that's what it's all about. Well, mystery solved. -Then he laughed. As promised, I'll guide you to the center. If you keep it up, you'll be there in no time.

-Thank you. But I don't think I can keep up this speed for long.

-Relax, there's an area with fewer trees where the ley lines are momentarily freed from Ainnash's dominion if you keep going this way. You'll be able to slow down there.

-I understand...

Back inside the Rail Zeppelin...

In the world of unconsciousness...

-Wake up...

-What?

-Wake up, Waver Velvet. -Wake up, Waver Velvet.

-Huh? -A young version of Waver opened his eyes to find himself in the El-Melloi classroom.

-My classes are so absurd that you can't even listen to them? -He is an older adult, with light blond hair and bright green eyes. He was wearing a navy blue coat with white gloves, black pants and shoes of the same color.

-That's not it...

-In that case," Kayneth tapped the table in front of him, "Why do you want to participate in a new holy grail war? What do you want to get with the relic you stole from me?

-I... I want to see it again!

-Necio, the servants are mere pawns. The next time he appears, he won't remember you.

-Yet... I still want to prove that it was me who was incompetent. That he, that Rider should have been the winner.

-You still think so? You lost the relic, and that servant didn't recognize you as a vassal of the King of Conquerors. Still... Will you fight?

Waver clenched his fists. Of course!

Suddenly the entire room disappeared...

-Let me ask you something else. What is a victory for a magus?

-Achieving a goal by getting rid of all prejudices," Waver replied.

-And what is your goal? Answer, Lord El-Melloi II!

-Yes! I will answer, master! What I wish now is...

Rin, Karabo, and Yvette had returned inside the train and had just opened the door of the cabin where Waver and Melvin were.

Melvin got up from his chair. And Gray?

-We got separated in the woods, she said she'd come back on her own.

Melvin smiled, "I hope she brings an interesting story when she gets back.

On the other hand, back inside the forest of Ainnash. Inside a cave...

Gray and Faker were inside it, sitting around a campfire.

For a moment, Gray looked at Faker. Why did you save me?

-Because you are a warrior," the servant replied as she looked at the fire.

-Hmn?

-Warriors must die on the battlefield.

-In our next fight, I will kill you," Gray declared.

To the girl's amazement, Faker smiled, "Yes... In a way, you look like me.

-What do you mean?

-Your weapon is based on the heroic treasure of a great hero, isn't it? And so are you... You're a copy of a distant ideal. -Faker laughed. Human beings never change. -Then she looked at Gray. But, even a copy has desires and can fight for itself, we are the same.

-I... I still don't know what I want.

-You won't be able to reach the peak of your abilities without knowing it," Faker threw more wood on the campfire. I guess that's what separates you and the boy.

-Shirou?

Faker nodded, "Both you and he are related to the past; but in different ways. He clearly knows what his target is... His sword, when we met again in that magus workshop, he called it Neocaliburn.

This surprised the girl. Neocaliburn? Shirou's sword?

Faker nodded, "You don't have to be a savant to know why the name of the sword, the recreation of a legendary sword. I suppose it makes sense that he would have wanted to be the one to defeat King Arthur's wraith, even if it was madness to do it on his own.

-Specter of King Arthur?

-The leader of the Wild Hunt..." Faker smiled. It's normal for new warriors to want to surpass the old ones. To surpass the legend, that's their goal.

Gray shook his head, "No it's not, Shirou's goal is to create the ultimate sword.

-¿Y? What changes that, surpassing the King and surpassing his sword, are not mutually exclusive things. They follow the same path, but with a farther distance. -Then, he turned his gaze to the girl. You must find your wish, or you will die on the battlefield sooner or later.

Gray lowered his gaze, "I want to stay with my master, though I don't want him to put himself in danger. I want to fulfill his wish! I want him to finish his journey with the King of Conquerors so he can go on!

-That contradiction could cost them their lives," Faker added fuel to the fire. Is that all?

-Hmn?

-I'm asking you: what will you do when the two of you have to separate?

-Split up?

Faker nodded, "I followed Iskandar to the end of his days; but that was because vassals cannot live without their King; but your master is not a King, and you are not his vassal. If he really is a good master, there will be a time when he will have to let you fly on your own, what will you do then?

-I... Separate myself...

-Don't be afraid of separation, be proud of it. It means your master believes you are ready to walk your own path. Just like he wants to end his journey with my King so he can continue on his own.

-My own path... What did Iskandar mean to you?

Faker smiled, recalling old memories. The King is like the sun, his warmth embraces everything. There was no other King like him, he said we must go forward, even if we got sick. That we would see the end of the sea, he always encouraged us to give more, I can't describe how glowing he was. I was his right hand man, that I will not allow anyone to deny.

-But, if that's true, why did you blame Iskandar?

-Huh? -Suddenly, the woman's attitude changed. You... What did you see? -Faker used his mystic eye of compulsion to take control of Gray's body. Answer me! What did you see!?

-I-I saw you in a dream. Y-You were asking him if that's what he longed for. You were asking him why he didn't let go of it, y-you wanted an answer.

Faker stopped using his mystic eye and Gray fell to the ground gasping.

-I should have realized, you're a priestess. An expert in possession.

-GGGGGGGGGGROOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWW!

The maid got up, "It stopped snowing, looks like the monster is busy with something else. When you can move, go away, before it regains control of the magic lines...

Out of the forest and out of the Rail Zeppelin dimension. At the Fargo house...

-I am Mary Lir Fargo.

Luvia and Kairi were having tea at the Fargo's house.

As Kairi sniffed the tea, Luvia asked, "Can you tell us about Trisha Fellows? We understand that they both went to the same college and that their families are affiliates of the Animusphere family.

Mary lowered her gaze. She's an old friend of mine. -Mary took a breath. She passed away, didn't she? I still can't believe it.

-I was investigating some murders ten years ago. Do you know anything about motive? -said the mercenary as he sipped his tea.

-Olga Marie's abandonment. That's what Trisha said...

-Olga Marie? She is the youngest Lord of Astromancy, isn't she?

Luvia nodded.

-The last time I saw her, it was a month ago. She told me, "Ten years ago, Lord Animusphere was investigating the holy grail war."

-The former Lord Animusphere was involved in the last holy grail war, wasn't he? -Kairi asked.

Mary nodded, "He was investigating it before it started, around that time, the killings began. Somehow, Lord Animusphere got information about the ritual," Mary took a sip of tea. I didn't understand why the Lord cared so much about a minor Eastern ritual, so what Trisha told me surprised me.

-What was it? -asked Luvia.

-After investigating about the ritual, the Lord lost all interest in Olga Marie, passed on his crest and prepared to participate in the war.

-But that doesn't make sense, after investigating about the war, didn't the Lord find out that the grail was corrupted?

-It should be so; but he still decided to participate. Trisha wanted to know: why did he decide to participate in that ritual? Why did he abandon his daughter? And, was it somehow linked to the murders?

-Trisha investigated the holy grail war and that made her board the Rail Zeppelin," Luvia concluded.

Kairi placed a hand on her chin. All the victims had a mystical eye, including Trisha. Do you know anything else?

-The man without a heart.

-What? -Luvia exclaimed.

-Someone called that researched the war for Lord Animusphere. That's what she said.

Luvia stood up. Thank you, you were very helpful.

Luvia and Kairi left the Fargo mansion and got into the car.

-What's wrong, miss? You're very serious," said Kairi.

-The man without a heart... I heard rumors of a dangerous magus whose heart was stolen by fairies," Luvia replied.

-Fairies?

If he is who I think he is, he has a half-sister in Legislation. And she's on the train.

-You mean...?

Back, inside the train...

Melvin and Rin were in the last car of the Rail Zeppelin.

-Really the Rail Zeppelin is amazing, as long as there are spirit lines, it can hold its own against Ainnash's dominance.

-Don't look outside so easily, remember the branches are still covering much of the train. Also, why do you find yourself so happy?

-I'm sorry to hear about Gray, of course. But she seems like a very resilient girl," he said with a smile.

Rin looked down. It's not just her, at least she's close to the train.

This caught Melvin's curiosity. What do you mean?

-Shirou, he's another member of El-Melloi's class.

-The son of the magus killer, isn't he?

Rin nodded. He was hired by the train administrators to kill Ainnash.

-Really?! -Melvin put his hands on Rin's shoulders and, with a serious voice, he said, "If he comes back alive, how much do you think he would charge me to tell me what he experienced inside the forest?

-You..." Rin said as she clenched her fist.

Slash! Slash!

They both watched as several branches were quickly slashed as someone jumped out of the forest.

Gray jumped out of it cutting off all the branches that were trying to cut her or impale her.

-Make room! -Melvin and Rin stepped aside as Gray rushed in and closed the door behind her-Ahhh, we made it.

-You made it back! -Rin approached followed by Melvin.

-This gets more interesting as time goes on! It was worth wrecking a helicopter.

After taking a breath, Gray said, "How's the master?

-Well, he should wake up in a little while.

Gray sighed. I see...

-You ran out of strength! You used me like a gardener's sickle! That's exploitation! You should treat me better!

To shut Add up, Gray took him in his hands and shook him hard.

-Stop it, Gray! Stop it! Gray!

Suddenly, the door of the carriage opened, on the other side, there was Adashino. Oh? They're here, meet in the lobby please. Since the usual attendant is still asleep, I'll be the detective this time.

Melvin and Rin made their way to the lobby car, Gray decided to first pass by the cabin where Waver was resting. In the carriage were several of the train's passengers, however, most were still locked in, those present were: Karabo, Rin, Melvin, Yvette, Leandra, Rodin, Adashino, Fernando Lee; Lord Fargo's old friend, and a girl with a crow.

-Why have you gathered us here? -asked Fernando.

-As part of Legislation, I want to talk to you about the recent murder, specifically, about who was responsible.

-Well said, detective," said Melvin as he clapped his hands from his seat.

-Ten years ago there were similar serial murders in London," continued the Legislation envoy.

-Excuse me, but I don't recall such a case," said the girl with the raven.

-The information was regulated by legislation," answered Adashino.

-And you reveal it yourself? -said Melvin.

-But we were not the only ones to intervene, the Church also intervened. -Then Adashino turned to the Church's agent. The one in charge of investigating was you, wasn't it, Karabo Frampton?

-That's right.

-If you knew something, you could have said so," Melvin said.

-It was confidential, I did what I had to do.

-I understand," Adashino began to move around the car. Although he can see the past, he could not observe the crimes.

-And Trisha could not protect herself even though she could see the future.

-I see, they couldn't see the crimes either in the past or in the future," said Yvette.

-So the answer is clear. It's simple, the crime scene was different.

Yvette clapped her hands. Sure, it makes sense.

-Despite possessing mystical eyes, the vision of the present and future only affects time, to use it effectively, they must be present at the scene.

-Are you saying she wasn't murdered in her cabin? -Rin asked.

-Then who killed Trisha? -asked Melvin.

Adashino smiled. Let's welcome a new witness.

With that said, Marie entered the wagon carrying the container of Trisha's head, she was being accompanied by Altrouge with Fou on her shoulder. Marie stopped in front of Adashino and she removed the lid of the box...

-What does this mean? -asked Karabo.

-She hid her head using a pocket of imaginary numbers," answered Adashino. The one who hid it was Trisha herself.

-He hid his own head?

-She must have seen that she would be beheaded in the future and created a pocket where her head would fall. The key is that, inside that pocket, time stands still, that's why her head was alive when we took it out.

-Was it alive?

The Legislation envoy nodded. What do you think she said with her last breath was just one thing: Karabo.

-What?

Adashino adjusted his glasses. Your mystic eye allows you to measure the past, doesn't it?

Karabo put his hands to his face looking worried.

-Measure the past? -Melvin asked.

-It allows you to see the past, the eye recognizes something that happened," Yvette answered.

-But seeing the past doesn't allow you to kill anyone.

-What? Yes, well..." Yvette didn't know how to answer.

-Among the most powerful eyes, there are some capable of reflecting something in reality. Like the mystical eye of the perception of death, for example.

-That legendary eye? -Yvette asked. But it would be of rainbow rank or bejeweled.

Adashino smiled. If the rumors are true, yes. -Then he turned to Karabo. But his mystic eye is similar. -Adashino grabbed an apple from a table, took out a knife and "cut the air" leaving the cut engraved on the spot, then passed the apple over the spot and it split. He engraves the cut and leaves it in one place, then, it is enough for the eye's possessor to observe it, and the cut is reproduced as it was engraved.

-I understand," said Fernando.

Adashino pointed his knife at the Church agent, "It wasn't you, Karabo?

Karabo covered her mouth with one arm. Are you accusing me?

She slid the knife across the apple. His plan was for the train to move on fixed rails. If she cut into the void; in the front car, her vision into the past would let her know where the seats were. -Adashino cut the apple. When the body was found, the train had stopped and you were outside, you just had to look out the window. The place would be dragged into the past and the cut would replay, taking Trisha Fellows' head with it.

-The murders ten years ago, too? -Melvin asked.

-I doubt there's another person with such a specific mystical eye," said Yvette.

-The person in charge worked on the investigation," said Fernando.

-Wait! I didn't...! -Karabo tried to object.

-I won't say that you are the guilty party. But it is reason enough to take action.

-Wait!

Adashino turned his gaze to the source of the voice and smiled to see Lord El-Melloi awake accompanied by Gray. Well, you're awake at last, Lord El-Melloi II.

-Waver! -Melvin exclaimed.

-I didn't expect you to come too, Melvin.

-It's natural to come running when a friend is in danger," smiled the tuner.

-I don't need your help! -Waver walked toward the rest of the group. Miss Adashino, your deduction raises some questions in my mind.

She put her knife away. Will you delight us with one of your brilliant deductions?

-Yours lacks motive.

-The famous, Why done it?

-Yes, there is no such thing as a crime without motive.

Adashino looked at the apple. If it's so important that there's a motive, it's possible that his mystical eye made him compare himself to the killer.

-What?

-Looking at the murders ten years ago, his ego began to blend with that of the killer. If he lost control of his mystical eye, it's not unthinkable.

-You're serious?

-What's the difference between being serious or joking? We are magus.

-Is that the scenario you're imagining? But is Karabo's mystical eye really capable of something like that?

-What do you mean?

-Who proved that he has the ability to transport what he recorded in the past to the present?

Adashino narrowed his eyes. Are you implying that this is just a theory of mine?

-It can't be called a deduction, nor substantial proof, it's an illusion. Do you intend to judge him based on that alone?

-Don't worry about that, it's enough for the Rail Zeppelin to tantalize his mystical eye.

-Yes, that would be possible.

Everyone present turned their gaze to where the voice was coming from. This included Altrouge who, since entering the carriage, had paid little or no attention to the matter and kept looking at the forest.

-It is possible to project a cut from the past into the present," Rita's emanation spoke.

Leandra rose from her seat. This is the acting manager.

-It's time, so I came to pick up the mystic eyes for the auction.

-Is it time already? -asked Karabo.

-You should have told them that we would hold the auction half a day before to calm the passengers," spoke the emanation.

-Were you planning to let the Rail Zeppelin back up your theory? -asked Waver.

Adashino smiled. Right.

-Wait! Not yet... AAAHHH!

The emanation dug its fingers into Karabo's eye sockets and grabbed them with its bare hands. The pain was so great that the Church agent fainted.

-Acting manager," said Leandra as she held a glass container out to him.

The manager left the mystic eyes in the container and they remained floating inside it. Then she disappeared.

-Magnificent! Not quite rainbows, but certainly bejeweled.

-So, is it true? -Rin asked.

-She can make a vestige of the past appear as if it were foam, the transient mystical eye.

Adashino clapped his hands. I'm sorry to have taken up your valuable time. Please continue to wait for the last auction.

Having said that, everyone left the hall...

...

...

Melvin, Gray, Waver, and Karabo, were in the same cabin.

-Did you have to follow me? -Waver asked.

-Of course! We are soul friends. Don't be cold to me or I'll cry," said Melvin as he mimicked crying. Or I'll cough up blood!

Waver sighed.

-Do you think Karabo killed Trisha, master?

Waver shook his head, "There is a big gap between possibility and reality.

Karabo was sitting on the floor, he woke up and instinctively touched his eyes which were covered by a blindfold, then he felt something on his leg, he directed his hand towards it and discovered that it was a shackle.

-I'm sorry, we had to immobilize him," said Lord El-Melloi.

-I understand," replied the Church agent.

-Was he really involved in the murders ten years ago?

-I don't know. -Karabo touched his forehead with one hand. I forgot he was connected with them until a year ago.

-It's an effect of the mystical eye...

-I could see the past whether I wanted to or not, whether I had my eyes open or closed, memories come to me like an inevitable avalanche and, at the same time, destroy my own memories, that's how that eye works.

-In other words, I couldn't control it.

-That's right. If I had it now..." Karabo touched his blindfold as if he could still feel the mystical eyes, his hands trembling. Maybe he would have revealed the truth.

-So, if we bought them at the auction," Gray said.

-They might be useful, but I can't afford it.

-So you have to buy them," Melvin said.

-Melvin?

-He's probably the most expensive, so I can't say for sure. -Melvin stood up and put one of his hands on one of Waver's shoulders. But I can try to get them, as long as I win some fun... What do you say, Waver?

Waver pulled his hand away from his shoulder. I won't sell my soul to the devil.

Melvin shrugged. Too bad. Is there nothing to make the case more exciting?

-By the way, when I met Trisha..." Gray looked down in embarrassment. This... She was wearing an indecent amulet.

-What? -Waver asked Gray in surprise. Say that again! What did you see!?

-It was... A man and a woman entwined! -cried the embarrassed gravedigger.

-There's nothing strange about it. I prepared to defend myself, too; but we found nothing like it at the scene, and it was not a reliable mystic eye canceler. That means it has another use.

-Master?

-This is not a deduction; but, if my imagination is close to reality, the culprit is my enemy. I will solve this case!

-Fine! The struggle of a master detective to uncover a mysterious murderer and, at the same time, on the other hand, the struggle of his student to defeat a murderous forest, was really worth having destroyed a helicopter!

-What? What are you talking about, Melvin?

Melvin looked at him quizzically. Haven't you noticed, Waver, we're inside the Predator Forest!

Waver nodded, "I know, Gray informed me about this. I understand the train administrators are working on a way to free us.

Melvin nodded, "Yes, they hired your student... As it were... Oh yes! Shirou! They hired him to assassinate the dead apostle who controls the forest.

-What?! -Waver turned to Gray, "Is it true?!

Gray looked down, but nodded. Yes, he left early in the morning.

-Hey, Waver? Where are you going? -Melvin asked.

-I have to talk to that girl...

On the other hand, inside the forest...

-You're almost there, Shirou-chan! Ainnash's throne is up ahead.

-HA, ha, ha, ha, Throne? -asked the boy panting.

-It's what the center of the forest is called, since the people believed that Ainnash was alive, they believed he had his throne in the center of the forest.

-Ya... I see.

-Watch out!

The branches of the trees lunged towards Shirou, he projected Ascalon. This was a peculiar sword, for its power came not from the ability to defeat enemies, but from the ability to defend against all harm. However, by reversing its protective power, it becomes a sword that pierces through any kind of armor.

-Ascalon! -Sensing that its wielder was about to be attacked by an evil power, Ascalon reversed its protective power, destroying all the trees in front of it.

-Oh, Ascalon, can you copy legendary swords, Shirou-chan!

-Something like that...

Ascalon cleared a path for Shirou to reach the center of the forest.

-By the way, Shirou-chan, that's Vorpal, isn't it? Did you steal it from Louvre?

-I took it after defeating his children.

Merem laughed. First you kill his sons, then you steal his treasures, if he wasn't so weak, he'd probably try to take your head.

-Doesn't that bother you?

-Not at all, I hated the idea of triplets from the beginning.

-Triplets?

Merem sounded disgusted. Louvre only had a power similar to one of the twenty-seven when he was by his children's side, without them, he's really weak. Besides, he lost much of his brood in the assault on Atlas.

-Attack on Atlas?

-Yes. He coordinated with Tatari to have the high school principal away during his attack, so he had an easier time attacking Atlas while he was without Atlas. Although the numbers of his Ghouls and Dead were greatly diminished, rumor has it that he managed to steal one of the sealed weapons inside Atlas; however, for some reason, he doesn't brag about this one much, so maybe it's just a rumor.

-Who is Tatari?

-Oh, you don't know? Tatari is a freak created by Altrouge hundreds of years ago, now occupying the position of the thirteenth dead apostle.

-I see... -Shirou didn't have much time to process the information he had just received, as he finished traversing the path and reached the core of the forest.

After he finished the trail, the boy came to a large clearing.

-Is that it?

-Yes, the Throne of Ainnash. Lately the forest has been active for much longer, perhaps it has begun to have difficulty feeding?

A huge, totally blackish tree that exhaled blood like sap stood in the middle of the clearing. This one was the size of a six or seven story building, its shape was twisted and elongated, it had no leaves on its branches and a single reddish fruit hung from its highest branch, when Shirou took a step into the clearing...

-GGGGGGGGGGROOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWW!

The tree roared like a beast, its trunk split in two showing a huge circular "mouth", this one was adorned by countless fangs that made it look like a big crusher and, inside this one, a big red sphere that beat as if it was a heart could be appreciated.

"Well, the bad: it's bigger than I thought. The good: if I burn him, I'll wipe out the whole forest." Shirou prepared to face the forest's original bloodsucking tree, with Vorpal in one hand and Ascalon in the other. He didn't plan to unsheathe his ace up his sleeve until he was sure he knew how this enemy attacked.

With everything prepared, the real fight began...

Chapter 15, The Seal of Atlas and the Lunar Shield.

Knock; Knock;

Lord El-Melloi was standing in front of Lord Animusphere's cabin.

-Hey, what are you supposed to be doing! -Marie shouted from the other side of the door, "We're supposed to stay inside until Ainnash is killed!

However, Altrouge opened the door showing the Lord on the other side.

-May I come in? -asked Waver.

Ignoring the girl's cries, Altrouge let the Lord enter, followed by his apprentice.

-Lord Animusphere, may I speak with you? -Waver asked.

-If you want to discuss the murder, it is not necessary. It is obvious that Karabo is the murderer.

-Excuse me, but I still don't believe it. -Then he knelt down in front of the girl. Besides, this time, the one responsible is my enemy.

-This time? You mean the one who killed Trisha? Or the one who stole your relic? -Marie stood up. The servant's master?

-Without a doubt, they are the same person," Waver replied.

This surprised Lord Animusphere.

-I want you to lend me your help...

This angered Marie, for a moment, she thought of slapping Lord El-Melloi, she thought of yelling at him about how much she hated him for not needing anyone's recognition; when she was seeking acceptance from the rest of her family in an attempt to be recognized as a Lord on her father's level. But most of all, to tell him how much she detested him for probably being part of the reasons why Trisha died. However, she held back, he was Lord Animusphere and he had to live up to it, he had to live twice as hard for her and Trisha, and she couldn't let everything they had both managed to build come crashing down like it was nothing.

She could not do anything about her friend's death, she would not come back; but she could do something about her murderer, she could not let him go free, yes, she had to focus on that.

-I really don't like you, Lord El-Melloi, and I hate Legislation, they only see us as pawns.

-I know; but, still, I will stand up to whoever is behind this.

-I know, that's why I will help you... -Lord...

-Lord...

-But! -If you really were part of the reason why Trisha was killed, I hope you're prepared for the consequences...

Waver nodded and smiled, "You are strong Lord Animusphere, I would have liked to have had that strength years ago...

-Hmn? What do you mean?

-I'll tell you a story," Waver lit a cigarette. I also stole the relic that was stolen from me. Instead of confronting my master with my own strength, I thought I could get him to acknowledge me with something like that. I... I wasn't strong enough to reveal what I felt to the adults, all I did was survive...

-Master..." Gray exclaimed.

He turned to Marie, "If I had the strength you possess, I might have been able to do more. But, this time, I want to win. -Waver stood up, "If the one responsible for this incident is my enemy, I can't lose this time. You want to win too, don't you, Olga Marie? You want to prove that you won't just mourn the loss of your Servant, right?

Marie nodded with determination. Yes, but remember, this is a deal.

Waver nodded, "There's also something else you need to know...

-What?

-Trisha was researching about the holy grail war, she did it to find out why your father had decided to go into it, even though he knew the dangers of it, and why he abandoned you in the process. It is likely that, in addition to his mystical eye and my presence on the train, the assassin was trying to stop his investigations.

Marie lowered her gaze. Why does everyone cling to a reflection of the past?

Waver thought for a minute, then smiled, "That's right, it's just a reflection, I expected nothing less from the heiress of the Animusphere..." Then, he turned to Altrouge, "There's also something I want to ask you: Why did you let him go?

The Princess sighed, "Because he asked me to.

-Did he ask you to let him face a murderous forest? -asked the Lord in disbelief.

Altrouge nodded, "He decided to follow a very dangerous path. In the future, he will most likely end up facing more dangerous things, even more dangerous than Ainnash himself. For him, this is a test, a test to see if he can continue on the path he chose.

Gray lowered his gaze. "His own path..." Those words echoed in his head.

-Can he win, does he have a chance of making it? -the Lord asked.

-Only one, probably. -Altrouge turned toward the forest. It's still a long way off, but he'll be at the center before long...

Knock; knock.

Gray went to the door and opened it, from the other side, both Rin and Melvin entered.

-I'm sorry Waver; but I couldn't get them to delay the auction, they'll hold it in a few minutes," said Melvin.

-Then we must hurry. -Waver turned to Rin, "Did Reines give you the investigation reports on Sisigou and Luvia?

Rin nodded. Everything points in one direction... Although it's not complete yet.

Waver took the papers. Almost all the pieces fit together, but even so, how could it have moved so freely...?

-By the way, professor, you remember our deal, don't you? -Rin asked.

Waver nodded, "I'll give you lessons once the trip is over.

Rin smiled. I hope I can learn as much as Yvette.

-Yvette? What do you mean?

Now it was Rin who was puzzled. Wasn't it you who recommended Yvette for Spiritual Evocation lessons?

-Spiritual Evocation? Yvette's sorcery is based on her artificial mystic eye, she has never asked me for any letter of recommendation to study..." Waver paused for a moment, then smiled. I see, so that's how she did it. -Then he turned to Rin again. When will the rest of the report arrive?

-It will take several minutes; Ainnash's influence is returning and slowing down the transcription. On the other hand, that gorilla added extra information that may prove useful against the assassin.

This made the Lord even stranger. Rain? I didn't think he would do something without asking for something in return.

Rin nodded, "Maybe he did ask for something, just not from you. Apparently, Shirou asked her to investigate Trisha Fellows, and one thing led to another.

-I figured it would be something like that..." Then he turned to Lord Animusphere. Lord, do you have one of those maps that the Astromancy faculty lends to the General Fundamentals classes?

-The prototypes?

Waver nodded.

Marie went to a suitcase he had in the room, and from it, she pulled out a prototype. Bright," she said, and the world map was displayed as if it were a hologram. It is not the final model, is it enough?

Lord El-Melloi nodded, "Yes, it's a very accurate map with spirit lines. -Waver touched the map and the spirit lines glowed green, however, along the map, several points, or stretches, were shown where the lines glowed red. One of these, was over Fuyuki's location.

-I see, this is more worrisome than I thought.

-What do you mean, master? -The gravedigger asked in confusion.

-At first I thought that my enemy had copied the ritual by connecting it to Fuyuki's lines; but this proves otherwise. The other thing I can think of is that he was able to win a fake war and keep the Servant on his own; however, fake wars are usually butcheries, and it takes an extremely gifted magus to be able to keep a heroic spirit on his own. -Waver turned to the princess. Was it the Mage Marshal who sent them?

Altrouge nodded.

-I see, I suppose that ratifies everything; but, there is still one last piece missing. Miss Adashino must have hidden it, apart from Trisha's head, there was something else in that pocket of imaginary numbers?

-Hmn... You mean this? -asked the Princess showing a small statuette with two intertwined people. Shirou gave it to me in the morning, he told me to give it to you in case it was important.

-Yes! That was the one I saw," Gray exclaimed before looking away.

Waver took it in his hands. I knew it. Adashino ignored it in his hypothesis because it didn't fit into his puzzle.

-Is it the key to finding the culprit? -Marie asked.

Lord El-Melloi nodded, "Yes, this blows Legislation's theory out of the water.

"We will now proceed to begin the auction of mystic eyes, please proceed to the Pandemorium warehouse. The loudspeakers inside the train blared.

-We have time against us, we'd better hurry. -Waver turned to Rin. Wait for the rest of the report and bring it to me as soon as you can, then come with Yvette to the auction, you'll find her in her room, make sure you bring her. Y...

Waver whispered something in the girl's ear, though somewhat confused, Rin nodded.

-We will try to buy as much time as we can during the auction; but we must catch him before we leave Ainnash, or we won't be able to capture him.

With that said, Lord El-Melloi left the room heading for the auction wagon.

-Hey, wait, Waver! -shouted Melvin, following him.

Sighing, Rin and Marie came out after them. Finally, only Altrouge and Gray were left.

-Is something wrong, Rouge? -she asked as she saw the look on the Princess's face.

She shook her head, "No, it's just that she's not far off.

-Shirou...?

The Princess nodded.

Almost in a whisper, Gray asked. His way... What's his way?

-Hmn? -Altrouge turned and watched as the girl looked at her expectantly. That's not something you can simply put into words, when I refer to his path, it's the same as saying what he has done and what he will do with his life. For instance, I said his path is very dangerous, didn't I?

Gray nodded.

-It means that he has decided to go through many dangers to make his wish come true, the path you take, that is, the life you have and will have, depends on the decisions you make and, many times, those decisions are made because people have, yearnings, goals, and desires.

Gray lowered his gaze. What if I don't have...?

-Hmn?

-I mean, what if I don't have a wish?

Altrouge walked in front of her. Everyone has a wish, even just not wanting to die of fear is a valid reason to keep you alive. If what you mean is that you don't have a clear goal, that's not a problem either, part of life is finding that goal.

-Is it?

Altrouge nodded, "For humans, life is too short, it's not worth wasting your time doubting what you should do. Just live as you want...

With that said, Altrouge left the room, soon after, she was followed by Gray.

In the warehouse...

-Twenty million!

-Thirty million!

-Forty million!

The sound of the gavel echoed in the room. Awarded at forty million.

Yvette smiled as she made a gesture of peace with one of her hands.

-The family known for mystical eyes, they can't resist a good one.

Leandra smiled as she placed the next container of mystic eyes in front of the counter. Our next specimen is a mystic eye of precognition, its magical circuits have been decently preserved, however, it is not at peak capacity, so compatibility is much more of a factor with this eye than with others. Let's start the bidding at 15 million.

-20 million.

-30 million.

-70 million. -Who made this bid was none other than Galvarosso Scladio.

-80 million," shouted another.

-20 million," answered Galvarosso.

-No more bids? -Seeing that no one was bidding Leandra gave way to the hammer blow. Awarded for 100 million. You can find the tricks and the right way to use it in the manual we gave you at the beginning of the auction.

Old Galvarosso smiled as he smoked a cigar.

-Well, now, today's star: the mystical transient eye of bejeweled rank, its magic circuits are in perfect condition, so there should be no problems as long as the eye's outority is not inferior to that of its user.

Several of those present smiled at the sight of the eye.

-Let's start the auction at $30 million.

-40 million.

-50.

-60.

-70.

-80," Marie said, then turned to Altrouge as she smiled, "Even if you're my bodyguard, there's nothing to stop you from bidding. Even if you're my bodyguard, there's nothing to stop you from bidding. Weren't you going to bid?

Altrouge smiled, "I've already bid.

-What?

-Relax, you'll understand soon enough...

-90. -Melvin offered.

-100 million," said Yvette.

This surprised Gray, she looked at her partner in shock.

-A Picasso would cost about that much. A mystic eye of bejeweled rank will fetch much more," said Waver.

-130 million," Adashino pushed.

-You're kidding, Miss Legislation," said Yvette.

-I'm very serious," Adashino replied.

The El-Melloi student grunted in response.

-140," offered Melvin.

-150," Marie agreed.

-160," continued Adashino.

Yvette growled louder and shouted, "Two hundred million!

-230," said Adashino calmly.

The girl grunted again.

-Anyone else? -Leandra asked. No one?

-240," Waver raised his hand.

Everyone stared at him.

-What's the matter? I said 240 million.

Gray gave him a worried look.

-Continue with the auction.

Leandra smiled. Good.

-Wait a minute! -We're getting too hot. Can we take a break?

-Proposal accepted.

Melvin got up and followed Waver closely as they left the warehouse, when they were inside a cabin and he was sure there were no other magus around, he pinned Waver against the wall.

-What's the meaning of this, Waver, it's impossible for you to get that much money!

-And you! You were planning to stop at 230!

He shrugged his shoulders. It's just that it's a lot of money. -Melvin smiled. I think Yvette's wallet is starting to sweat too.

-So how much money will Legislation be able to pay? -Gray asked worriedly.

-They don't care about the price.

-Huh?

-Because that mystic eye is under their control," Melvin said as he moved around the room. The payment will go to Legislation, not to Mr. Karabo.

-They'll pay hundreds of millions that will come back to them?!

Waver turned away from the wall. Yes, although, of course, Adashino must have a ceiling, and they won't get back all the money invested. A move worthy of someone without scruples.

-So what are you trying to achieve, Waver? Are you going to compete against the Legislation budget? -Melvin asked.

-We have to stall for time until we have the full report; besides, the enemy wouldn't expect this price increase, it will force him to concentrate during the auction.

He smiled, "It's a very expensive diversionary strategy. You could buy a stealth plane with that. -Melvin laughed good-naturedly. I'll ask you again, Waver, can you promise me it'll be fun? -Melvin spoke to the Lord face to face. Can you say it's worth betting on a friend's ruin?

Waver smiled, "I promise. I'm sure you'll like it.

-Perfect! In that case..." Melvin picked up his cell phone. Yes, it's me, remember the tuner you wanted? I won't give it to you, but how much could I insure it for? Thirty million? No way! It should go for seventy.

Gray looked on in surprise as Melvin negotiated.

-I don't have time, let's make it fifty. Yes, yes, very well.

Waver smiled.

Melvin hung up the phone. You have 130 million more. They'll be good for the battle, won't they?

Waver nodded, "By the way, Gray, Reines gave you a card, didn't he?

-Yes, this is it," she said as she pulled out a card from her coat.

Waver took the card almost as if he was afraid of it. I'd rather not add to my debt; but this gives us 30 million more.

-That would be my savings from the bank and the secrets," Melvin smiled. Well, how far will we go? This is getting interesting.

Suddenly, Rin opened the door. Master, the rest of the report.

Waver took the papers Rin offered him.

-About the other thing...

Waver nodded, following Rin out of the room and leaving Melvin and Gray alone.

-Why are you offering so much money?

-Well, I'm a heartless man who enjoys other people's misfortunes," Melvin wiped the blood running from his mouth with a handkerchief. I've been like that since long before I discovered that I can't be a normal magus.

This surprised the girl.

-But even the heartless have their pride. If something looks like fun to me, I'd risk my life or my own parents' lives not to miss a single detail. Because if I were in a safe position, then I wouldn't be heartless," Melvin looked at Gray with a proud smile. I'd stoop to being a mere chicken.

After a few minutes, the bidding continued.

-We resume bidding at 240 million," Leandra said.

-250 million," bid Adashino.

-270," bid Waver.

-280," continued Yvette.

-300," continued Adashino.

-320 - Waver continued.

-340.

All the magicians watched in amazement as the bidding increased even more.

-360.

-370," declared Adashino.

-400," said Waver.

-410," countered Yvette.

At that point Adashino lowered his hand and stopped bidding.

-Anyone else? -asked Leandra.

Gnashing his teeth and trembling slightly, Waver declared. 420.

-430," Yvette continued.

-460.

-500.

Waver grunted as he looked at his cigar case that had a small symbol on it, it glowed slightly.

-Wait...

-There will be no second pause.

-It's not about that, I want to reveal something about the death of Trisha Fellows.

-What is it, Lord El-Melloi? You didn't like my deduction? -said Adashino standing up with Yvette at his side.

-Even if your logic was flawed, your deductions were correct. That's precisely why I want you to see this.

With that said, Rin entered the room carrying Trisha's head.

Marie turned her eyes to avoid looking at her.

-Unbelievable..." said Adashino sarcastically.

-She is necessary to solve this case, that's why I allowed myself the luxury of bringing her.

-Let's hear the great detective's deduction, then...

Waver stood in the center of the room. Let's start by reviewing the murders of 10 years ago. All the victims were decapitated and their heads disappeared. What can we deduce from this? It's simple, that they were dead...

-Huh? -Yvette exclaimed.

-Hey Waver, it's clear that you die when you lose your head!

-And why did Trisha Fellows hide her head?

Yvette raised her hand. To leave a message, right?

-Thirty points, Yvette Lehrman.

The girl looked disappointed.

-She possessed a mystical eye...

Yvette raised her hand again. The murderer wanted to steal it?

-But only this train is capable of extracting a mystical eye from a dead man," said Fernando, who was on the other side of Yvette.

-It wasn't for that reason. The victims who had their heads stolen were not dead. To think that they would die from losing their heads is a preconceived idea.

This surprised Marie. Trisha's head was still alive?

Waver nodded, "That's right. A right-handed magus can keep a head alive and could use the mystic eye without the need to pierce it, he just needs to steal a head.

This surprised Gray, "You say they stole several mystic eyes to use 10 years ago?

-That's my theory," the Lord replied.

-And-And... Why murder Trisha? -asked Marie.

-He was investigating the murders of 10 years ago, if someone obtained the eyes of the victims, they could help him get information about the holy grail war. To get that information, he tried to contact me and Karabo.

-You don't deny that Karabo Frampton was the culprit 10 years ago? -asked Adashino.

-Miss Adashino, do you know what this is? -said the Lord while showing the statuette. The sight of it surprised Adashino. Trisha Fellows hid it in the pocket of imaginary numbers along with her head. Sight was the first mystical eye, and from it came infinite ways to block them. -Waver showed the statuette to the rest of those present. For example, diverting the gaze with an object that represents an obscene image. If you look closely enough, you can even repel it.

That said, Gray, who was looking at the statuette, averted his gaze in embarrassment.

-A mystic eye repeller, I didn't think of that possibility. That's how you can manipulate a mystic eye out of control," said Fernando.

-This was hidden so we wouldn't think of that possibility," Waver said.

-Are you saying that Trisha manipulated Karabo? -asked Adashino.

-You are getting too far ahead of yourself. I'm saying that your theory didn't take into account that a third party could influence Karabo's mystic eye.

-I understand, maybe it wasn't the brain that performed the operation," said Melvin. What else do you have to say?

Waver took the case of his cigars and opened them. Trisha must have seen that she would meet Karabo in the future and got on the train to get the truth of what happened ten years ago.

-¿Y? -asked the legislative envoy.

-That's where he went wrong, his vision of the future could not foresee a cut from the past. And he passed away...

-You mean the person responsible manipulated Karabo to commit all those murders? -Yvette asked.

Waver lit the cigarette and proceeded to smoke. Yes. There is an individual with motive who could have done it.

-Hmn? Who?

-That's what I'm talking about.

At that instant, Adashino raised his hand towards Yvette and his familiar lunged towards her, quickly encircling the girl and restraining her. Then, she placed her fingers trying to form an oval and purple circles were also placed around the girl.

-What does this mean, professor? -Yvette asked a little nervously.

-What you see. You are the one who manipulated Karabo into killing Trisha Fellows.

-B-But, teacher..." said Gray.

-There's no evidence, and I don't have a motive.

-Yvette certainly has no motive to do it, does she? -Waver looked down the corridor connecting the room.

-Ha ha ha, I guess we couldn't fool you, Professor," said Yvette, entering through the corridor.

-Two Yvette's? -Gray asked in confusion.

Melvin clapped his hands, "Unbelievable, Waver, what's going on?

Yvette" smiled, "When did you notice? I thought I replicated Yvette perfectly.

Personality-wise, your performance was perfect. But, you failed to replicate her sorcery.

"Yvette sighed, "It would have been irresponsible of me to let a student go into the forest of Ainnash. On the other hand, Lehrman sorcery is complicated to replicate, even more so with my own mystical eyes.

-But Yvette used her mystic eye on me, didn't she? -Gray asked.

Waver nodded, "They were swapping all the way through, weren't they, Yvette?

The real Yvette smiled awkwardly. She promised me that she could analyze the mystic eyes she bought.

Waver sighed, "That's why I asked Miss Adashino to help me.

"Yvette smiled. I understand, it was all to buy time.

-Who are you?

-Don't you already know?

Waver nodded, "Yes, though I'd like you to admit it on your own. Still, it's a pleasure to meet you, former Dean of Modern Wizardry...

With that said, a blackish mist covered Yvette and she transformed into a man. He was tall, with pale skin and long reddish hair and eyes of the same color.

-Dr. Heartless," Waver finished.

-Doctor Heartless, the man whose heart was stolen by the fairies," said Adashino.

Heartless smiled.

-You are the only one capable of offering Yvette enough capital to compete in the auction, and also the only one capable of opening the safe of the College of Modern Wizardry.

-Indeed, I wanted to see you, Lord El-Melloi II...

-But that's not all," Waver interrupted.

-Isn't it? -asked Heartless.

-Your transformation resembles Gurdoa Davenant's spells. You, like Davenant's patron, also invested in the Marbury Workshop and tried to use the spirit lines for something. In short, you left many traces. As a tutor protecting his worst students...

-I see, you still have more deductions, don't you? -What about why done it?

-Your target... it must have been the holy grail war, right?

Heartless nodded.

-Heartless has a connection to the war? -Adashino asked in astonishment.

Waver pulled out the report from inside his suit. Luvia did an excellent investigative job. In theory, you had disappeared; but you were really investigating together with Lord Animusphere.

-Did my father ask this man for help? -Marie asked.

Waver nodded, "Ten years ago, you secretly collaborated with Astromancy, and committed serial murders by manipulating Karabo. You stole the heads with the mystic eyes and used them to monopolize information about the war.

-Magnificent, really great. But that's just circumstantial evidence and theories, you can't affirm it.

-The grail was corrupted, it was not capable of fulfilling wishes, that certainty plunged Lord Animusphere into despair, that's why he secretly went to meet with one of the founders' families, isn't it? -said Waver.

Heartless nodded again. Lord Animusphere secretly met with the Einzbern family, he did so with the motive of asking them why they would perform a ritual that was destined to fail...

-So why did my father participate in the war? -Marie asked.

-The Einzbern's response was as follows: "We have implemented a security system within the ritual, a new class that will be responsible for purging the corruption so that the ritual can be performed as planned, the extra class, Ruler. The Ruler class is a means of defense for the grail in case it notices that something oversteps or trespasses its authority and may jeopardize the concept of the holy grail war." However, the servant invoked was an aberration; but not in the sense of being corrupt, but in the sense that he was a servant who did not meet the class requirements to be a Ruler. He was a servant who wished to use the holy grail and, the main requirement for the Ruler class, is to have no interest in using the grail. -Dr. Heartless turned to Marie. That is why, despite all the dangers, your father decided to participate in the ritual.

-You've already accomplished your goal, haven't you? It wasn't the war itself, but the summoning ritual. Heartless, somehow, you generated a grail.

-Excellent!

-However, I don't know how the hell you did it, at first I thought that, through the Rail Zeppelin and the forest of Ainnash, you would create a distortion that would generate a sort of sub grail; but... even so, that would not be enough, you would have to intervene; for example: connecting the spiritual lines with the ley lines of Japan, but that's impossible...

-Because Japan's ley lines have been weakened so much that it wouldn't work, would it? -said Heartless

Waver nodded, "If my deductions are anything like reality, to summon something belonging to this new class, Faker, one must need an imitation of the ritual, as well as an ancient master to counterfeit, right? A fake war would fulfill the requirements to forge the ritual, but it would be too showy and risky, on the other hand, you would still need a master to forge, I don't know how you did it, but somehow you found a way to summon Faker and used me to become an imitation master.

-Right. The holy grail war interests me, it's basically a fable even for magus, which appealed to me even more.

-The murder of Trisha was just a bonus, it would remove the mystic eye of precognition that could identify you and hopefully you would get that too.

-Along with Mr. Karabo's eye," Heartless said cheerfully.

-But he foresaw his murder and hid his own head.

Marie bit her lips.

-It was his decision that led me here.

-It's touching," said Heartless.

-If I understand correctly, you're the one who attacked and manipulated the train into the Predator Forest, aren't you? -Leandra asked.

-It seems that way, doesn't it?

-If you attack the train, you lose the right to leave at the auction.

With a smile, Heartless replied, "Well, well, that's what I was afraid of. It's a pity, I wanted the charade to last until the end of the auction, I managed to find out that they will auction a legendary rainbow-ranked eye.

This caught the attention of all the magicians present.

-Much to our regret, the transient eye is the last one to be auctioned today. Although we were originally planning to auction the rainbow-ranked eye, thanks to you, we had to remove that eye from the options for the auction.

-Thanks to me? -asked Heartless, somewhat confused.

Leandra nodded. The eye will belong to Mrs... Crimson, won't it?

Altrouge nodded.

-This one, along with another eye of her choice, were used as a means of payment in order to make a contract where both she and Mr. Emiya agreed to assassinate the seventh apostle in order to free Rail Zeppelin.

-What? -The first one to jump was Marie, she quickly looked at Altrouge waiting for a confirmation.

The Princess smiled, "You know what Olga Marie, tell me, what are the best battles?

-The best battles?

Altrouge nodded, "I'll save you the effort, the best battles are the ones you win without having to participate in them. As I told you, I already participated in the auction.

-You..." Marie looked away and tried to take it with the dignity she was supposed to possess. I... I'll... I'll keep it in mind...

-GGGGGGGGGGROOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW!

-That's it! -Rin asked.

Altrouge nodded, "By now, Shirou must have reached the core of the forest...".

-Murder Ainnash? -Heartless frowned. That's troublesome to me.

-Adashino! -Waver shouted.

-With my command spell I command you, come to me!

A red light invaded the room, and once it disappeared, Faker appeared out of nowhere, with great speed, she pushed Adashino, causing her to crash into the wall and end up unconscious.

As she fell unconscious, the bindings and magic circles holding Heartless disappeared.

-At last you call me, master.

-The Lord's deductions were so interesting that I listened.

-What is this? -Marie asked.

-A heroic spirit," Gray replied.

-I've been doing some more research on who you are," said Waver.

Faker turned to him. I thought you knew...

-I'm not just talking about that, I'm talking about your class, a fake grail, a fake master, and fake command seals. Generally, the ritual wouldn't work this way.

-You mean...? -Gray said.

Waver nodded, "Faker is certainly the perfect name for this class, one that symbolizes imitation. It's a class that should be used to summon imitation heroic spirits, in other words, forgeries and body doubles of real heroic spirits.

-Indeed, that's why I call this new class, Faker," Heartless confirmed.

-Which means that Faker, you're Iskandar's double, aren't you?

This surprised Altrouge, "Huh? Wasn't Iskandar a giant red-haired man? How could this be his doppelganger?

Though surprised that the girl knew Iskandar's appearance, Waver nodded. But in some legends he is described as small, black-haired and heterochromatic-eyed, with one eye as black as night and the other as blue as the sky. Faker, the one who faked her sex, appearance and identity to protect the king, a magical double, a reflection of the conqueror, in short, his shadow.

-That's right, magus; but I'm tired of listening to you," answered the servant.

-I don't mind fighting here. But that would entail sacrificing several mystic eyes, could you open the pandemorium?

-All right," said Rodin.

That said, the roof of the carriage opened.

-What are you going to do, Yvette?

-Accept my punishment, I don't want to live on the run," she said, waving her hand.

-Well, you turned me down. In that case..." Faker grabbed Heartless and jumped out of the wagon.

-You will not escape! -Gray said as he left the carriage to, together with Waver and Rin, face Faker and Heartless...

...

...

Meanwhile, inside the forest...

It was official, the forest had assimilated each and every characteristic of a dead apostle.

Shirou was running around the "Throne of Ainnash", the gigantic tree was constantly throwing its branches at him. He was being attacked from all directions, the branches would attack him from the front, and the roots would attack him from below if he went too far away, on the other hand, if he approached the rest of the forest, the trees that made up the forest, would attack him from behind.

Simply staying in one place for too long would mean death for him. The branches attacked him again and Shirou dodged them by skidding, roots sprang up from the ground and he jumped to the side and rolled on the ground. He couldn't stop, he had to move forward, the branches in the forest were not common, a simple brush with them was more than enough to hurt him. At this moment, he was really thankful he had studied runes, to increase his defenses, he used Algiz, "Fear has its place in every heart. Courage is only a response ", this is a rune related to the Valkyries, it envelops you with its power and protects you, weakening the attacks you may receive.

And yet, even so, the power of the forest was too much for him.

From one moment to the next, even with his Reinforcement, added to his Temporal Manipulation Sorcery, and the Raidho rune to increase his speed, he was covered by the branches. Merem had told him that the branches of the forest were capable of covering one of his creatures, which apparently measured around 200 meters, in a matter of a few minutes, the fact that there was a small clearing around the gigantic tree, was a blessing for him and yet it was not enough. Branches shot from all directions against him, hastily, the boy used the two runes Manaka had taught him about Vorpal: Yr and CWeorþ.

Shirou thrust the sword into the ground, and the weakening effect of the sword was transmitted to the earth more easily thanks to Yr, further weakening the authority of the Throne of Ainnash, on the other hand, the flames of CWeorþ were transmitted through the blade burning the earth and the branches that tried to impale him, as well as the trees around him. Usually, the rune CWEORÞ would be far, far more powerful, but because his mastery of runes was not as advanced, as because, in addition, this was an elemental rune, so, it was a bit more difficult for him to use it than the rest, that the rune was nowhere near being able to unleash its full power and, even so, from one moment to the next, the entire clearing was completely engulfed by flames. In addition, the boy was surprised by the mana consumption of this one, which was above the others, so he voluntarily restricted it as well.

However, and to his misfortune, the boy watched as the forest began to regenerate at great speed. With the eight hundred years the forest had been around since it absorbed the blood of the original Ainnash, the tree had also obtained the Temporal Regression Curse of the dead apostles. Moreover, this was a living mystery with eight hundred years of age, it was not like Louvre's children who were barely and only a hundred years old, nor was it a magus like Louvre and his children before they were transformed and, more importantly, the phases of the moon were not on its side either, in short, the Bullets of Origin, or failing that, the Phantom Punishment, were useless against it.

So he had only one option left, destroy the original tree from its roots to its highest branches. That said, Shirou took out Vorpal and launched himself against it running in a zigzag while dodging the tree's branches and roots. He had to attack at point blank range, otherwise, it was likely that the giant tree would be able to survive.

Seeing how that strange creature was approaching and how the flames were still burning him, the giant tree roared and unleashed a huge blizzard that hit the boy, sending him flying backwards and extinguishing the flames.

Shirou was forced to retreat momentarily, and did not notice a giant branch coming towards him sending him flying to the side. The red-haired boy rolled across the snowy field; but he didn't stop, as soon as he stopped rolling he got up and kept running; however, the branches were attacking him faster and more ferociously, so the boy had to increase his speed even more to be able to deal with them. Time Alter, Triple Accel! -Although he had to move at a faster speed, he also did it being more cautious, the blizzard was so strong that he didn't know where he was moving to, if he wasn't careful, he could turn his back to his enemy and run into the forest.

Suddenly, the boy was terrified to see how the air, besides being covered by the mist, began to be covered with something else, a kind of gas, suddenly, the air was becoming poisonous, Shirou held his breath and tried to move away as fast as possible, however, the gas expanded much faster than he could move away. When he reached the limit of his endurance and was about to breathe the gas, the protection gained by combining Berkano and Raidho dissipated the mist and the gas showing him a path to his destination, the original tree.

The branches attacked him and Shirou dodged them again, knowing he couldn't stop to charge his sword attack, he decided to do it in full run. He clamped Vorpal with his teeth putting it in his mouth and making sure its effect would hold and at the same time he unsheathed Neocaliburn.

The young man ran as fast as he could, the branches were coming from in front of him and Shirou was either dodging them by skidding forward or destroying them with Ascalon. This was his only chance, he had spent too much energy keeping his Boost, Temporal Manipulation Sorcery, and runes active. When he was close, he could see the huge tree from where the bloody sap was emanating, all the branches of the tree shot towards him, Shirou dematerialized Ascalon and held Neocaliburn with both hands, when he was as close as possible, he thought of that prayer that echoed in his head every time he released the light that could burn everything it touched. Firmly, he swung the sword in an upward slash...

The sacred light shot from its edge and advanced relentlessly incinerating all the branches that came against it, it advanced swiftly to the trunk of the tree and, although it did everything possible to protect itself, covering itself with its branches, raising its roots to create a shield, none of that had any effect, the light burned everything and rose to the heavens...

...

Back, in the Rail Zeppelin...

-I think it would be best to say goodbye here," said Heartless along with Faker on the roof of the train.

-You still haven't given me back the relic! -Waver replied.

-Oh! I see..." He threw the piece of the cloak at him as if it were a ball. Here.

Waver caught it in mid-air, after wrapping it inside a cloth, he put it inside his coat.

-Goodbye," Heartless turned around and proceeded to leave with Faker.

-Wait!

Hearing the Lord, they both turned around.

-Faker, I have a question for you.

-I said I'm tired of listening to you," she replied.

-You don't have a name, do you? -asked the Lord. For a magic double...

Faker laughed, "Yes, that's right, I don't have a name. I was born Hephaestion's twin and given to the gods.

-Without a name you could attract curses meant for Iskandar. It is an advanced application of anaphora," Waver explained.

-The King tried to give me a name on several occasions; but I refused each time. That's all, magus.

-Then I have another question, why don't you appear with the King's army?

This question made Faker's expression contort into pure irritation. Silence! -Faker ran swiftly with the intention of attacking Waver; however, Gray stepped in.

-Add.

The mystic code adopted his version of a shield and stopped the servant's short sword.

-Thank you, Gray.

-You say what you want to say, master! -replied the girl.

-Wretch! -Faker kicked the shield, pushing Gray back.

-Faker, I ordered you to stand down.

-When I cut off his head!

Faker surrounded his body with magic power.

-Is it sorcery? -Waver asked in astonishment, for Faker was a body double of Iskandar, and Iskandar had never used sorcery during the time he had been his master.

-Addd, eat it! -Gray said.

-I'm on it, free buffet, baby! -Faker's magical power was absorbed by the scythe. Hmm... how much power! -the mystic code delighted.

-What a nuisance..." growled the heroic spirit.

-You said the King tried to name you. That meant he didn't accept your situation. He wouldn't tolerate treating you like a nameless object! You're not in his army because you yourself disown him! Isn't that so?!

-You bastard! -Faker ran towards the Lord, Gray tried to stop her, but she was roughly pushed away by the servant.

Faker was about to attack him; but she was forced to dodge several curses that flew against him.

-You again! -shouted the maid as she saw Rin coming up the wagon.

-Master, the auctioneer told me to be careful, Ainnash's influence is getting out of control! -said the girl as she stood between Faker and Waver.

-What?

Gray took the opportunity to get up and tried to attack Faker from behind; but she dodged it by jumping backwards.

A light illuminated the night in the distance, this one emerged from deep in the forest- GGGGGGGGGGROOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW! -The forest roared; but this time it was not of anger like last time, it was a roar of agony and pain. The roots and branches of the forest went berserk and tightly gripped all the cars of the train.

Doctor Heartless smiled a strange, uncomfortable smile. It was amusing to see the resolution of Faker's riddle.

-Thank you," replied the Lord with slight indifference.

-Tell me, Lord El-Melloi, even if you don't know how I faked the ritual, you must be able to imagine why I'm here, why I boarded the train inside Ainnash?

-There is only one thing I can think of. You're being chased, aren't you?

-Bravo. Exactly, for a while I worked for an organization; but, it seems my idea of summoning a servant didn't particularly endear me to them, so I've been on the run for months from both of them.

-Both?

Heartless nodded, "I wanted to change the world of sorcery, to destroy the old system, that's why I worked together with Lord Animusphere and later with other organizations. However, their ideas of "changing the world" were very different from mine, so I decided to reveal myself.

-And now they are after you?

-Even with all the knowledge and skills I have gained over time, I am not able to oppose them. That's why I've been on the run for months...

-So, what's all this for? If you wanted to use Ainnash as some kind of protection, you could have done it without involving us.

Heartless smiled, "That's right, I've been looking for a way to deal with them for months, and while I was able to find a method and begin the procedures to accomplish it, I realized that I was unlikely to survive long enough to see it through, and I didn't trust my new co-workers.

-You were looking for someone else?

-That's right, then I remembered you. You are my successor as Dean of Modern Wizardry, and you have already had experience with the holy grail wars, besides, although you understand the logic of the magus, you don't follow it to the letter. After analyzing you, I decided to entrust it to you... You have to unravel everything, Lord El-Melloi! I have already given you the necessary clues..." After saying this, Heartless turned around with the intention of leaving.

-Stop Heartless, your experiment ends here! -shouted Waver.

-Probably, but in that case, let me resist. -Heartless closed his eyes, placed a hand over his heart, and chanted. Turn around, my heart.

The place where his heart should be lit up with a greenish color and a great portal opened in the heavens. From within, a tree similar to the one in the center of Ainnash, but smaller, emerged.

-Yes, he is one of Ainnash's sons, I took advantage of the fact that he was nearby to transport him here.

-Do you intend to devour the train?

-This comedy ends now," said Faker, who had jumped over one of the branches of the original Ainnash that surrounded the train.

-Master! -Gray jumped up and stood in front of Waver and Rin.

-The earth is round and the sea is not infinite. He said he resisted after he found out. The vassals resemble the king," Waver sighed.

-His empire to the ocean collapsed and his dreams were lost," said the maid hatefully. The result couldn't be more pathetic.

Waver laughed.

-What are you laughing at!

Waver replied with a smile. It's just typical of him, he never finished anything. Maybe he had no talent...

-Master...? -Gray asked when he heard his words.

-What are you saying? -Faker asked.

-I've been thinking about the same thing for almost a decade. What I could do to get his back... If I told him I beat his other self, I'm sure he'd laugh out loud.

Faker smiled, "You think you can beat me?

-Gray, Rin, will you help me?

-Yes, I'll take care of it! -said the tomb guardian before leaping at Faker.

-I guess there's no other way..." Rin walked over to where Ainnash's son had manifested. Ainnash is holding up the train, so they can't use the projector, I'll have to take care of that thing myself. Leave it to me.

Waver nodded.

Between the branches of the trees, Faker and Gray began to exchange attacks.

-Forgive me, master, I thought I would be loyal to you, but..." Heartless sighed.

Heartless sighed, "Oh well, you managed to provoke her. I guess you survived the holy grail war for a reason.

-It's rare for a master and servant to coincide," the Lord replied. I'm sorry, but I'll stop you here.

-You mean you're going to stop me?

-No, that's my job.

A black key was about to pierce Heartless and he had to jump backwards to dodge it.

-Karabo Frampton? And with his mystical eyes too," said the doctor.

Karabo walked forward on the roof of the train. I got them back after the sale of the last eye at auction was cancelled.

The Church agent jumped into the branches of the trees and stood between Gray and Faker.

-Karabo! -Gray exclaimed.

-You should have died," said Faker before lunging at the Church agent.

Karabo's black keys danced against Faker's short sword, with swift movements, both trying to create an opening that would allow them to wound each other; however, Karabo was careful not to face her directly in a prolonged manner, knowing how dangerous the servant could be. Though this exchange was short-lived, Karabo's mystical eyes glowed, and a slash from the past reflected in the present, cleaving the servant's short sword in two.

-This is..." Faker's suit was also cut, causing a slight wound on his arm.

-If a cut comes from the past, no physical or spiritual body can block it," said the Lord as he watched the fight.

Numerous cuts from the past began to hit Faker one after another. This forced the servant to retreat from the man's field of vision.

-You'll pay for manipulating me, Heartless!

Heartless grinned, "Wow...

Karabo lunged to attack the magus; but Ainnash's crazed branches began to attack him, cutting him off.

-What are you going to do against all those branches?

-We alone can do little..." declared Waver, but, to Heartless' confusion, he was smiling.

While the whole battle was going on, Rin found herself dodging the branches of the forest while getting as close as possible to where the portal through which Heartless summoned the son of the forest was located.

"Hurry up Olga Marie, I need a little time to load her up." She thought as she pulled from the bag she was carrying a sword; this one was similar to the sword she had tried with Shirou weeks ago.

...

On the roof of another one of the wagons...

-Are you sure you shouldn't have gone with him? -Altrouge asked as she watched both the battle unfolding a few carriages away from her and the Ainnash forest in the distance.

-Fou...

-Even PM agrees with me, letting him go alone was too dangerous," the apostle continued speaking as she held Muramasa.

-There must be trust..." replied the spirit.

-Hmn?

-There must be trust between the student and the teacher. The student must have confidence in the teachings and knowledge of the master, as well as in his decisions and, in reciprocity, the master must have confidence in the abilities and decisions of the student. -The spirit sighed, "If there is no trust, the teaching will fail. Also, a teacher must know when to let the student take charge on his own, otherwise, he will not be able to grow.

-Was that why you forbade him to take you with him?

-Yes, he must fight some battles on his own. He must realize how to face different enemies, he must know what the limits of his capabilities are, and learn firsthand how difficult the path he chose is. He won't be able to do that if I'm always looking out for him.

...

Inside the train...

Olga Marie, that girl with a crow, Fernando, the real Yvette, and Adashino all stood in a circle.

Marie began to say the aria-. The shape of the stars... The shape of the sky... The shape of god..." Marie raised her arms as a sphere of violet light formed above her head. "I don't understand... What did you want to achieve by discovering the reasons why my father decided to abandon me? Did you want me to get angry? To stop chasing his shadow? Trisha, I... I am the new Lord Animusphere. I can get angry when I need to get angry, that's why I'm angry right now. If you had told me, maybe then... But... I get it, now it's my turn, now it's me who must rise up!"-. Gods, animus, antrum, unbirth, anima, Animusphere!

The sphere became a magic circle and, above the train, numerous small meteors fell from the sky like green flashes hitting and burning the branches, as well as the trees, that were around the train.

-It's Olga Marie's sorcery! -said Gray as he watched the meteors beautifully fall and incinerate the branches of the forest.

-Just as I expected," said Waver.

-What a surprise, did you plan on it? -asked Heartless.

-It was an elementary deduction..." Waver turned and watched as Rin raised a sword he had never seen before to the skies. It seems that the second arrow is also ready.

A magic circle incomprehensible to everyone present, except for Rin herself, emerged from this one, enveloped it and engraved itself on the ground. Suddenly, an absurd amount of magical energy began to be emanated from this and concentrated on the blade of the sword.

"I hope it works this time...". Rin got into position, she spread her feet apart and strengthened her body as much as she could, grabbed the sword with both hands, stretched her arms back and thrust them forward performing a lunge. The energy shot out in a flashing beam from the blade's edge against Ainnash's son and just like his father, he screamed in pain, his branches burned, his trunk snapped and he fell from the top of the portal groaning in agony and suffering.

-GGGGGGGGGGROOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW!

The energy stopped being emanated and Rin could barely avoid being pushed back, she looked at the blade, she had had to minimize both the energy extraction and the energy output so that the magic circle would not overload and the blade would not explode and, even so, the magic circle overheated and the blade of the sword cracked rendering it unusable. At this point, the sword was nothing more than a single-use tool far inferior to the original.

Rin sighed, "Well, at least it didn't explode this time..." she consoled herself.

...

On the other hand...

-What a horror... You really have some promising students, although, on the other hand, it's also quite disappointing. We're leaving, Faker! -he said as he turned around.

-No! Not yet! -Faker surrounded his body with magical energy.

-I won't allow it! -Gray pointed his scythe at the servant, absorbing its magical energy.

Taking advantage of the opening, Karabo threw her black keys at Faker; but she dodged them and used her mystic eyes of compulsion to take control of the two; however, Karabo used hers to reflect the cut left by her keys to cause a wound on the servant's face.

-I'll start with you," Faker lunged at Karabo and, with a strong kick, sent him flying.

Taking advantage of the effect of his eye, Faker ran towards Gray to finish her off. For his part, Gray used all his willpower to raise his scythe and try to counter Faker's blow; but he could barely lift it above his head.

Faker jumped up and prepared to give Gray the last blow; but, at that moment, a small object attracted his vision. It was the statuette that Trisha used to deflect the mystic eyes, this one allowed the effect of the eyes to be nullified and, on pure impulse, Gray's scythe swiftly came down in a downward slash at the maid.

Faker recoiled in dismay as a large wound across her chest opened up, causing great bleeding. Did-you wait for me to use my mystic eye?

-Yes," replied Waver who had thrown the statuette, "Although we wouldn't have made it in time without Karabo.

Waver jumped off the train and approached Faker. Glory waits in the distance, we fight because we aspire to something we don't have. We take a combative path, for the vassals at our backs, he said.

Those words had a great impact on his student, who listened attentively.

-You only spent half a month with him. Don't you dare talk about my King! -Faker shouted as he held his chest.

-King's Shadow, even if you're removed from history, that doesn't mean you lose your sense. That's why I'm here right now!

-In that case, try to survive! -Raising his hands to the sky Faker summoned his heroic treasure. And the chariot pulled by the skeleton wyverns descended with a red beam.

Although a smile was glimpsed on his face, Heartless' words were cold and precise. Faker, end this now, we don't have time.

Falling to his knees, the Lord said, "Gray, I leave it in your hands.

-Master!

The Lord's glasses shattered, "Now I... am frozen too..." Waver turned and said with a smile, "My life is in your hands.

Gray nodded and prepared to finish Faker off once and for all.

-My loyalty is to the King! Lend me the name of lightning to face my enemy! -said the maid as lightning surrounded the chariot. If you really intend to keep your word, attack me with everything you've got brat!

-Gray... Rave... Crave..." Numerous spheres of light began to surround the girl; but she was still trembling. D-Deprave... Grave... me...

At that moment, she felt something on her shoulder, a hand. That spear is full of prayers, prayers compacted into thirteen forms. Sharpen your ear to hear its voice, listen to the prayers of distant times," Karabo said as he held his bloodied chest, Faker's kick had been hard enough to almost pierce him.

-The prayers, he says... But all you were doing was cowering in the corner of the room, Gray! -Who cried out was none other than Add. But the time has come to listen to you, what do you want to do? If you don't tell, no one will know!

-I... I want to protect the master and the others, I want to walk my own path and find out what I really want!

-That's enough, undecided Gray! -Add's voice suddenly lost all emotion. Artificial personality suspended, minimum magic power binding value exceeded. Initiating release of second level limit, thirteen seals, initializing decision...

The light took the form of thirteen people and each began to speak:

-This battle is not against an elemental, I consent.

-It is a battle against someone more powerful than yourself, I consent.

-It is a battle for survival, I consent.

-It is a battle for truth, I consent.

-The battle is not against humanity, I consent.

-Comrades in arms are brave, I consent.

-The battle is not inhuman, I consent.

-The battle is not against someone pure of heart, I consent.

-Initiating the release of the third level limit, -Finished Add.

-Grave for you... Ancient mystery reaches your death, sweet enigma, return to nothingness! -The light took the shape of a spear on Gray.

-Go ahead, my Hectic Wheel! -The battle chariot was surrounded by Zeus' lightning bolts, and these, in turn, were empowered by the skill, Lightning Conqueror, once again, Faker seemed to be the storm itself and, amid thunderous and thunderous lightning, she descended like a thunderstorm as she imbued the chariot with her own magical energy. VIA EXPUGNATIO!

-Holy spear, weigh anchor! RHONGO... MYNIADDDDD!

The light shot into the skies like a tower and, despite how imposing the Hectic Wheel seemed to be falling with extreme ferocity, it could barely face and resist for a few seconds the pure power of the spear that shines to the ends of the world, thus, the spear of light collided with the Hectic Wheel and the storm was pierced in a matter of a few moments.

Faker was stunned by the power of the spear and even her screams could not be heard as she was struck by the light.

-Turn around, my heart...

Once it disappeared, there was nothing left but the clear sky.

-GGGGGGGGGGROOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW!

The forest roared once again, but that didn't matter... With a smile, Heartless clapped his hands. Bravo, who knew he would be able to see the display of such a legendary treasure.

-You lose your servant and still behave as if nothing happened? -asked Karabo dumbfounded.

-Lost, what are you talking about? Faker is right here.

Though, with his skin burned and severely wounded, Faker materialized in front of Heartless.

Waver grunted, "You saved her the same way you teleported Ainnash's son..." The doctor nodded.

The doctor nodded, "I'm very sorry, I have to leave, I've wasted too much time already.

-Stop Heartless, this must end here! -Karabo shouted as he tried to get up.

-No, this will not end yet. We're leaving, Fak-

However, Heartless could not finish his sentence, a sword pierced his chest.

-No, the man is right, this ends now, doctor. -The sword cut the man from chest to shoulder and he fell forward, before he could do anything, the hand where he had his command seals was cut as well.

-Mas-...! -Faker tried to scream; but she was riddled by several weapons of several spectral beings, despite being wounded, she was able to dodge and repel some of them, and to move away taking Heartless away from the attacker.

-What are those things? -Gray asked.

Equally surprised, Waver replied, "N-No, I don't know.

The doctor with much effort raised his gaze and saw how Faker was pierced by the weapons of several dark wraiths. Shadowy servants -Heartless turned carefully and could observe her.

She was wearing a tight black suit that covered her entire body, it was traversed by red lines from her feet to her neck. On top of this was a tight black metal armor, this resembled an extremely short mini dress. She also wore black gloves and boots, a garter on her right thigh, a large cross-shaped shield and a sword with which she had run him through. The only thing visible about her was her short dark blue hair and white skin, the upper part of her face was covered by a black visor of a similar style to the rest of her armor. She also appeared to be quite young, about 16 or 17.

Heartless gave her a resigned smile. You got here fast this time, moon envoy.

-I've been watching him since long before, but I needed to wait for a suitable moment when Faker was caught off guard, thanks to this I was able to attack him without her being able to use the Blessing of the Nameless to protect him, thanks to her recent fight, the timing was perfect. -The shadowy servants turned their gazes to the doctor, waiting for the order to attack again. Doctor Heartless, for the crimes you have committed against the Moon Cell, I have been sent to deal with you, this time you have no escape. Surrender at once," said the girl.

-I-I'm afraid that's not possible for me, Shielder. I can't stop after I've come this far...

-Your goal is not possible, this world will not change no matter how hard you try.

As if he had regained some of the human feelings he never seemed to express, at least beyond his strange smile, Heartless resisted. I refuse.

Several minutes earlier, in the center of the forest...

Shirou struggled to his feet, the force of his attack sending him several meters backwards.

-Was it enough? -The snowfall was no longer so great as to prevent him from seeing his surroundings; but the place where Ainnash's throne should have been was covered by smoke.

Carefully, and holding a sword in each hand Shirou approached the place where the tree should be, at this point he had almost run out of energy and could not keep the Reinforcement and protection runes active.

-I can't see anything, it's too much smoke... Hab- -But the boy couldn't finish his sentence, roots emerged from the ground and hit him in his arms with so much force that made him throw his swords, and a huge branch emerged in front of him piercing his stomach and throwing him several meters away.

Cof... Cof...

Shirou coughed blood, he stood up; but roots came out again from the ground digging into his feet and, from the trees behind him, branches came out and attacked him digging into the bare part of his back. If it were not for Avalon and the leaves that came out from deep inside his body to seal his most serious wounds then he would already be dead.

Held back by the branches and roots, the boy watched as 50% of the tree was incinerated by Neocaliburn; but the other 50% was still safe.

-Shit... -Shirou couldn't move, both Neocaliburn and Vorpal were thrown to the distance, so Ainnash's effect returned and he couldn't use his magic circuits. He couldn't project anything, he couldn't free himself from the roots and branches of the forest, and he watched as the skewed tree prepared to devour him by opening what was left of its mouth and stretching its branches, as it slowly began to regenerate.

"What do I do, I have to break free somehow!". But, without his weapons and sorcery, that was impossible. "W-Wait, still... I still have something!". With what little strength he had left from all the effort he had put in and from being badly wounded, Shirou unclipped the weapon he carried on his back.

The few remaining branches of the tree shot at high speed against him and, as fast as he could, Shirou fired with the Black Barrel to destroy them, fortunately, the bullets of the gun were powerful enough to destroy the branches and stop their advance, but it wasn't enough, he had to finish with the tree before it regenerated.

Hoping that, in the weakened state it was in, the bullets would be enough to hurt it, Shirou aimed the gun at what seemed to be the heart of Ainnash's throne.

-It's all or nothing!

Shirou pointed the large rifle at the ghostly species and, at that moment, something happened. The black rifle began to glow with a reddish light and a voice emerged from deep within it.

-The seal of Atlas is being unlocked. The conditions have been given: An immortal being shrouded by high amounts of mystery has been targeted and the bearer is a human being. The true function of the weapon will be activated: Imposing natural life on beings who do not know it.

-What? -exclaimed the boy, something had happened, and Ainnash's dominion had been momentarily interrupted.

...

At the same time that was happening, Heartless was getting up as best he could to face the mysterious enemy along with Faker.

For the first time since the Lord met him, he saw him frown, removing his always enigmatic smile-. I refuse to accept the fate of the world, it was bad enough that the system does not change and that all sorcery falls into decadence; but, that all sorcery is destined to disappear... I refuse to accept it! If so, a regression is the best way.

...

At the same time, with Shirou, the robotic sounding voice continued to speak-. Paradox effect in progress, initiating countdown.

The rifle lit up with the reddish light and a huge amount of energy gathered around the barrel and at the muzzle of the weapon.

-The enemy has been detected 130 meters away. Shaping the Black Barrel... Turning the paradox and giving way to the real theory. User stabilize the weapon!

Due to his current state, the boy's hand was shaking; but the gun's warning brought him back to his senses. Yes!" the boy replied while making sure the shot was accurate.

...

On a par, with Heartless...

-I told you doctor, that's impossible for you. This world is destined to become a world designated for its elimination, a world far from the correct history of humanity and that will later be erased, it began to separate from it a long time ago, and little by little it has begun to become more and more unrecognizable, at this point, the only value and objective it possesses is only one: to die. This world must die so that other worlds do not separate in the same way this one did, that's all," replied the girl.

...

In unison, with Shirou...

-Energy to the limit, maximizing offensive capability, weapon body ready.

The branches began to regenerate once more and launched themselves at the boy, seeing this, and with Ainnash's dominance interrupted, he used his reality marble to not only seal his most severe wounds, but also for numerous blades to come out from within cutting and protecting him from the branches.

Shirou gritted his teeth and swallowed the pain as the steel blades shot out from his body impaling him from the inside out, although he had used them strategically so that they would not cause him irreparable damage, that did not mean that the pain of being stabbed over and over again did not take its toll- Quickly! Quickly! Quickly! Quickly! FAST!

-Synchronization range: 30%... 50%... 70%... 80%... 100%,

At the same time, in the vicinity of the Rail...

Heartless smiled once again, but this time it was not a fake smile or without human feelings, it was a genuine smile, the first one he had made in a long time. Lord El-Melloi, it seems you are right, my experiment ends here. I have already given you all the necessary clues for you to continue on your own -Then he turned to Shielder-. However, there is something I have to make clear, what you say will not happen, of that I can be sure. In a world with so many people, it is impossible that there is not one who will rise up against it.

-Will he rise up? -asked the girl.

Heartless nodded, "Such people must exist, people who will rise up against fate, who will ignore the dangers and the high walls they will face, and go forward to triumph.

-Even if they exist, none of that will matter, even statistics can't help you here, because fate subjugates everything to its will," the girl replied.

...

At the same time, in what was left of the clearing...

The roots regenerated and launched themselves against the red-haired man.

-Camera entering critical point.

-SHOOT AT ONCE! -shouted the desperate boy.

-Black Barrel, full trance. Proceed to fire!

-FIRE! -Shirou pulled the trigger.

The bullet shot out as a small black sphere that was enveloped by the reddish energy as a huge, gigantic reddish-black beam. The black beam hit the tree destroying all the branches and the magical energy it had, once the bullet touched the ghostly species, it exploded from the inside out in a thousand pieces with no chance to regenerate in any way. The lightning bolt continued on its way, soaring through the skies.

...

And finally, with Heartless...

-M-Master... -Faker said as he did his best to get up in front of the doctor.

Heartless smiled resignedly. I guess the Lord is right, it's rare for master and servant to agree. I no longer have my command seals; but this is my last order to you, Faker, take all that's left of my magical energy and eliminate Shielder!

Despite his current state, Faker smiled, "Understood, master! -Once again a reddish beam descended from the skies and from it appeared a wyvern, his Hekwheel had been destroyed by Gray and with the little magic energy he had left this was the best he could do, even so, Faker didn't hesitate, he mounted the wyvern and rode against the girl with the shield and the shadowy servants.

-Attack," she ordered, almost without emotion.

The shadowy servants standing between Faker and the girl followed her order automatically and rushed at the servant; however, using her skill for combat where many are mobilized, she was able to evade or ward off most of the shadowy servants in her path, several attacked her with what appeared to be degraded and far less powerful versions of Heroic Treasures, but she did not hesitate and, for a moment, a certain Lord in the distance could see it, the shadow of that same servant he had summoned nearly a decade ago overlapping with Faker's silhouette. Crimson lightning covered the wyvern and Conqueror of Lightning further increased his power. Attacks from the shadowy servants rained down upon her and those she couldn't dodge hit her head on as she kept moving forward protecting her spiritual core over anything else, her enemies got in her way and were overwhelmed by the wyvern...

The girl did not move from her position at any time, nor did she attempt to flee or dodge the attack of the servant girl who, despite everything, looked like she would attack her no matter what. She simply raised her great shield with icy firmness in the face of the maid's desperate attack, and a great amount of blinding magical energy enveloped them both.

When the light produced by the clash dissipated, Faker had disappeared, and all that remained was the shield and the maid firmly planted in the same spot, and the land in front of it was utterly obliterated. The shadowy servants surrounded the people near the train, making sure that none of them interrupted the girl, who approached the doctor. Goodbye, doctor, I wish your words could come true.

She didn't even give him time to answer, with her sword, she prepared to decapitate the magus, but not before he saw how the Black Barrel's shot rose to the skies. After this, he was killed, his neck was cut and his head separated from his body falling to the ground right next to it.

-Even with the extra time provided by her temporal paradox, she couldn't stop fate, how does she expect someone of this time to be able to do that? -However, she raised her gaze to the sky and watched as the reddish beam rose to create the illusion of touching the moon.

She was enraptured by that scene, then, she looked at those present, a young man, a girl close to her age, a man who seemed to be close to taking his last breath, and a woman several meters away, seeing no relation to Heartless, she turned and walked away from the place without a word. The servants followed her, and when they were all together, they disappeared in a pillar of light.

The others could do nothing, they were overcome in every way, all they could do was witness the murder of Heartless. Even after the girl was gone, they did not dare move from the spot until several minutes later. The shock and fear were too great, they knew that, if they moved, their fate would be no different from that of their enemy.

The only exception was Altrouge, who couldn't care less about the situation; however, there was one thing that did catch his attention-. PM, bring her to me, please," she said as she watched with a smile as the Ainnash forest disappeared to give way to a normal forest, left the train and prepared to go inside it.

...

With Shirou...

Several minutes passed and he didn't move, luckily, Avalon managed to heal his most serious wounds; but the pain still remained and his other wounds were patched up badly by the effect of his reality marble, every movement he made hurt him enormously, honestly, at this moment he regretted not letting Gray come with him, Avalon had ceased its effect and until he didn't join her, it wouldn't work again. He was lucky that the tree had exploded in the opposite direction to the one he shot from, otherwise, even Avalon would not have saved him from the blast. With much effort, he put away the rifle, which had returned to its normal appearance. He placed it on his back and proceeded to pick up Neocaliburn and Vorpal, carefully and at an extremely slow pace, the boy approached the place, there was nothing left but a big hole; but, at the bottom of it, there was something...

-That's it, a fruit?

Apparently it was the same fruit he had seen on the highest branch, the tree must have moved it to protect it. He grabbed the large fruit and set out to take it with him, maybe it would be of some use to Altrouge. Once with this one, Shirou proceeded to leave the forest, he had no business here anymore and it was possible that the train would leave without him.

The red-haired man paid no attention to Merem who had remained silent throughout the fight; but was still watching him intently. And he simply walked slowly towards the train, tired and exhausted, about to faint and on the verge of death, obviously, he didn't get very far before collapsing; but he couldn't stay here either, he knew he would die if he didn't receive medical attention quickly. He struggled to stay conscious; but he could not move, his body no longer obeyed him, the exhaustion from the expenditure of his Od, the multiple blows and stabs from the branches and roots, his own swords stabbing him from the inside out, overwhelmed his senses, he no longer felt pain, he had far surpassed that threshold, but the sensation of being beaten and impaled from the inside out and vice versa remained, like thousands of needles inserting themselves into his flesh. In the end, before exhaustion defeated him, the last thing he saw before losing consciousness were beautiful crimson eyes and a nice smile...

shirou opened his eyes, he was in his cabin inside the train, he didn't remember when he got on the train, let alone when he arrived in his cabin.

-Hmn! -When he turned to his side was a girl, normally, this would be Altrouge; but this time it was not the case, who was sleeping next to him, it was none other than Gray.

Apparently, she was sound asleep. Shirou used his Structural Analysis on her to examine her condition, he could use it on all kinds of structures, and that did not exclude living beings, but in the case of things that were not swords, all he did was perform a normal analysis in which the sorcery allowed him to see the things he observed as if they were a blueprint. He was not an expert in human biology to know Gray's condition in minute detail; but, having had to reinforce himself numerous times, for which the boy studied the structure of the human body as a way of increasing his success rate, he gained a greater understanding of it, that is, he could at least tell if she was breathing well, if there were any internal or external wounds on her body, and that sort of thing.

Apparently, she seemed to have fallen fast asleep, probably after using a large amount of her Od, this puzzled the boy, her state was similar to how he ended up after using Neocaliburn or other powerful Heroic Treasures. In order to use legendary weapons effectively, he would initiate the attack with his Od and then supplement it with ambient mana; but, even with mana, just initiating the attack with his Od drained it greatly.

Besides studying the girl's lack of magical energy as he had learned in his General Fundamentals classes, Shirou could see that the girl had some cuts and bruises, nothing serious; but they were still there. Had she been in a fight? He also noticed something else, Avalon was in full effect, this knowledge in a way made Shirou feel bad, she must have been tired from the fight she had and yet he gave her mana to help her recover.

Shirou knew that, when Add and his ancestor were talking about how he was Gray's pod, they were saying it to make fun of him; but he couldn't help but think that, in fact, he should protect her, or at least help her in any way he could, after all, it was thanks to her being by his side that he was able to survive all the fatal injuries he had received since he entered the Clock Tower. That she continued to protect him, and he did nothing to repay her, was something that really frustrated him.

He walked over to her, picked her up, and held her in his arms. To his surprise, she did not wake up and, in her unconscious state, moved closer to him.

-From now on, I also want to protect you. No, I have had that desire for a long time, from now on, I will protect you. Whether it's your sheath or not, I don't want to see you hurt.

And, as if the Heroic Treasure inside her agreed with that decision, the light of Avalon emerged from deep inside her. Blue enamel decorations became tangible and enveloped them both, then, turned into bands of light, creating a space set aside just for the two of them, as if the domain of the fairies had become present in the current world. Gray's wounds healed instantly and his Od began to recover at an accelerated rate, as if he was absorbing the mana generated within this space.

-I see, so this is the right way to use you. As long as Gray and I are together, I can summon the fairy domain, the absolute defense that protects and protected King Arthur, or Altria, in this case.

-Shirou?

The boy looked down and watched as Gray had opened her eyes, she was looking at him puzzled, as if she didn't understand the situation. But there was something, a lack of emotion in the girl's eyes, something strange, something he didn't like; however, this lasted only a few moments, life soon returned to her eyes.

Shirou smiled, he had always been an honest person with himself, even if he did not fully understand himself; but at this moment, something was clear to him. He knew about his grandfather's warning, that he should not overload himself; but, for him, this wish would not create weight on his shoulders, or at least, he did not see it that way.

As a sword, he wanted to make his ancestor's dream come true. As a blacksmith, he wanted to create the sword that would cut through the world's dismal fate and realize Altrouge's goal. As a sheath, he wanted to protect the girl he held in his arms. As the person Emiya Shirou is, he wanted everyone he treasured to be happy, or at least to be able to help them be happy, and even if he still debated with himself, that included Manaka. As long as those wishes didn't contradict each other, he could live with all of them.

-Something wrong, Shirou, where are we? -asked the girl.

-No, nothing's wrong. I simply sharpened my resolve. As for where we are, we're inside the train.

Gray looked around and realized she was in the boy's arms, despite blushing and lowering her gaze, she gathered the courage to hold her position and look around, they were inside a cabin.

-Gray...

-Hmn?

-I don't know what you and the professor are up to; but, if you both get into any trouble, or find yourselves in any danger, could you tell me?

-Huh? -The girl looked at him strangely.

-I... I want to help you, I want to protect you, whether it's your pod or not, I don't like to see you hurt. I know that, because of the professor's position, I can't prevent them from getting into dangerous matters; but I want to be there to help you when that happens. So, if they get into any trouble, or if they are in any predicament, I want to be there for you, so, would you allow me to be by your side? -Shirou lowered his head waiting for her answer, he really didn't know if he had expressed himself well, but he hoped she understood.

Gray lowered her gaze in embarrassment as well, the situation she was in already made her nervous; but those words had taken her to a new level, however, maybe because he had realized what she wanted during this trip, or because they were both alone, or for the simple fact that their desires were similar, Gray was able to put her feelings into words...

-Me too...

-Hmn?

Gray smiled faintly, "I want to protect you too... You and the people I treasure. I want to live with no regrets and...

For a moment she remembered the words her master had said to her when she asked him if he could take her along with him, in case there was a new war for the holy grail...

"Lady, if there should be a new war for the holy grail, despite the danger, I would like you, as I did, to undertake your own journey. I am sure that, just as it happened with me, it would make you grow and see the world in a totally different way from how you see it now."

She also recalled Faker's words that, despite having been her enemy, that doesn't mean her words didn't help him realize his desires...

"Don't be afraid of separation, be proud of it. It means your master believes you are ready to walk your own path."

She gathered her strength. I want to embark on a journey like my master did, that's why... that's why... I want... you to be by my side... -This last part was said in a whisper, but he heard it clearly.

Shirou reciprocated his smile with his own and nodded-. It will be a pleasure...

-What will be a pleasure? -Altrouge asked as she entered the room. With a slight frown, she asked, "Am I interrupting something?

They both quickly separated and shook their heads.

-No, nothing. I don't remember much after the confrontation with Ainnash, so everything went well? -asked the boy.

Although still a bit annoyed, Altrouge nodded, "Yes, the forest was back to normal after Ainnash's defeat. You didn't make it all the way to the train, you passed out halfway, I brought you here. Since you and Gray were in the same situation, and there is a recuperative effect when both of you are together, we decided to leave you in the same room.

-I see..." said Shirou.

-Rouge, do you know what happened to Mr. Karabo? He was badly hurt before I fainted," asked Gray.

-Fortunately, thanks to the druid medicine Olga Marie gave them, we were able to save him.

Gray let out the breath he was holding in his lungs. I see.

Seeing her smile, the red-haired man smiled as well and, instinctively, Shirou pulled her closer to him, much to the Princess' annoyance.

-They had better go to breakfast. The journey took a little while; but the train will be back to London before long. We are still inside the forest, the branches are still clinging to the train and it will take a little while to remove them, then we shall have to make our way through the forest, as the Rail is completely surrounded by it. This way, the train will be able to continue its way through the ley lines.

They both nodded.

-Shirou, you go first, after you have breakfast, we have some things to talk about...

-Huh? But...

Altrouge stared at him.

-I'm going... -said the boy as he left the room.

Gray prepared to leave also; but, not before the Princess said a few words to him...

-Gray...

-Yes?

-I'm glad you've defined your dreams and goals; but there's something you should know.

-What? -asked the interested girl.

Altrouge smiled, but it wasn't a friendly smile, although it wasn't a smile full of complete enmity either. If you set a goal, like, say, to have something or someone for yourself, and that's the same goal someone else has, you'd better expect competition. And I'm not known for not going all out...

That said, she withdrew, leaving the tomb guardian a bit confused, although, deep down, she sensed what she was referring to. And, to her own surprise, she did not back down, nor did she feel like retreating or turning away, she had gained more confidence during this trip. All he could ask, was that his relationship with the girl not be ruined, and, even then, she would continue to walk according to his wishes.

-Glory waits in the distance, we fight because we aspire to something we don't have -Gray whispered the words she had heard from her master, nodding to herself, she left the room.

The young gravedigger went in search of her teacher; however, when she ran into her classmate, Rin, she had told her that Waver had been dragged along with Melvin to the outskirts of the Rail, apparently, the tuner seemed to be very excited to be able to explore the forest now that there was no danger in sight, so Gray decided to accompany them. She got off the train to look for them, after a few minutes into the forest, and having no luck in her search, she came across something she wasn't expecting...

Among the trees of the forest, in the middle of a rose moor, there was a woman. The only word that came to the gravedigger's mind was that she was like the roses that surrounded her, beautiful, extremely beautiful; but also very dangerous. She wore an extremely revealing outfit, in fact, more than a dress, she saw it as if it were accessories, and she had the beautiful features of a mature woman, as well as a sensual body of beautiful proportions.

For a few moments, she looked at her and smiled, Gray closed his eyes momentarily in surprise, and when he opened them again, the woman had disappeared.

-She-she, who was she? She looked like the manager... -Gray shook her head, she had to find her master. That said, she continued with her search...

...

...

Several hours later...

The Rail had made it out of the interior of the Ainnash Forest, after removing the branches, the Rail used the mystic eye projector to make a path through the forest so he could continue on his journey.

At this moment, Shirou was walking through the train along with Altrouge, he had found out from her and Gray about what happened with Heartless and Faker. The news really alarmed him, to think that there were heroic spirits, or something like them, out there, without anyone knowing anything, was really worrying. Besides, if what Heartless was saying was true, and he knew his teacher as he knew him, then both he and Gray would get into more trouble. Fortunately for him, helping them wasn't specifically bad for him, as he could find himself with legendary weapons in the process. Of course, both he and Gray knew that they couldn't always be together helping each other, as they both traveled different paths; but they would do it as much as they could.

Shirou sighed, "Well, what's the matter?

-What do you mean? -she said.

-You've been in a bad mood since this morning, will you tell me why?

Altrouge paused for a moment, then smiled. Yes, I will; but not now.

-When? -asked the curious boy.

-But let's not dwell on that now, we have a lot to do ahead of us.

Shirou nodded, "The next week is going to be hell.

-Well, what do you expect? You just killed one of the 27 Dead Apostles.

-Do you think the other apostles will retaliate?

Altrouge cocked his head to one side. Maybe; but I doubt it, the number of apostles never decreases. There is always a replacement, besides, Ainnash had been devouring blood worryingly for the last few centuries, if he kept it up he could have become a problem even for us. You should care more about what the Lords of the Clock Tower think, and even more about what the members of the Burial Agency think.

-I met Merem inside the forest," the boy commented casually.

-Did he see your fight?

Shirou nodded.

-That could be problematic. But don't worry, I'll make sure it doesn't get out of hand. -Altrouge looked at him with a beautiful smile. After all, you did it for me, it's the least I can do.

Shirou smiled, "I'd say it was nothing, but I'd be lying.

They both arrived at a small section of the Pandemorium wagon.

-Is this it?

The Princess nodded, "In addition to buying and selling mystic eyes, the Rail Zeppelin offers the service of removing and inserting the eyes, although a magus can insert a mystic eye on his own, if it is to remove one to insert another, only the Rail offers a safe service with a 100% chance of success.

-Do we have to pay anything? Any fees?

-On normal occasions yes; but, within our contract, the service came free of charge.

-Are you sure you want to take your mystical eyes off the charm?

Altrouge nodded, "Yes, although they are useful to me, compared to the rainbow-ranged eyes, those will be much more useful.

-What will you do with your old eyes?

She laughed. Remember where we met?

-Oh, right.

- AAAAAAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCHHHHHHHHHHH! No! Stop it!

-What was that? -asked the concerned boy as he looked around the room from which the scream came.

Generally, the manager could remove or insert the mystic eyes anywhere; but it was more orderly to ask the guests who required the service to line up in front of the same place where she would give the service one after the other.

-"Probably, it was Mr. Scladio," They both turned to see Leandra approaching, "It can be said that one must have a certain level of authority and compatibility between a person and the mystic eyes. If that person does not have the necessary authority or compatibility for that eye, terrible things can happen.

-How was it with Mr. Karabo? -asked Shirou.

Leandra nodded, "That's right. The eye was more powerful than its user and surpassed his authority. It seems that something similar happened with Mr. Scladio.

The three watched as the door to the room opened and Lord Scladio was accompanied by several men, probably his bodyguards. He was wearing a blindfold and, in his hands, a container with eyes.

-Those are?

-The mystical eyes he bought, it's a pity, it seems that the degree of compatibility was so bad that they had to remove them.

Shirou swallowed saliva.

-Easy, I doubt that will happen with us. I... Well, I don't need to say because nothing bad is going to happen with me and, as for you, the ones we chose are not particularly powerful eyes, besides, they are ones that suit your sorcery, so there shouldn't be incompatibility," the Princess explained.

True, his eyes were probably of gold rank or lower, he never asked; but, according to what he had learned, eyes of jeweled and rainbow rank were able to affect reality in some way, something that his eyes could not achieve, although, there were also some other eyes that could affect reality; but in a much more common way, like, for example: creating fire. Obviously, these did not fall within the bejeweled or rainbow range. What he really feared, though, was the reaction they could have with pure eyes.

-So they're here," said the, to the surprise of Shirou and Altrouge, apostle herself.

-Ohhh... So you really came in the end, didn't you trust us to make it, honey? -asked the Princess.

Rita smiled and shook her head, "With you and Primate Murder here to take care of it? Of course not, my dear. My greatest concern, if anything, would be that in the midst of the battle they would damage my beloved Rail, and fortunately, that did not happen.

-Then why did you come, Rita? You went to the trouble of hiring us to take care of Ainnash to save you the trouble of dealing with this one yourself, and yet you came. It doesn't make much sense, does it? -asked the Princess.

-Only if you look at it from that point of view, my dear. I didn't come to make sure that you would do the opposite, I came to find inspiration.

-Inspiration? With the death of Ainnash?

Rita smiled. Of course, with what else? -And I must admit that you put on quite a show little guy, it's a pity I didn't get to see it in its entirety, still, it was a beautiful scene of that attack piercing the night sky from the center of the forest. Maybe you'll even earn the honor of becoming my next work of art.

Altrouge narrowed his eyes at the boy and nudged him lightly when he saw his face almost as red as his hair. E-Excuse me, but my goal and my association with Altrouge are a priority for me, and I have no interest in becoming a work of art. -Not that he wanted to blush or be nervous; it was just that the apostle's attire was so revealing, he simply didn't know which way to look.

-Well, not now, of course, you have yet to shine much brighter to be worthy of such an honor. But maybe, in the future? -she said with a mischievous smile.

-I thought you were an artist, not an art thief, Rita," the Princess replied with a frown.

-I appreciate art in all its forms, my dear. Whether it's mine or not..." Altrouge smiled.

Altrouge smiled. Oh...? Then let me give you a warning, my dear: don't try to steal from someone with the power to assassinate you, unless of course, you want to break your promise to Sumire. Unlike that human magus, rest assured that I won't just make you run away, and, unlike the others, you are much easier to replace.

The apostle couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle. For you, of all people, to act like that for a mere human, only makes my curiosity grow.

Altrouge also smiled dangerously. Well be careful then, you know what they say, curiosity killed the cat.

Seeing no one else in the place, Rita spoke bluntly. Okay, enough conversation. We'll start with you, Altrouge. You're very lucky, you know? Of all the possible rainbow-ranked mystic eyes, to think I'd find one so right for you...

"Well, it was lucky that you found it; but the reason I found out that you possessed it, was because of Kaleidoscope's information, I guess I'll have to thank him...". Altrouge sighed, while she wasn't on bad terms with the Jewel Mage, due to their past together, her relationship with him was a bit complicated, it was risky enough depending on him to be able to stay hidden within the Association, she didn't want to owe him any more favors-. You won't try to break your word, will you?

-No, not at all. It would be equally or even more problematic to confront your faction than Ainnash, besides, the Geis is forcing me. Really, I didn't think your boy would be able to pull it off, I guess there's a reason he might have hurt you?

While the two were conversing, teasing each other, the two entered the room.

Shirou had no choice but to wait outside, and, now that he remembered, when he asked the professor what the rainbow-ranked eyes were like, he defined them as: The ultimate celestial controllers of the human body- What does he mean by a mystical eye suitable for her?

Leandra shook her head, "I'm not sure, but some eyes are better suited to some people than others, probably, the rainbow-ranged one we possessed is especially useful for the lady.

...

Shirou had to wait for several minutes until finally Altrouge came out accompanied by the Rita.

-Everything went well? -Shirou looked at the Princess, to his surprise, she came out without blindfolds and her eyes didn't seem to have changed at all.

She nodded, "Mystic eyes remain one color until activated. Since it was an eye transfer, they should have changed color; but, I guess my nature as an ancestor kept them the same color somehow, they will change hue when I activate them; but it would be troublesome to do it here, I still have to get used to them.

Now Rita turned to him. Now it's your turn.

"Shirou..." Altrouge spoke through his contract.

"I'll be watching, if she steps out of line, and you don't try to cut her in half when she does, then, when we get back to our apartment, we'll play a new game, one a little rougher than the previous ones." She had a look that denoted her annoyance against her fellow apostle; however, she then smiled softly, "And relax, I'll take care of all the trouble her death may cause..."

The boy knew that the next thing he was going to say would get him in a lot of trouble, in fact, he really didn't need to say it, he practically knew the answer, even if he had his doubts, but there were few occasions where he could return the Princess' taunts, "Altrouge...".

"Yes?" She asked.

"If I'm reading the atmosphere right, that's jealousy, isn't it?".

For a moment, the apostle froze, as if she didn't understand the situation, this was an expression he had rarely been able to observe on his companion's face, then, a reddish hue adorned her cheeks, to, finally, dedicate a "beautiful" smile to the boy, "If you were reading the atmosphere right, you would know that it was better not to ask that question, Shirou."

"Shall we play a new game when we get back?". The boy asked, already knowing the answer.

She simply nodded.

The boy couldn't help but smile as he entered the room, and momentarily severed his link with the Princess, he simply had a single thought, "It was worth it..."

Once inside the room, he sat down in the only chair inside the room, which had several shelves with mystical eyes.

-Don't be so nervous, it's unlikely that something like what happened to that man will happen to you.

-What happened to him?

-The mystical eyes went out of control and showed him only one future constantly: his death.

-Your eyes? -After taking the mystical eyes, Rita looked at the boy's eyes and smiled. Oh... Pure silver eyes, you have inherited someone else's karma, haven't you?

Shirou nodded.

-This will be interesting, the karma will alter the mystic eyes, turn them into a hybrid species. Maybe if you should be nervous?

-Huh?

-Let's begin.

Shirou fastened his hands to the chair's restraints so as not to move, he knew this was going to be extremely painful. Rita's fingers went to his face and, somehow, they went through it, he had to hold on tighter to the armrests to avoid not moving, once his eyes were extracted, he could only "see" darkness, then, he felt as something new was introduced inside his body. If he was honest, he had to admit that it was something he had felt before, the day he met Kiritsugu and received the crest, along with Avalon, and, just like that time, although he didn't feel any pain at first, after a few moments, his eyes started to burn.

- HHMMMMMMMM! -Shirou bit his lips to keep from screaming as he squirmed in his seat.

-Hold on," he heard Rita say. The karma you inherited and transformed your eyes into pure ones is now imbuing the mystic eyes and transforming them, altering them, overwriting them. You must hold on until the process is complete.

The pain in his eyes became such that Shirou really thought that his eyes were on fire and melting; he twisted harder and could not help but hit the ground with his feet with extreme force, not caring if he could hurt himself, the burning reached a final threshold and the boy felt the urge to strengthen himself, free himself from the bonds, and tear out his eyes by himself, so as not to feel more pain; but, to his fortune, little by little, that burning began to subside. Fortunately, if there was someone expert in the transplantation of mystical eyes, it was the apostle who was performing the process, so it should go well; besides, in the worst case scenario, he could count on Avalon not to leave him without eyes, or at least, he hoped so. Finally, the pain ceased altogether...

-I'll get you some bandages.

-Thank you... -Shirou opened his eyes with great difficulty and, although blurry, he managed to see himself in the mirror, at first, he did not notice any visible change, his eyes were still silver, but he was sure that something was different. Finally, the apostle handed him some bandages so he could let his eyes rest-. They didn't seem to have changed...

-The mere fact that they remain silver in color already indicates the mutation, you know?

-Why?

-The eyes were originally violet, the fact that they remain silver is already indicative of their hybrid nature. I suggest you don't activate them right away, give your body and your circuits time to get used to them.

He nodded, having said that, he accompanied Rozay-en out of the room.

There they were, to his surprise, not only Leandra and Altrouge, but also Olga Marie, although the only way he could confirm it, was by her voice.

-Sir? -asked the boy, trying to identify the source of her voice.

-I see that you have already finished, remember that the contract is until we leave the train, so you still have to take care of me until we get to London," declared the young Lord.

Shirou nodded, "Yes, you're right. We'll be there in an hour, won't we?

She nodded, "Until then, there are things I want to talk to you about, Ainnash's murder may have happened only a few hours ago; but rest assured that this information has already reached the Clock Tower.

-I understand. The Rail can communicate with the outside, and besides, with two Lords involved, you'd expect the information to move fast.

-Well, there are a few things I want to talk to the manager about, so wait for me until I get back, will you? -said Altrouge.

Shirou nodded, understanding that he was probably referring to dead apostle stuff, so he and Marie stayed talking while Rita and Altrouge retreated to a more private room.

Once they were both away from the others, Altrouge turned to speak to Rita. Well? -She asked, "What ability do your eyes have?

She shook her head, "I couldn't tell you, dear, they obviously possess the qualities of the original eyes; but how karma might have altered them is something I could only tell you if I had to appraise them. Your eyes are now a hybrid species, you'll have to figure that out on your own. I guess you got the memo?

Altrouge nodded, "The old man is quick when it suits him, although I can't deny that things have been hectic in the last few months.

-Well, your faction, and especially your bodyguards, have been destroying several of Ortenrosse's castles. The illogical thing would be for you to stand by and do nothing.

-Hmn, it's your fault, or did you think I would keep quiet after what you tried to do in Aylesbury?

Rita laughed. Oh yes, I heard about that. But if things go on like this, a real war could break out, I suppose, as soon as he heard about Ainnash's murder, he took it as an opportunity to get us all together and avoid bigger problems. I suppose you'll go, won't you?

Altrouge nodded, "I have to, more so, when it's Shirou who killed Ainnash.

-Yes, that will be problematic for you, even if Ainnash was a problem by his very nature, the prophecy of the roses does not allow him to groom a successor. On the other hand, Louvre has been ruled out as a possible candidate due to the loss of his children, again, thanks to your boy, all that plus surviving in a battle against you. Well, if he keeps this up, he'll be considered a big deal, even more so than Enhance.

-It's no big deal..." Altrouge dismissed her with a wave of his hand. Louvre is his own fault for depending on others, in short, for being so weak. If he was beaten that way, then he was never worthy of being in the 27. As for me, I don't hold any grudges, and I'm not willing to retaliate. And lastly, Ainnash's murder was nothing more than a contract, if anyone is angry about that, then they know who to complain to...

Rita frowned. I'm beginning to understand why Ortenrosse hates you so much..." Altrouge smiled.

Altrouge smiled, "Hey, if you do what you want without thinking about others, don't get mad when others do the same, dear.

Rozay-" she sighed, "If it weren't for the beautiful sight that was Ainnash's death and the defeat of that Ghost Liner, I'd almost regret it. -Then she smiled, "Thanks to that view, I feel like creating a new play. So, if you don't stab me in the back during the meeting, I won't either, and I'll lend you my do you say?

"Considering the way you are, believing your words is like playing Russian roulette. On the other hand, denying your help, even if I don't believe in this one, will only bring more trouble." Altrouge smiled falsely. That's fine with me, I've already gotten what I was interested in. So, I'll see you at the meeting.

Rita nodded and dismissed the Princess after a "pleasant" conversation between the two.

-Madam... -Leandra approached Altrouge with two of the containers to preserve mystical eyes; but, what was inside these, were not eyes, instead, in one was a huge fruit and, in the other, a severed hand. The fruit was the same fruit that Shirou had brought with him. You should be able to keep them as long as you keep them inside the containers.

The Princess nodded and took the two containers.

-Well, I'll be on my way. I hope you enjoyed your stay on the train...".

Altrouge nodded and left with the containers in her hands, "Who knew it really existed, the Fruit of Ainnash...". She said looking intrigued at the fruit, then, turned her head towards the other container, "The hand of that magus, if what we have researched is true, then these are the so called command spells...".

In the severed hand were two command spells still unused, it was Heartless' severed hand.

Command Spells are crystallized mysteries used to perform three commands of absolute obedience towards servants. They are marks that show the status of a magus as a master, created by the Makiri family for the holy grail system.

The princess smiled, the Command Spells were the physical manifestation of the contract between a master and his servant, in short, not much different from normal Geis, only absolutely more powerful. And she, as the Master of Contracts that she was, was excited to unveil all their mysteries. Humming a tune, she set about putting both containers away, before joining Shirou and Olga Marie.

...

With Shirou and Olga Marie ...

-The job has been successfully completed, after we get off the train, we can talk about your payment," said the Lord.

-I understand; but that's not all, is it?

She shook her head, "Of course not.

-How hectic is the situation?

-A lot, though less than expected, at least on our side.

This confused the boy. What do you mean?

-Well, two Lords were nearly killed inside the Seventh Dead Apostle. The former Dean of Modern Wizardry reappeared and was found to be behind the train's going into the forest, and, worse, was killed by an unknown enemy. It was also discovered all about the murders, both the current one and the ones from 10 years ago... All this without counting the heroic spirit that he managed to summon in some unknown way that, fortunately, they are not taking into account so much.

-Really? That's strange, considering the importance of the Ghost Liners' information.

Marie nodded, "Well, there's no evidence of its existence beyond witnesses and, even if it had been invoked, it's already been dealt with. All of this of course, is with respect to us, with respect to you...

-What is said?

-Do you know how your father got his title?

Shirou nodded, "After shooting down a plane in order to eliminate a dead apostle, Odd Borzark, if I remember correctly.

Marie nodded, "There's talk about the second generation magus killer, which, apparently, is already a hereditary title. It tells of how this one is more lethal than the first generation, and far more dangerous, having sustained a battle against the Princess in Black of the Dead Apostles without dying in the attempt, and now, for having slain the Predator Forest of Ainnash.

Shirou sighed internally, "Kiritsugu is not going to like this."

-Luckily, it was all taken by the Association as a conflict between dead apostles, so we're not being blamed for anything. But...

-Yes?

-Be sure that several Lords feel insecure about your presence in the Tower, Lord Sophia-Ri might try something; but I doubt he'll get anything.

-Why?

-At the moment you are in a very good position, from a certain point of view. You have the protection of several Lords, such as: El-Melloi, Valualeta, probably Trambellio as well, and myself. But, even more importantly, rumor has it that the Queen was extremely pleased to hear the news of the death of one of 27 bloodsuckers.

-There is a but, isn't there?

Olga Marie sighed, "Yes. From a factional point of view, precisely because of this, tensions have increased.

-Hmn?

Marie put her hands on her hips, "What don't you understand! You are considered part of the Democratic Faction by receiving Lord Valualeta's patronage, for the leader of the Aristocrat Faction to take such an interest in you is not a good sign.

-I don't think the Queen sees me as anything other than a tool," said the boy.

-Let's hope so. I don't want to know what will happen if the Queen tries to take you for our faction, the conflict between the factions would be, well... I don't even want to imagine it. If you have to watch out for anything right now, it's the Queen's whims.

"Dear passengers, in 30 minutes we will be arriving at London Station, please prepare to de-board the Rail Zeppelin."

-It looks like it's about time, I have to go to my cabin to get my luggage -Marie extended her hand to the boy-. It's enough that you've taken care of me this far, and it was a pleasure working with you, Emiya. I will try to have your back as part of the payment for our contract, and I look forward to working together on future occasions.

-Same here, Lord Animusphere, although, you may call me Shirou, after all, we will likely work together on more occasions.

-Well, in that case, you can call me Olga Marie in private. There should be no problem if there are not so many formalities between associates.

With that said, they both said goodbye...

To her luck, Altrouge didn't take long to arrive and, although it was a bit of a hassle, she helped him get to the cabin, even though he could use his reinforced nose and ears to get an idea of where he was, that didn't make it easy to walk without being able to use his eyes. The two made it to their cabin and grabbed their things, so they both prepared to go back to their usual lives, at least, for a week or two. It was already December, the holidays would begin shortly, and their trip to Germany was just around the corner.

...

And so, after the train ride, a week passed...

Shirou had tried to go as unnoticed as possible; but, it was no use. Now, as he walked through the halls, while whispers of animosity were still present from time to time, more often than not, people moved as far away from him as they could. Where once contempt was enacted over every other emotion, now fear was enacted.

Shirou also realized several things as time went on, he was now being watched, not only by other independent magus, but also by members of both the Democratic Faction, and the Aristocratic Faction, there were probably Neutral Faction magus mixed among them as well.

He sighed...

Fortunately, both Lord El-Melloi and Gray had not needed major care thanks to the use of Avalon, as for Yvette, she was detained by Legislation for a while; but she was released for collaborating with the case, which was incredible, if we consider her role in the accident. Maybe if the whole thing about her being a Neutral Faction spy was true...

In the present day, with Lord El-Melloi...

Waver and Gray were walking through the streets of London.

-Without so much noise, the check on my recovery would have taken much less time," the Lord complained. I still don't think it was necessary to begin with, I was in perfect condition without further analysis.

Gray smiled, "Well, Lady Reines insisted, and I'm sure the others couldn't wait any longer to see him.

-Still, they could have behaved a little, they disturbed other patients, including Mr. Karabo.

Gray was happy at the man's mention. Yes, I'm glad we were able to save him.

Waver nodded, "He helped us a lot.

As they talked, Gray and Lord El-Melloi continued walking through the streets, until they came upon a familiar face.

-Congratulations on your full recovery," Adashino was drinking tea in front of an establishment. In the end, the case from ten years ago is still not completely solved.

-I see," replied El-Melloi.

-The Holy Church didn't seem interested in bringing it to light. -Adashino took a sip of tea. I want to ask you a question.

-What is it?

-You are aware of the hole in your deduction, aren't you?

The Lord nodded. The reason for summoning the servant, right?

Adashino looked at him curiously. The information about the Ghost Liner is valuable, I understand why he went to such lengths to summon one; however, thanks to the fake holy grail wars, he didn't need to go to so much trouble to do so, by simply participating in one, he would have achieved his goal. Besides, a bejeweled mystic eye is just as rare. Why do you think he went to so much trouble to a summon heroic spirit?

For a moment, the Lord wondered if he should reveal to her the things he had discussed with Heartless after they both left the auction; however, in the end, he decided that some things were better kept hidden for now. Hmm... It's complicated to infer; however, the Holy Grail Fake Wars generally wouldn't allow something like the creation of the Faker Class, on the other hand, these are constantly being watched, both by the Association, and the Church. There is also the fact that they usually end in slaughter, even before they start, due to the number of magus who try to participate, and who are willing to do whatever it takes to achieve it. Finally, we have to take into account that false wars are no longer as common as they were some years ago, for a ritual of that caliber to be carried out, a first class spiritual land is necessary, decades ago, these were abundant, but over the years, little by little, they have been disappearing; also, after a false war is carried out, the ley lines are permanently weakened, which limits the amount of times that the same spiritual land can be used to carry out the ritual several times. In short, a holy grail false war presents many drawbacks. Like the rest of the great rituals, they seem destined to disappear...

-So, do you think it was worth all the effort he put into summoning the Servant? -asked the Legislation member, believing that Heartless had gotten involved in the Rail Zeppelin in order to use Waver as the master to imitate, and not knowing that Waver had already summoned Faker even before boarding the train.

-Hmm... If I'm honest, I don't think summoning the maid was the real reason he went to all that trouble, and even if he's dead, the case isn't over. Heartless talked about a regression, maybe he meant a regression to an earlier time. Also, he said that I already had all the clues I needed to follow up on my own. Even if he has passed away, I doubt we won't hear about him again.

Adashino nodded.

-I have a question to ask you, too.

-Go ahead.

-Why did you leave Trisha's pendant?

The Legislation member smiled. You must have a hypothesis by now, don't you?

Waver sat down in the chair on the other side of the table where Adashino was drinking tea. You said you got on the train for personal reasons, and you didn't bother to hide and revealed your wrong theory. It was all to provoke someone, wasn't it?

-You say it was all a plan?

-Am I wrong?

-You overestimate me. Even though you got the motives right, that's why I helped you, isn't it?

Waver nodded, "Yes, on my own, I wouldn't have been able to capture Heartless.

-You owe me your life," said the snake magus with a smile.

-You exaggerate! -Waver exclaimed angrily.

-As to your question, I was like you and Miss Reines.

-Hmm...? -This surprised the Lord.

-Heartless was... My stepbrother, his real name was: Kurou Adashino. Norwich adopted us both.

-I see, in that case, my condolences," he said solemnly.

Adashino nodded and then gave his typical smile. But, as you say, the case is not over yet.

Waver also nodded, "That's right. I also have another question.

-More?

-Why did you give up on the final bid? If Rin had taken a few minutes longer, then I...

The Legislation member covered her mouth with one of her hands and pretended to be surprised. Oh? Did you trust Legislation?

Waver growled loudly, and the feelings of sympathy disappeared in an instant. You...

Gray couldn't help but smile at this.

On the other hand, with Olga Marie...

She was walking through the corridors of the Faculty of Modern Wizardry, observing the different classrooms.

-Gray and my brother are out of their hospital checkup, and they are not at the faculty at the moment.

Marie frowned a little embarrassed, she turned to look at Reines with a smile on her face.

Reines looked at the flowers Marie held in her hands. Didn't anyone ever tell you that you pick the worst times?

-I didn't come to see them!

-Well, excuse me. I understand you gave Gray some medicine to help cure my brother. Although it was not ultimately used on him, you have my thanks.

-The Animusphere could owe him nothing.

-I see...

Marie dodged Reines' gaze. I appreciate what you did for Trisha, Lord El-Melloi conveyed his intentions to me.

-Add the II if you talk about my brother.

-I still don't understand why everyone is obsessed with a reflection of the past like the Holy Grail War. But if it was what my father wished for, perhaps he could have fulfilled his wish; but in a world and a time unknown to me.

-How poetic.

Marie turned her eyes away.

Reines, for his part, smiled. I like you. You expect a fair exchange of information, don't you?

-Hmn?

-You are a lord, and my brother is likely to bequeath the title to me before long. For a time... -Reines approached the other girl. I don't think it would be a bad idea to form a bond, taking advantage of the opportunity.

Marie also approached. You don't look like your brother.

Reines shrugged. Well, we're not biological siblings.

Marie smiled, "I suppose we can become friends.

-Let's have a good relationship as long as we can use each other," Reines replied.

In the Clock Tower, and between magi from different families, this was probably the most transparent kind of relationship you could have, except of course for engagements and such things.

The next day, in the El-Melloi classroom...

-Well, that concludes the last class we will have for this year. We will see each other the day before Christmas for the promotion event," declared the Lord.

With that said, he released his students.

Shirou, Caules, Flat, Svin, and Sieg, were walking through the streets of London. The group had been touring the city since early in the afternoon, looking at the Christmas decorations, the new stores, and sampling the holiday food.

-They really didn't have to do this, you know? -said Svin.

-What are you talking about? We had to celebrate, Le chien! -said Flat.

Shirou nodded, "That we decided to pay for you for everything we've done today is just part of the celebration.

-You only reach the Pride Rank once, we couldn't pass up the chance," said Caules.

-Congratulations," smiled Sieg.

Svin sighed before smiling. Thank you.

Suddenly, it began to snow. The group of boys stood in a large square with a gigantic Christmas tree in the middle of it.

-It's snowing, this year started early," said the Bestial Sorcery user.

-You know, Le Chien, in Japan they say that dogs run across the screen when it snows, is that true, Shirou?

Shirou gave an uncomfortable smile. I think there's something wrong with that statement.

Svin nodded, "You must be mixing sentences.

-Strange, won't you ask him to stop calling you like a dog? -Caules asked, surprised at Svin's attitude.

Svin folded his arms. I was told that, now that I will be a Pride Rank magus, I must be calm.

Flat smiled, "How you have matured!

With a smile Svin replied, "And I'm not the only one, am I?

-That's right, the professor has taught us all a lot," said Caules.

-It's Gray! -Flat shouted.

-What? Where is he? Where is he?" turning hurriedly to where Flat was pointing.

-It's not there," said Sieg after analyzing the place where the blond had pointed.

-Where was the calm of the Pride? -asked Flat.

The rest of the group burst out laughing, much to the boy's annoyance.

Then Flat smiled again, "Shirou also turned around pretty fast...".

At this the red-haired boy reacted quickly-. It was just a natural reaction, nothing more.

Flar seemed to want to say something else, but at that moment, Caules spoke-. I hope to one day also reach the Pride Rank, or at least the Fes Rank, it would be a problem if I stayed eternally in the Cause Rank," said Caules.

Shirou mentally thanked Caules and continued the conversation. The Fes Rank is a special rank, isn't it? The professor is one, isn't he? -said Shirou.

Now it was Flat who smiled uncomfortably, "Yes; but don't remind him, it bothers him a lot.

Shirou recalled the ranks within the Clock Tower, the Top Rank, Great, also called, Crown, is rare to see even in the entire history of the Tower, this is the rank of such incredible magus as Aozaki Touko. The Mark rank is awarded only to the best of the best, the former Lord El-Melloi was of this rank; it is the rank attained by most Lords. The rank Pride is for magi recognized as having extremely outstanding personal skills. Mature magus without outstanding personal skills, such as their teacher, are classified as Fes; however, magus of this rank have unusual abilities that inspire awe outside the realm of ordinary magus, such as, for example: the ability to extract the maximum potential from their pupils from Lord El-Melloi II. An average magus is generally classified as Cause, which was his rank, Caules' rank, and Flat's rank. Normal students are ranked as Count, which was the rank Ayaka was going to get tomorrow, though Shirou was sure that, now that she was in the El-Melloi class, it was only a matter of time until she reached Cause Rank like everyone else. Those complete amateurs who had just started learning were ranked with the Square Rank.

Svin sighed, "Although Fes Rank is not bad, it only denotes that one has an incredible ability outside the realm of magus; but as for the magus' own abilities, the magus could have Cause Rank abilities, or even Count. That's why it bothers the professor so much.

Caules nodded, "It's like telling you that you have an incredible ability that is minimally related to sorcery in some way; but yet your magus abilities are still nothing special.

-I feel bad for the professor, even though I doubt very much that I too will rise to the Pride Rank someday," the red-haired man exclaimed.

Sieg looked confused. But, with the achievements you've made, Shirou, shouldn't you be of a higher rank?

The red-haired man shook his head, "The ranks are not based on your achievements, but on how good a magus you are. Defeating Ainnash is a worthy achievement for the Queen or, perhaps, for the Church; however, for the Magus Association, it is not something worthy of admiration. -Inwardly, the boy thought, "If I were to reveal my version of Gradation Air, I might be able to increase my rank. I shouldn't go up to Fes, as Tracing is not an unusual ability outside the realm of magus; however, even though it is an extraordinary personal ability that allows me to turn a useless spellcasting into something usable, it is literally the only thing I can do, so, it might not be enough to reach Pride Rank, but, since it is an exceptional ability, I think a Combined Color Rank is more feasible. Also, there's the problem that I would have to do a lot of explaining, and that my ability is closely related to my status as a specialist; so, it's not something the Association can take advantage of, and besides, even other specialists wouldn't be able to use it to the same level that I use it, due to the fact that they don't possess a reality marble." The boy stifled a sigh, "Come to think of it, gaining so much attention isn't good either, I must keep my reality marble hidden if I don't want to have an automatic Sealing Designation. On the other hand... Maybe my skills as a blacksmith will allow me to rise to Fes rank."

Seeing his companion's frown, Flat patted him on the back, "Don't lose heart! We're in the same boat.

Caules snorted, "You could be a Pride any time you wanted if you just behaved a little more like a magus, in fact, maybe you could even aspire to Mark.

-Boring! -complained the boy. I'd rather stay a Cause in that case.

Svin smiled, "I'm sure Caules will reach the Pride Rank in time as well, and you might be able to accomplish more now that you've regained your family crest, and reach it as well.

-If not, you can always create a legendary super sword that gives you a color title or something like that," Flat said.

This was what Shirou considered most feasible, the Colored Ranks or Titles are separate from the rest of the usual ranks. Simply put, they are special titles given to great magus or people with exceptional talents. The colors Red, Blue, and Yellow, which are the primary colors, represent the highest rank title. While the combined colors Orange, Purple, Green and Black, listed in descending order, are of lesser importance than the first three.

The boy came out of his reverie and the group of boys continued talking in front of the tree...

-A lot has happened this year, don't you think? -asked Caules.

Flat nodded with a smile, "We fought and survived against Aozaki Touko, Sieg and Caules saw the wild hunt, and Shirou faced two of the Dead Apostle Ancestors. I hope next year will be just as exciting!

Caules smiled, albeit awkwardly, "I wouldn't mind if it was a slightly quieter year...

-I probably won't be able to see you guys for the new year, so Happy 2003 guys! -said Shirou.

Svin nodded, "Happy 2003.

-May it be an amazing year! -Flat declared.

-But without so many problems, please..." asked Caules.

-Happy New Year..." whispered Sieg.

The rest of the group watched as the young homunculus stared in awe at the Christmas tree that was adorned by the decorations and the snowfall.

-That's right, for him it is..." whispered Shirou.

Caules nodded with a smile. His first Christmas.

-Well! The night is still young, let's enjoy it as much as we can," Flat exclaimed.

-But we can't stay up late, tomorrow is my ceremony," complained Svin.

-It's still early, it's still early," Flat tried to convince him.

With that said, the group spent some more time exploring the festive streets of London.

The next day...

In a square of the Faculty of Theories of Modern Wizardry.

-"Lost soul wandering blindly, step forward," spoke a woman, a professor.

Svin, who wore an all-white hooded robe and was wearing an eye band, stepped forward.

-Give the name that identifies you in the world of the living," said another teacher.

-My name is Svin Glascheit, I seek the Root through the wisdom of the beasts.

Waver continued his speech. Child of the stars, emerge from the darkness and gain new life in the light. -Waver removed his hood and the blindfold that covered his eyes fell from his face. In the name of El-Melloi, I bestow upon you the Rank of Pride, Svin Glascheit.

Both Svin and Waver stared at each other for a moment, then the professor closed his eyes and smiled. Another student who surpasses me.

Svin looked down and smiled a sad smile, "I know I'm fast," he said as he trembled slightly, but he took a breath and straightened up. I got this far because of you, and I and all my classmates learned from you, no less.

This surprised the professor. After this, Svin walked over to where a few other students who had been promoted like him were standing. However, Svin was the only one who got the Pride Rank in this promotion, and thus, the center of attention.

After the last students were promoted, as was the case with Ayaka, one of the three teachers announced, "This is the end of the ritual. Welcome the new Root Seeker with applause!

All of his other classmates, who were dressed in black robes, applauded, with Flat clapping the loudest. At the end, both Waver and Svin, had to restrain themselves from shedding tears. The event was also attended by other important people, such as Professor Rocco Belfeban of the Invocation Division of the Spiritual Evocation Department, or the firstborn of the Sophia-Ri, although the latter went reluctantly.

In the distance, through one of the windows, stood Lord Valualeta.

-You sent another student to the third rank of the Clock Tower, Lord El-Melloi, you are so skilled it's almost scary.

-What do you think about the boy? -Lord Trambellio asked, standing next to him.

-His skills as a blacksmith have improved over the months, he has also learned Runes through El-Melloi's indications, besides, he has also gained knowledge about Curses, although he doesn't seem to be able to use them on his own...

-¿Y...? You don't expect me to believe that with just that and a holy sword he was able to kill the Seventh of the Twenty-Seven Dead Apostles.

-No, he's probably hiding things. Let's give him these months to reveal it on his own, if he doesn't, then we'll have to force him," Valualeta declared.

The man nodded and proceeded to leave.

The celebration took place in the El-Melloi classroom.

-You are awesome Svin!

-We won't forget you genius!

said two of the boy's classmates.

-I'm not graduating yet," said the boy uncomfortably.

-The child prodigy is ready to be a normal person past twenty," Flat said.

-There's nothing good about that! -replied the boy.

Waver, Gray, and Reines, watched the conversation as they drank on the other side of the room.

-Won't you yell at me today? You must be in a very good mood," said Reines.

-Yes. At last I've got a load off my mind," exclaimed Waver.

-You say that; but you're really kind of sad, aren't you? -Reines scoffed.

-Don't get your hopes up too high because now there's one more Pride. As my tutor...! -said Luvia before being interrupted by Yvette.

-That's it, that's it! I have to keep on spying.

-Besides, you still have to give me the lessons you promised me," said Rin approaching.

-You! -complained Luvia.

Flat approached Shirou and whispered something in his ear, the redhead nodded and they both approached the professor.

-Don't worry, professor. Don't feel sad because the students are promoted," Flat said.

Shirou nodded, "Yes, although many will leave, Flat and I will stay for a long, long, long time.

Flat nodded.

They both synchronized and said at the same time, "WE ARE IN YOUR CARE!

Waver gnashed his teeth and shouted, "Shut up and promote yourselves too!

...

After this, the party went on for several more hours, and when it was over, the Lord retired to his office...

Waver was sitting on a piece of furniture with a cup in his hand.

-Master, aren't you drinking too much?

-Lady, I am not a great drinker, but I can take this," said the professor, clearly affected by alcohol. Besides, Reines drank ten times as much as I did at the party.

-Lady Reines holds it too well," Gray pushed the glass away from the Lord's reach. Waver tried to take it again; but every time it came within his reach, Gray pushed it away again. T-Tomorrow he will regret it. -Everyone had fun at the party...

-Yes, promotion to Pride before 20 is unusual. The same thing happened to him... My predecessor... Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, he established the title of prodigy, pushed the rest of the factions aside and crowned himself Lord. The landscape the professor saw, was the ideal of all magus, no one could deny it. It was a landscape I could never share. -Waver lit a cigarette and began to smoke, "I limit myself to congratulating and dismissing my students...

-Hey! You, you saved me, teacher! Thank you for getting me out of that village. I'm sure the others are grateful to you for other reasons... -Gray closed his eyes for a moment-. So... So...

-Svin told me something similar," said the professor with a faint smile.

-Eh?

-I can't do anything like my predecessor, I'll never be a Lord to match him. I still think so, but after listening to you guys, maybe I'll change my mind..." Gray nodded.

Gray nodded, "I'm sure there are some things only you can do. -Then she lowered her gaze slightly. Are you planning to leave, master?

Waver closed his eyes, "I'm not sure, I still don't know what to do to reach his back; but... Heartless left me a challenge, to find out how and with whom he worked to forge the ritual, and to discover what they intend to do with that power. Maybe that will make me have to stay away from the Tower, but it's not a sure thing..." Waver stood up. Gray, will you let me through?

-Y-Yes!

-I'll go outside to get some air...

-Master! I bought this at the mall with Luvia and Reines! I wanted to give it to you earlier, but...

Waver smiled and took the gift. Why done it, the important thing is why you do something, not when you do it.

-Master..." she said with a smile.

-I'm sorry Gray; but on my own I don't have enough power, so please keep fighting by my side.

Gray smiled as small tears fell from his eyes, "Yes, if I'm of any use to you...".

-Thank you, I'm counting on you. -Waver looked out the window. "We may never see each other again, or we may see each other sooner than I think, nothing can be taken for granted until the journey is over, and my journey...still continues...".

On the other hand, the night of the next day, with Shirou...

-That's it," Shirou had taken the things he needed and packed them in his suitcase.

Finally, he looked at the suit he had long ago bought together with Flat and Svin. He didn't know why, but he felt he should wear it this time, even though he had bought it to have something to wear in more formal situations and not on this mission. Maybe it was because this was going to be the second and last job he would do together with Kiritsugu, as he would probably give up the freelance life once this one was completed, to spend his last months in peace together with his sister.

Be that as it may, he put on his suit, grabbed his weapons, and prepared to leave his apartment, all this just a few hours before everyone celebrated Christmas.

Outside the Creation Faculty premises, late at night, Kiritsugu was waiting for him in front of a car.

-Ready? -asked the magus.

Shirou nodded.

So, they both boarded the car, Kiritsugu drove them to one of London's airports, there someone his father had hired to return the car was waiting for them, they got out of the vehicle, Kiritsugu handed over the keys, and they both entered the airport.

Once inside...

"Passengers bound for Germany; please board on line 1."

-Let's go," said his father.

Shirou nodded.

With that said, father and son boarded for Germany, to the old Einzbern family castle.

...

...

...

On the other hand, in Germany, inside a large forest on a mountain, a young girl was walking around looking for buds on the trees. She was a teenager with the appearance of a 17-year-old girl, had beautiful long snowy hair, thin eyelashes, red eyes, and a fine pale skin. She wore a purple sweater and hat, big tall white boots and, despite the cold, a short skirt of the same color.

-Oh! I found one," she said as she walked over to look at one of the buds.

-Lady Illya, Mr. Jubstacheit requires your presence," said another woman who looked very similar to her.

-Leysritt..." she said, turning to look at the other homunculus. Tell Grandfather I'm on my way.

The maid nodded and withdrew.

She raised her gaze to the sky and saw the sun shining over the snowy field. "You'll come soon, won't you? Kiritsugu." Then she flashed a cute smile, one like she hadn't flashed in a long time...

Omake:

The rest of the day was spent organizing the workshop and discussing their plans about the trip to Germany.

So, while they took care of arranging it...

Kiritsugu had gone to rest, still not fully recovered from the surgery, and had gone to great lengths to prepare the basement so that Shirou could begin experimenting with Temporal Manipulation Sorcery.

The redhead, on the other hand, was cleaning up the workshop and familiarizing himself with it. After all, the last time he came, he had only spent a few hours inside it, before the whole event related to the Wild Hunt was unleashed. One of the things he could say he liked about moving out of his dorm, was the kitchen, the kitchen in his room wasn't bad; but it was nothing compared to the one the workshop possessed. On the other hand, he had to admit that it would cost him a lot more to keep this place organized than his room; but this didn't bother him, it reminded him of his time in Japan and his traditional home, this one was also much bigger than he could easily manage.

Another thing he already wanted to start working on was his blacksmithing and spell casting. Unfortunately, he couldn't start with these things yet, for, although Kiritsugu had hired the workers of a remodeling company to adapt the basement to the needs of the smithy, which had cost more than expected, and although the work was currently done, he still lacked most of the necessary tools to get to work, on the other hand, it was not wise to start experimenting with temporary high thaumaturgy without having the ridge complete yet.

-Shirou, where do I put the tools you brought from our department? -Altrouge asked.

At this moment, the boy was cleaning the basement, while Altrouge was taking care of exploring some rooms before he started to help him with the cleaning, so he turned to the basement entrance to indicate the place where he should put them, when, suddenly, his mind short-circuited at what he was observing, all he could think was a, "What the...?".

Altrouge had come down the basement stairs carrying, his tools, and a mop along with a bucket of water to help him clean up, none of this would be such a shocking thing if it weren't for what the ancestor was carrying...

After that "What the...", the next thing the boy could think of was a single, simple question, "What higher, incomprehensible force beyond his understanding had gotten the Princess of the Dead Apostles to dress in a maid outfit?".

Indeed, the Mistress of Blood and Contracts was dressing, for some reason, in a one-piece maid's outfit that left her upper chest and back exposed

-R-Rouge...?

-Yes? -asked the confused ancestor when she saw the look of pure stupefaction that the boy possessed, then, she smiled mischievously when she saw him looking her up and down. Hmm... What's wrong, Shirou, do you like it?

The boy didn't understand anything, so amidst the nervousness, he managed to blurt out a few words. W-well, y-yes, but why are you wearing a maid outfit?

Altrouge smiled and set out to explain, "You see, Shirou, on the last day of school I overheard Flat and Caules talking about these maid outfits. At first, I asked them why they were so excited about just any simple maid costumes, then they told me about how in Japan maids are a little different than in Europe, I haven't been to Japan in many centuries, but according to what Flat told me, maid costumes in Japan are not a show of submission, but the battle dress of young maidens, and it is most normal to use them for this kind of situations, he also told me that Japanese boys are fascinated by girls wearing these costumes, that it is like a great honor for them that a girl dresses this way for them, "And one of the ways girls seduce boys too... ", so, for risking your life to get these mystical eyes for me. .. -For a moment, the words died in the Princess's throat, as if she didn't know how to express herself-Well, I decided that you were worthy of such an honor, so I set out to wear this costume... -Although her cheeks were flushed, her expression quickly changed to one of warning, and a promise of pain if he didn't listen to her- Still, in Europe maidservants are seen differently, so you can't tell anyone that I wore a maid's outfit for you, got it?

Shirou nodded slowly, still trying to process the situation, his brain was dividing into three tasks: the first one was to keep watching the shocking and stimulating scene that was seeing Altrouge wearing that maid outfit, the second task was to repeat the scene, and the second one was to see Altrouge wearing that maid outfit, and the third one was to see Altrouge wearing that maid outfit, and the third one was to see Altrouge wearing that maid outfit.

Chapter 17, Breakthrough in the Einzbern territory.

Inside a large castle, in Germany...

-Yes... Madam... ra... Madam, my lady, please wake up.

-Hmm...? Just a few more minutes, Sella...

-I'm sorry, my lady; but it's time to get up.

An unconscious desire to cling to the warmth of her blankets clung to the depths of her heart; however; she well knew that this would bring her no good. Since a few weeks ago, something had changed in her lifestyle, she didn't know why; but she knew it wouldn't do to antagonize her grandfather. Resiliently, she opened her eyes...

The first thing she noticed was that whitish ceiling of the Einzbern castle, the ceiling of her room, and, at the time, her parents' room. Within the entire castle, this was the only place where she could feel some warmth, even if it was a phantom warmth generated by her futile desire to see her parents again...

This memory brought a smile to her face, futile, yes, it should be futile, it had been futile for the last almost 10 years. But, as of a few weeks ago, that had changed. And to think it was all thanks to the Musik...

Honestly, she didn't like the Musik's very much, she couldn't interact well, neither with the heir of the house, nor with the head of the house, mainly, because in all the meetings her grandfather was present, so she had to behave like the worthy heir of the Einzbern family, hence, she could never act freely with any of them... Still, after a few meetings, she realized that it was better this way, the Musik had no interest in her or in the Einzbern proper, they only wanted the research that her family had developed over the centuries...

If she was honest, she was surprised that her grandfather would give them some of his research, although, when she asked him why, he simply smiled and said that, what he had given them, was nothing more than a toy to entertain a child. And, even so, she understood that this had only been possible because of the current situation...

The fourth war of the holy grail... Many things happened in the last real war in Japan, much of which still remains a mystery. Among the things that his family had tried to keep secret was the fact that, in the last war, the grail was severely damaged. And the excuse they put forward to hide this fact was the weakening of the ley lines.

Unlike those cheap imitations that had leaked out due to certain events that occurred in the third war, the real holy grail war was much more complicated and difficult to perform, the simple fact of performing it once, weakened Fuyuki's ley lines to the point of making them almost useless for future great rituals, and they, to their misfortune, did not have other mystic lands with the necessary requirements to perform the ritual. Furthermore, most of the spiritual lands that met the requirements necessary to perform it were either under the domain of the Association, or the dead apostles, or the Church, or other autonomous magus organizations, or gigantic complexes like the Harwey. And they would rather destroy the grail than let any of these take advantage of it.

So, in the eyes of the world, the Einzbern were in a delicate situation, although the reality was very different, and much worse. If it were only about the summoning of the heroic spirits, creating a new holy grail that would allow the summoning of these would not be a problem for them; but the problem is that their family was not interested in this, their true objective was the recovery of the True Magic of the family, something that only the original grail they had created could achieve.

In the midst of all this, the Musik took advantage of this situation to approach his family, at first, they proposed them to use a high quality spiritual land they owned in Romania; however, the Einzbern knew well that the Musik were related to that thief because of whose fault these despicable imitations, Darnic, had appeared, so they politely refused. Still, the Musik, who at some point in the past had claimed to be their rivals, tried to bargain for a piece of their research and, in the end, their grandfather agreed, on the condition that the Musik would help them with a new type of homunculus, the so-called tuning homunculi, and, furthermore, also to keep an eye on Darnic in case he managed to create another true holy grail.

-My lady, you must get up..." Another voice begged her.

The girl sighed, "I'm coming..." Illya threw the blankets off her and stood up, in her field of vision two of her three maids-in-waiting, Sella and Fillia, came into view.

Both, like her, shared the same features: whitish hair, pale skin, ruby reddish eyes, fine features, and, in the case of Fillia and Sella, both wore the same type of clothing.

Of course, there were differences between the three: although they were of similar height, she was slightly shorter than her two maidens, and unlike her and Fillia, Sella was not as gifted in a certain area of her body; on the other hand, neither was as gifted in that area as her third maiden, Leysritt.

-Thank you, Sella, Fillia...

-My lady, your grandfather has requested your presence after breakfast," Fillia informed her.

-I understand..." replied the young woman.

With a gesture, Sella informed Fillia to prepare breakfast for her mistress while she finished arranging her wardrobe. Fillia nodded, and left the large bedroom.

After leaving the warmth of her bed, the young Einzbern made her way to the bathroom and began to groom herself, after she was finished with her morning toilet, Sella had already arranged her wardrobe. Before retiring, her maid bowed to her, and she replied with a smile. Sella, along with Leysritt and Fillia, were the closest homunculi to her. Unfortunately, she could not show such closeness usually in the presence of her grandfather, not without him catching her eye of course, so there were few times when she could fraternally approach her maidens, fortunately, Leysritt's attitude helped this to happen relatively often.

She dressed in the garments her maid had prepared, made sure to groom herself, and then looked at herself in the full-length mirror she kept in her room. After making sure everything was ready, Illya was surprised that she was smiling, she didn't smile much, but, lately, she was smiling more often.

Finally, she came out of her room, outside, stood two of her maids, this time, they were Sella and Leysritt, the one who usually guarded the door, and acted as if she was her bodyguard, though she saw her more as a friend than a servant.

She gave them a small nod and headed for the dining room, followed, of course, by both maids...

On her way through the halls, she observed the snowstorm that had broken out in the night, the young woman sighed, the night before she had left the castle with the intention of finding buds on the trees, she knew it was foolish, the darkness itself shouldn't be a problem for her and, as long as she kept close to the castle, she shouldn't be in danger, but she also knew that it was unlikely to find any in the middle of winter... And yet, fortunately, she found a premature bud on a tree near the castle, unfortunately, her grandfather scolded her for leaving the castle so late at night. Unfortunately, it was only at such late hours that she had time off...

When had it happened? Hmm... Yes, it was two years ago, after the visit of that magus, that was when the second major change in her life occurred, after the "abandonment" of her parents. Generally, her grandfather kept her locked inside the castle's premises, most of the time, inside the same room. In her eyes, at first, she didn't understand why, I mean, she was just there, alone, doing nothing, or interacting with no one, she wasn't like the other homunculi who at least had some work to do, so what was she doing there?

However, she was no fool, she knew there was no way her grandfather would allow her to leave the vicinity of the castle, she once asked him if she could go out to see the nearest town, and he refused. According to him, her body was different from others; for one thing, she had been born of a human and a homunculus, and, even more importantly, she had been modified by him since before her birth...

The girl arrived at the dining room, on her way she met several other homunculi, usually, she tried to remain as dignified as possible before them, without becoming contemptuous of her companions; but, lately, it was becoming increasingly difficult for her to hide her emotions. The dining room was empty, there was nothing on the large table but her breakfast, she was not surprised, nor did she expect her grandfather to sit down to eat with her, he had not done so once for as long as she could remember. She sat down and, taking the cutlery and fork, set about eating breakfast, she really didn't need to eat as long as she had a supply of magical energy; but, still, she preferred it, even if the food wasn't really special to her, not at least, if she had to eat it in almost complete solitude.

What were the modifications that her grandfather had made in her? She did not know them; however, they must be something special, her grandfather, who was usually cold and serene regarding almost any matter, was different with respect to this one, a touch of pride adorned his voice. Whatever they were, these were the excuse her grandfather used to forbid her to leave the castle, according to him, he needed her to stay inside it until she reached her full development, until then, if the modifications had affected her life in a positive or negative way, it was a complete mystery, in a few words, if she left the castle and, for some reason, her body reacted badly to the external environment because of them, she would have no one to help her. Supposedly, that was the reason for her existence inside the castle, simply to wait and see.

Still, she called them an excuse, because she had never suffered from any ailment in her body for as long as she could remember. Illya understood that the danger was always latent, but it's not like she wanted to go to the north of the country, where, currently, that strange toxin had appeared and was invading the environment.

She supposed her grandfather had noticed her discontent, so, to keep her amused, he gave her a second reason to exist: to become the ninth head of the Einzbern family. This excited little Illya when she received the news, it meant that her grandfather planned to retire, and she would, sooner or later, take his place and thus the decisions from now on... Yes, she was naive, maybe she even knew it since she received the news, her grandfather had no intention of abdicating; but it was better to have some hope than none at all.

For this, her grandfather had created Sella several years ago, his goal was to act as her tutor and teach her the craft of the Einzbern. Still, she believed that the same words her grandfather had used for the Musik could be used for her: just give a child a toy so that he has something to entertain himself with.

And she kept thinking this until two years ago...

From one day to the next, since that magus had visited them some time ago, something had changed in her grandfather, as if something had been kindled deep inside him, an ambition of some kind, she didn't know exactly what it was, and her grandfather hadn't wanted to share it with her, but since that day, there had been a change.

While in one of her lessons with Sella, her grandfather had suddenly appeared to terminate it, since that day, he had declared that she would now learn directly under his wing, when she asked him why, he simply replied that her basic instruction had ended, and asked her if it wasn't logical that the new head of the family would learn directly from the old one. At this, she could do nothing but nod; however, it was obvious that her grandfather had other reasons for teaching her. At least this time she was not as naïve as the last time, the young Einzbern had no hope at any time that this would bring her and her grandfather closer as a family, and she was grateful for that, for, really, there had not been the slightest rapprochement between the two of them. She was almost as lonely as she had been in the beginning, the only good thing, was that at least it had allowed her to keep Sella.

-Lady Einzbern, is it over? -From her side a new voice was heard, she turned her gaze and saw a relatively new face inside the castle.

Next to her materialized a tall man with silver-gray hair. He wore an outfit that would be considered outlandish by people of the present day, it appeared to be a black jacket adorned by reddish edges and reinforced by silver trimmings, he wore it unbuttoned, he also wore pants with the same design and large matching boots. Unlike her, and all the homunculi found in the workshop, he possessed skin tinged by a brownish color that, though not visible to the naked eye, was made up of scales.

Illya nodded, this man had been brought by his grandfather several weeks ago, although the word: brought, was not exactly the most appropriate, the word summoned would be more correct. A Ghost Liner, a legendary hero, the great hero narrated in the Ring of the Nibelungs, Siegfried.

-Yes, my grandfather is waiting for me in the workshop, isn't he?

With a noble bearing, the knight simply nodded. He sent me to fetch you.

Siegfried was not a very talkative hero, although he possessed an elegant bearing and a noble attitude worthy of his epic, to Illya he seemed the kind of man who did not keep formalities and spoke frankly. Perhaps, if her grandfather were out of the way, she might be able to interact more with the hero; but, unfortunately, with her grandfather present, that was rather complicated.

The girl nodded and got up from the table, without delay, she left the dining room, being followed by Sella and Leysritt; while Fillia was in charge of cleaning the dishes and other instruments; on the other hand, Siegfried followed her in his spiritual form.

After a few minutes...

-You are late! -Rather than anger, his grandfather's imposing tone was more like an icy scolding.

Jubstacheit von Einzbern, her grandfather, was a man of advanced age and great height, he shared certain features that the rest of the homunculi of the workshop had, for example: whitish hair and almost pale skin; however, he was different, his eyes did not have the ruby color of the other homunculi, and this was because Jubstacheit was not a homunculus, but a humanoid golem, the eighth in his class and, therefore, the eighth head of his family. He wore long white robes trimmed with golden ornaments.

-My apologies, grandfather," she replied politely.

-Let's not waste any more time, let's get started," he replied.

At this moment, the young Einzebern girl was in the workshop where her grandfather was coining the homunculi, and now it was time for the beginning of her daily training to practice her sorcery?

The Einzbern were an ancient family of alchemists, whose Thaumaturgic Attribute was the Flow and Transfer of Power. They followed the thaumaturgical school of Alchemy, specifically, the western branch of it, which was based on the creation and refinement of substances, and the focus of their studies lay specifically in the structural manipulation of precious metals. They know Healing Sorcery, but they use it to alleviate the burden on the body that a person may have for various reasons, not to regenerate or heal the body itself. And, of course, they are specifically known to be excellent homunculus producers.

She, in fact, in the past, only knew of creating a specific type of homunculus using alchemy, which she used for protection. However, since her grandfather had started training her, her knowledge and skills had gradually increased. It also helped that his grandfather had taken it upon himself to give him a specialized magical crest from birth, generally, homunculi in his family, gained their knowledge of sorcery due to being marked by a standardized magical crest of the reverse type; although in her case, her grandfather had designed a specific magic crest for her, in fact, it was strange, her crest contained all the alchemical research that the apprentices of the Third Magus had once developed and had bequeathed to their creations, which they had been using until today, it really was a crest worthy of a millenary magus family; but... why had grandfather given her something like this? She was sure that, unlike the standard reverse-type magical crests, this crest was not something that could be achieved to create in a few years, not even for someone as talented as her grandfather, this was something he had been preparing for centuries, maybe more than a millennium, maybe he even used the original method of creating magical crests to forge it... But why? Honestly, she didn't see her grandfather intending to resign from his post.

-Today we finish early...

-Hmm? -she exclaimed in surprise.

She had become so focused on her thoughts that, for a moment, she stopped paying attention to her grandfather.

-I have some business to take care of, so you have the rest of the day off for today. -His grandfather didn't even wait for his answer, he simply walked beside him and went on his way. Before he left the workshop, she could hear him whisper something, "Saber, continue to protect our territory, we don't know at what moment we may be attacked...".

After this, her grandfather retreated, leaving her alone...

She didn't wait a second after her grandfather left, making sure he didn't notice her enthusiasm, she retreated in the opposite direction. Usually, Sella, Leysritt, and Fillia, were supposed to meet her outside the workshop once her training was over, but since it had been shortened by several hours, they should be fulfilling their other responsibilities at this point.

"Should I look for them?" The young woman wondered. This should be the logical path, Sella, Leysritt, and Fillia, they were not only her maids, but also the people closest to her, along with her protectors. However...

The girl looked outside the castle... In the hours she had been training, the storm had subsided; however, she knew this weather, it was likely to last only a few hours...

"If it's only for a little while... And as long as I stay within the castle's vicinity...". The girl smiled slightly and prepared to leave the fortress.

Lately, things had been much busier than in previous times, in the distance she could see them, Shadow Servants, there weren't many, but enough to guard the vicinity, these, along with some crude golems and the homunculi, were on patrol.

"Hmm... It will be hard to avoid them all...". While the golems and shadowy servants had been ordered by her grandfather not to attack unless given an order or some sort of commotion and intrusion arose, she didn't want to take the risk of approaching any of these, on the other hand, there were too many homunculi to throw off if she wanted to get as far as the forest...

-Lady, I don't think it's a good idea what you're planning," To her surprise, and once again, the servant materialized at her side.

If before she had little chance of reaching the forest, now her chances were practically zero...

Completely hiding her true feelings, something she had become good at due to her circumstances, she gave a fake smile. I guess so, I'm sorry to make you have to keep an eye on me Saber, did my grandfather order you to?

The dragon-blooded knight shook his head. No, my orders were to patrol the area and make sure that both you and your grandfather are safe.

-I understand...

-I'm sorry, for ruining your plans... -Generally, the servant would accept the girl's answer and leave after apologizing; however, for an instant he could observe the lady's frown, which made his chivalrous principles awake and made him give a suggestion-. Lady...

-Hmm? Yes?

As a Saber-class servant, the only way I can protect our territory is by patrolling it, if you wish, you may accompany me.

Illya did his best to keep his attitude modest; but it was impossible to suppress the smile that had formed on his lips. I will be delighted, Saber.

With Saber's company, none of the homunculi, golems, and shadowy servants should stand in her way, after all, where would she be safer than by the side of the heroic spirit?

Saber advanced into the forest and no one stood in her way, with Illya following close behind.

At first, Illya was comfortable with the silence between the two, however, the further they went, the more uncomfortable it became, apparently she was right, Saber was not someone who was very talkative. If she were younger, she would have tried to establish a conversation almost immediately, but she had spent so much time restraining herself that she doubted she would do so. At that moment, she saw something...

-A sprout! -Illya exclaimed excitedly at the sight of a small bud on a tree. It's winter, so they're not in bloom; but it would still count as a point to me.

-A point? -asked the dragon knight in surprise. What do you mean, Lady?

-Ah..." For a moment, his smile faded a little and a nostalgic look adorned his beautiful face. Several years ago, I used to come to the forest to look for buds with Kiritsugu, my father. It was a competition between the two of us, and whoever found the most buds would win...

-I understand...

-I hope to see him again soon..." said the girl hopefully.

Siegfried could tell there was a story behind all this, however, it was not his duty, or role, to ask about it; but seeing the girl's small smile threatening to fade, he said. I'm sure they'll meet again...

Illya nodded animatedly once more, "Yes! You're right, I want to see him again..." Then she turned radiantly to him. Saber, may I ask you a question?

-Of course, Lady.

-Many years ago, when the last true war of the Holy Grail took place, another knight was staying in our castle...

-Another servant of Saber class?

She nodded, "At that time, I was quite small, but I was able to learn a few things, for example: that Servant's wish was to prevent the fall of his homeland and create an eternal utopia. Something fanciful that, probably, could only be achieved through a true miracle granted by the holy grail... "Just like Kiritsugu's wish". As a Servant... You too possess a wish, don't you, Saber?

Once again, the Servant was silent, as if he didn't know how to respond.

-Is something wrong? If it's something personal, then I'm sorry to intrude, I beg your pardon?

The gentleman shook his head, "It's not about that, Lady. It's just that, after hearing a wish like that, it's a bit embarrassing for me to answer...

-Why? -she asked quizzically. I'm sure your wish is worthy of being heard...

This brought a small smile to the servant's face. My wish is quite modest, but if you still wish to hear it, I will gladly tell you.

Illya nodded with a smile. Of course...

-Simply, I wish to be able to fight for the justice I believed in when I was alive?

-Hmm? I'm sorry, but... I don't understand...

Now it was the knight who gave a nostalgic look. You see, when I was alive, I received many requests from those around me, wishes from people who, by their own strength, were unable to reach, I answered those requests...

-That's not bad... Oh, yeah? -asked the confused girl.

The gentleman shook his head, "No, it's not. And, even now, I don't see it as a bad thing; but... The more I fought, the more I wondered if the motives for my battles were the right ones," Siegfried was silent for a moment. In the end, when death came for me, I had one last wish... I wished that, if I ever had the chance to swing my sword again, I could do it not for someone else's wishes, not even for my own wishes, but for that justice in which I initially believed, I...

-Yes? -asked the girl in deep concentration at the servant's words.

-I want to be a true hero, one who fights for justice, for the simple fact that it is the right thing to do, nothing else...

For a moment, Illya smiled beautifully, "I don't think your wish is inferior to that Servant I spoke to many years ago, Saber. You have the same dream that my father once had, Kiritsugu... That's why..." The girl spoke with a sincerity and frankness that even the Servant who usually seemed reticent could not help but feel a little moved. I... I will be forced to fight in that war soon. If I'm honest, I'm not interested in recovering the Magic my family lost, in fact, I wouldn't like to have to step on the battlefield..." Then, the girl sighed, "But it's something I can't avoid. If your wish is modest, mine is even more so, a world where I can live peacefully with the people I love outside these walls... it must sound very selfish, right?

The knight shook his head, "You did not belittle my wish, Lady, I will not do otherwise. It is right to want your own happiness and that of those you hold dear, as long as it does not intentionally harm others... If you allow me to fight by your side being the hero I wish to be, and as long as your wish does not go against my principles, I will entrust you with my sword, and I will wield it in the name of the justice I believe in.

Illya nodded, "In that case, it will be a pleasure to fight at your side, Saber.

The servant nodded silently.

Illya guessed that he was more comfortable with silence, and now that he knew the Servant better, it didn't bother him either. So the two of them patrolled the Einzbern family's territory until, finally, they reached the entrance to the estate.

-Well, I guess this is it," said the young woman.

The servant nodded, silent as always; however, he suddenly dematerialized.

-Hmm? Is something wrong, Saber?

-Lady, look over there, outside the barrier..." Saber indicated to the young Lady an area outside the barrier that surrounded the Einzbern's territory.

Illya looked at that place, and was surprised to see a person, a boy. He was wearing clothes not very warm to the naked eye, and seemed to be looking at the old sign that indicated the beginning of his family's territory, the most striking thing about the boy was his reddish hair, of a color similar to copper.

Subtly, the boy stopped looking at the sign and his eyes met hers, the silver fixed his gaze intently on the ruby...

Illya was briefly surprised, but didn't show it, "He's looking at me, at me? That shouldn't be possible, the barrier should sway any normal person and make them immediately divert their attention away from our territory and move away, unless...". For a moment, the young woman frowned, "Could it be that he is a magus...? But, he doesn't dress like the rest of the magus I've met, he also doesn't have the proud bearing these usually have... And, besides, now that I think about it, we've had to open the barrier several times lately... Maybe he got weakened or this produced some kind of problem?". Illya didn't know; but, even so, the boy was staring at her, not taking his gaze off her.

"Lady, your grandfather, it seems, has finished with the matters he had to settle, and has asked me to return to him. We had better retire."

The girl nodded at the servant's words, the boy was still looking at him, and while she hadn't met many other men besides the homunculi in the workshop, it was quite obvious that the boy was impressed, his slightly open mouth gave it away a bit, she made a mischievous smile internally and decided to smile at him before leaving, just to see the expression the boy made, and she had to admit that it was fun to watch, especially when he hid his gaze in embarrassment.

So, together with Saber, she returned to the Einzbern castle, it took a few hours, but when they were nearby, she noticed the silhouette of a man that, although she knew, was not very common to see. A young man with blond hair was coming out of the workshop, he did not seem to recognize the homunculi around him, in fact, he passed by her, and did not even seem to recognize her existence; however, he stopped for a few moments, and observed her... No, not her, the one he was observing was the heroic spirit who was in his spiritual state a few meters away from her. Then, with a look that to her seemed bored or as if he didn't care about Saber's existence, he continued on his way.

For a moment, Illya wanted to ask the Ghost Liner what he thought of the man who just passed by her, however, she didn't have time, as he spoke shortly after. Lady, apparently your grandfather also wants to see you, we'd better both go.

Illya nodded and went back into the castle that, for her, was no different from a prison...

On the other hand, a few hours earlier...

It took an hour and a half to fly from London to Mainz, the capital of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate in southwestern Germany. Then, after arriving in the city, father and son wasted no time and headed north of the state by renting a car.

The Einzberns lived in a mountainous district near the Rhine River, in the most uninhabited and closest possible part of the river, in the extreme southwest corner of the country.

Because of its great isolation, the nearest settlement to the Einzbern territory was a small village on the mountain slopes. To which Kiritsugu and Shirou had arrived in the morning, fortunately, the flight from London to Germany was not very long, in fact, it took them longer to reach the Einzbern territory than it had taken them to reach the country.

-Is that him? -Shirou asked as he saw a small building.

Kiritsugu nodded, "This is where we'll be staying for the day.

The duo entered the reception of the building, it seemed that the receptionist already knew his father, probably from his previous repeated trips trying to get his sister back, he asked for the room keys and the clerk provided them without too much trouble.

The boy introduced himself to the clerk and then he and his father made their way to his room. Once they arrived at the room, which was small and not very luxurious, Shirou inspected the suitcases that were in the room, they had sent them days before to speed things up. The boy had written runes on these to prevent anyone from wanting to open them and so they would go unnoticed. He had also managed to combine his clothes with some runes to keep them warm, even though they were not made for the weather, as well as to make them stronger and more durable.

Kiritsugu opened the suitcases to find several things: his Calico M950, a Walther WA2000, several grenades, night vision binoculars, some explosives, and finally, in the largest suitcase, a missile launcher.

Shirou also unpacked his things, his three swords and his big rifle.

-Shirou..." said Kiritsugu while, on the table in the room, he unfolded a huge map, although, if one looked closely, it was not a normal map, but a satellite image of the area.

This was one of the things they had had the hardest time getting, Kiritsugu used things like this to take down the magi's bounded camps. The last time he took down a camp, he did it by means of familiars with small cameras; but, since Shirou couldn't summon familiars that could scour the large expanse of land that belonged to the Einzbern, they had to resort to this satellite image in order to develop their strategy.

-Let's review the plan," the freelancer spoke.

Shirou nodded and began to explain it to his father, as if he didn't already know it. I'll go out to patrol the terrain, to identify the points where the bounded field is weakest, once we find the one that suits us best, we'll use it to enter.

Kiritsugu nodded as he pointed to various points on the map. Once we've entered, we'll go our separate ways.

-I'll go through the back of the castle, while you take the more obvious route, through the front. We will use our cell phones to communicate, considering that the Einzbern are conservative magus, they will have no protection against technology," Shirou continued.

-You will initiate the attack first, you will draw the attention of everyone in the castle and lure them in, I, for my part, will sneak into the chaos and rescue Illya. At least, roughly speaking, that would be it, once we have Illya, we will use the already pre-established escape route.

The plan itself was rather more complicated; but they didn't need to discuss every step, just being clear on the most important points was enough.

Shirou took his swords and rifle, "I'll go out to look for the weakest point of the bounded field.

-Well, when you return, I'll have all the equipment ready.

Having said this, the red-haired man left the room and proceeded to leave the hotel. It was almost noon in the small town, although it was not a place with a large population, it looked like a fairly lively and picturesque place, probably the most attractive thing about the place was the possibility of climbing the great mountain ranges that surrounded them. Unfortunately, at the moment, that was unlikely; it seemed that a snowstorm would break out at any moment.

After surveying the village and getting to know his surroundings, he headed towards the mountainous land belonging to the Einzbern family, cautiously and, taking care that no one suspected him, Shirou approached the property and noticed a sign warning people that if they followed, they would be trespassing on private property and, furthermore, that there were wolves on the grounds. Fortunately for him, the sign was in English.

After looking at the sign, he looked up, and...

There was someone, a girl, but she wasn't a normal girl, that was obvious. She was a homunculus of the Einzbern, like the ones he had dealt with when he had returned the letter his father had written. But there was something different about this girl, perhaps it was because of the scene in which she was shown: in the middle of the snow-drenched forest, the girl stood wearing warm clothes, her hair whitish, and her eyes ruby-colored, if he had to define her in any way, then, in his country there was a legend about a beautiful woman who appeared in snowy climes, a snow woman; However, this was unlikely, not only because the ghostly species were in decline nowadays, but because they only appeared at night and in the middle of a storm, and more importantly, while the snow women had a mature and inhuman beauty, this girl had a contradictory beauty, although she had a mature appearance, she even seemed to be older than him, her face denoted a childlike innocence, she was not a snow woman, no, perhaps, rather... The boy looked at her more closely, a fairy? Yes, perhaps a snow fairy would be a better description.

So engrossed was he in describing the girl, that he didn't notice that he had been staring at her for several moments, however, he came back to earth when she smiled beautifully at him before walking away.

"Huh?" This caught the boy off guard, he made him turn his face unconsciously.

This had taken him by surprise, from what he had learned researching the Einzbern, and from the things he had learned from his father, it was his understanding that a perfect homunculus is essentially a man-made artificial extension of nature that, possible external factors aside, will not die as long as the planet was healthy and has mana. The price of receiving life through such artificial means, however, is that the homunculus will invariably have some sort of physical defect; however, he did not observe any defect at first glance in the girl, although of course, this defect could be internal, or of another nature, such as, for example: short life expectancy.

In his eyes, and probably in the eyes of any human, the homunculi of the Einzbern undoubtedly had a superhuman beauty that would make anyone fall in love; however, despite their beauty, it was unlikely that a magus would fall in love with a homunculus. The reasons for this were because homunculi are born with mature bodies and are given all the necessary knowledge and reasoning the moment they are born, hence, they never age, so, the concept of age is meaningless to them. On the other hand, homunculi do not have accumulated experience like humans, their souls are young, pure, and robust, like those of a baby, this, together with the fact that they are generally made to fulfill a single function, makes the magus see them as beings similar to a doll. They will only do what they were programmed to do, they will only say the predetermined things they were designed to do, in the eyes of the magus, there is no real emotion behind this, no real feeling, simply an assigned task which they must fulfill. This makes the magus look down on the homunculi as just dolls, and things like romantic relationships are extremely strange because of this "lack of feeling".

Of course, this did not occur with all homunculi, it was just the general rule, he knew about two exceptions so far: one was Sieg, who, for some reason, had managed to gain a recognition of "self", through knowledge, that along with the primitive instinct to fear death, began to cause Sieg to start becoming an individual being, unlike the rest of his siblings who were more similar to a hive mind. Another of these exceptions, was his father's wife, Irisviel, she also managed to gain self-awareness through interaction with her father for nine years, as well as through the conception of her adopted sister, without any feelings of inferiority like any other human being.

But, as he had said, these were exceptions, generally, homunculi did not show the emotions that a human should possess, that's why that beautiful mischievous smile before saying goodbye shocked the boy so much, "Was she really a homunculus?". He wondered, unfortunately, it was too late to ask her now.

He shook his head, and pushed away the thoughts he had about the girl, he had to concentrate on the operation...

It took hours; but, finally, he investigated all the points that his father had marked for him as the possible places where the barrier could be disrupted. The most suitable place for this turned out to be near the river, where the barrier seemed to be weakest. Finally, Shirou returned to the village, and by then it was late afternoon.

The boy walked around the village, in an attempt to buy consumables to prepare a late lunch for himself and Kiritsugu. Fortunately, after much searching, he found several stores where they understood English and was able to buy some ingredients.

On his way back to the hotel...

Half-breed, stop!

Shirou turned to see a person. He was a man of dignified appearance, with golden hair standing upright like a burning flame. His face was well outlined, handsome, and in his eyes, crimson as blood, Shirou could perceive that, visibly, they were not those of an ordinary human, they emitted a mysterious glow. He possessed a body of golden proportions that exuded majesty and dignity, and was dressed in a white jacket with a fur collar, a black shirt, and black pants.

Shirou didn't know why; but, his instincts, tempered by being near death several times, screamed at him to be extremely careful with this man, even though he only appeared to be a foreigner living an extremely luxurious life.

-Excuse me, are you talking to me? -asked the boy, looking cautious.

-Do you see anyone else to whom I would give the honor and pleasure of my attention? -The man answered as if speaking the truths of life, just before giving him an order. Now answer, you have my permission.

Not knowing how to answer, the red-haired man simply shook his head internally. Do you wish something?

-My wishes are not something a commoner can understand; however, you have caught my attention, show me, what is that weapon you carry?

It was a direct order, and Shirou did not know why; but he did not dare to challenge it, it was as if the man had some sort of natural charisma that made it difficult, if not impossible, to challenge him directly. For this reason, the boy unsheathed Neocaliburn, and prepared to show it to him.

The man raised an eyebrow at the sight of the sword. It has changed its form... Its power has also diminished a little; but, yes, it is the original sin...

-Do you know Merodach? -asked the astonished boy.

-Obviously! Even if with the passage of time my memory is unable to recall all the treasures I have amassed, there are some I am more aware of than others. Merodach is one of these...

-His treasures?

The man nodded, "I have amassed all the treasures in the world, everything that can be considered a treasure belongs to me. -Why do you possess one of my treasures, half-breed? I don't remember bestowing such an honor on you!

The boy did not fully understand the conversation; but he managed to pick up on two things: one, the man was saying that Merodach belonged to him, and two, he was not happy that he had it.

For a moment, Shirou remembered that his father used many of his contacts to get his shards, could it be that, had Merodach's shards been stolen from this man? If that was the case, he had to apologize and explain the situation to her. Excuse me, I bought the Merodach fragments from a relic dealer several months ago, I was not aware that they had been stolen from you.

-Fragments? You're saying that someone had the audacity to break one of my treasures! -The man exclaimed angrily.

"Shit." thought the boy. It seems so, I'm not sure... I only bought the Merodach fragments, I needed them to reform Caliburn.

-Caliburn? Hmm... If I remember correctly, it was that man's first sword; besides, it's also one of the swords based on Merodach. -Directing his gaze down at the boy, he asked. Which means, did you make this, half-breed?

Shirou nodded, "As a blacksmith, it's my biggest job so far. Although, it's just a stepping stone to fulfill my dream and my goal, though... I'm still far away from achieving it...

This caught the man's attention. The motivation to fulfill a dream that exceeds your capabilities..." -With his penetrating eyes, he looked at the boy-. That's not a very common thing these days, even for a magician. Humanity has not only become weak, it has also begun to stagnate.

-He's right," the boy whispered. Although, I'm not a magus in every sense of the word, sword or blacksmith might define me a little better.

-Do you wish to contradict me? -asked the man with his arms crossed. If I say you are a magus, it is because you are, that is my decision, and as the one true King, my decision is simile of truth, as well as absolute judgment.

"Is he a king? It was my understanding that the German monarchy was abolished almost a hundred years ago, a king of another kingdom perhaps? Besides, he's also a King related to sorcery...". Knowing how troublesome it would be to antagonize a member of some royalty, Shirou quickly apologized. Excuse me, your majesty.

-Your acknowledgement of your mistake pleases me, I will allow you to evade the punishment you deserve this time.

-I thank you.

You spoke of having a dream, tell me half-breed, what is it?

-I dream of being the blacksmith who creates the ultimate sword, no, maybe that's not the right expression, what I wish for is...

The man closed his eyes for a moment and only his look after opening them was enough to silence the boy-. You don't need to say it, I have already seen your truth -For a moment, the man gave a condescending smile-. I wonder, is this also destiny? To think that in this era, at this very moment, I would come across something like this, the ultimate sword, you said?

Shirou nodded, "What I seek to create is a sword that cuts more than just steel, flesh, bone and life. I... will use every ounce of my life to create it. A sword that ends all entities, all ties, one that cuts through certainty, causality and karma itself." Every time Shirou spoke about his goal, he couldn't help but get excited. In short, a sword that cuts and frees the world from its fate.

The man was silent for a few moments, then, he decided to speak-: For me, the King who possesses all the treasures ever and ever, who possesses the greatest treasures ever created, your dream should be considered as a huge offense; as well as a great illusion unattainable for human hands.

"Is it that every word I say is an insult to this man?". The worried boy asked himself.

"And yet, it brings back memories of you, my only friend," thought the Golden King. You seek to reach the territory of the gods with your human hands, for this you plan to mold your blood, flesh, heart and soul, to give it life, such insolence..." However, the King showed a strange expression, as if he approved of such insolence. The sword you seek to create must surpass many divine creations, perhaps even worthy of measuring against my greatest treasure, normally, I would order your execution for simply declaring such a misdeed," However, the man smiled for the first time since they had begun the conversation. However, my only source of pleasure lies in the hearts of human beings. Those dearest to me are those who possess dreams far beyond their own capacity, but who still work constantly to achieve them, regardless of the difficulty, without giving up. In this age where humanity is weak and evades its problems, to meet someone willing to face such a challenge is a real pleasure. In honor of this, I will give you a privilege that few possess, I already know your name, but, even so, I will allow you to tell me, go ahead.

-Muramasa Shirou, your majesty," replied the boy confused by the strangeness of the conversation.

-Muramasa Shirou, huh...? Interesting change..." whispered the man, and then showed a strange smile, "Well, listen to me, Muramasa Shirou, you have been recognized by me, the one and only true ruler of this world, as one of the few humans in this era worth watching. Whether or not you fulfill your dream, I will observe it as the guardian and adjudicator of mankind.

Although the boy did not know what the man was referring to, it seemed that what the man was telling him was a great honor or a great gift to him. I thank you very much, your majesty.

The man nodded in acceptance and looked at the inhabitants of the place. The present humanity does not deserve to be ruled by me, and soon this world will come to an end. That is something that I cannot allow...

Curious, Shirou asked, "Do you intend to do something, your majesty?

-That's right, I plan to cleanse humanity and heal this world, I will turn it into one that is worthy of my rule. -Then he looked at the boy. I don't need servants, humans are things that are destined to disappear, but there must be people to rule for my new kingdom, as long as you persevere in your dream, I will consider you worthy of belonging to it.

Shirou really didn't understand, it seemed that this man spoke as if he was going to erase all humanity and only keep those he considered worthy of his new kingdom, he wanted to ask; but, he felt that would be a big mistake, so, to avoid the fury of the supposed King, he answered-. It is an honor, your majesty.

-I am done with my business here, persevere in your dream, Muramasa Shirou, I do not look kindly upon forgers, nor do I look kindly upon their forgeries, these possess no value in my eyes, so do not lower yourself to become one, you will need to be a true creator to achieve your goal, and if you do, perhaps I will deem you worthy of more honors and my recognition.

Shirou bowed slightly and the man walked away as he appeared.

-I'm glad you didn't make him angry," Muramasa spoke from the katana.

-He was dangerous, wasn't he?

-Without a doubt, even if he appeared to be a normal person, the amount of mana he emanated was enormous. His eyes were not ordinary either and, I can even risk saying that, despite his appearance, he was not human, or at least, not completely.

-He spoke as if he would literally destroy much of humanity, only to leave those he considered worthy.

-Besides, although I don't bow my head to anyone, I'm a good judge of social positions, he's certainly a rather arrogant brat; but he didn't seem to be lying, he really was a King... And that's not the most worrying thing..." the blacksmith spoke.

The red-haired man nodded- He also knew about Sorcery, the only sorcery related family he could come to visit in this area, is just one... -Shirou turned to the mountainous terrain of the ancient magus family-. Einzbern...

Shirou returned to his room, there he could see his father finishing getting all the equipment ready, he considered talking to him about the man he had encountered in the village; however, after seeing how focused Kiritsugu was on preparing everything for the operation, he decided to keep it hidden for now, after all, the luxurious-robed King had retreated from the village in the opposite direction to where the ancient magus' house was located, so it was unlikely that he would be encountered during the operation.

Deciding to hide it for now, Shirou proceeded to talk to Kiritsugu. I located the weakest point of the barrier.

-Where? -asked the man.

-In the vicinity of the river.

The freelancer nodded. Well, the equipment and barriers are ready.

-I'll prepare a late lunch.

Kiritsugu nodded again. Once we have lunch, the best thing to do is to lie down and rest, it's eight hours to midnight. We'll leave here at 9 o'clock, to arrive at the barrier side around 10 o'clock, and once there, we'll start the operation.

-It will take us about an hour and a half to two hours to get to Einzbern Castle, won't it?

-Yes, although it all depends on how long it takes to bring down the barrier, how long do you think it will take?

-Hmm... The barrier is complex, very complex. Thanks to what I have learned about the barriers, the specific place where we will attack, the satellite image, and everything you have taught me to break through barriers... Three hours, minimum, four and a half hours at worst.

Kiritsugu nodded, "Then we should arrive at the castle between nightfall.

After lunch, Kiritsugu lay down to sleep, neither of them had slept since they started the journey, so they were both exhausted. Worse yet, although his father wanted to hide it, Shirou had noticed that, every time he met him again after a period of time of not seeing him, he noticed him weaker than before, probably due to the curse. He was sure that this would be the last job Kiritsugu would perform, not only because of his physical weakness and because he had fulfilled his wish to rescue Illya, but also because it was likely that he could hardly use his sorcery anymore.

On the other hand, he was also not in the best condition, for the past three days, he had either not been able to sleep well, or had not slept at all. This he owed to Altrouge, not only because of the conflicting feelings his kiss had aroused, but also because of fear, yes, he was afraid to sleep, or, rather, he was afraid to meet the person he sometimes met in his dreams. Shirou didn't know how Manaka would act after Altrouge's kiss; but he was sure it wouldn't be good for her health.

Even with all this, he had no choice left at this point, he couldn't invade a magus family's workshop while exhausted. So he decided to take a chance and go to sleep, to his surprise, he didn't meet Manaka; but he did dream about her, he saw her having a conversation with his father...

-You understand how important this ritual is for us, don't you, Manaka?

A much younger version of her friend was sitting across from a man in the living room of an apartment. He was Hiroki Sajyou, Manaka and Ayaka's father, he had dark brown eyes and hair, as well as being of average height for a grown man.

-Yes father... -she spoke and, listening to her, Shirou knew something wasn't right, there was no emotion in Manaka's words, no life in her eyes, she seemed to be a lifeless puppet, a porcelain doll without emotions.

-Well, the holy grail war will be the method by which we will finally reach the Akashic Records. A magus as extraordinary as you are, should have no trouble winning this war. In a few days you will invoke your servant and, in a short time, the war will begin, prepare yourself until then," the man ordered.

This time, the girl simply nodded, seeing her like that brought pain to the boy, not only because he knew a Manaka who was always cheerful and smiling, but also because the living dead expression she wore brought back memories to the boy of how he looked like after the catastrophe that ended the fourth holy grail war.

With this memory he had confirmed the suspicions he once had, Manaka's family had moved to Fuyuki to participate in the last holy grail war; but what surprised him most were two things: First, Manaka, being so young, was going to be a teacher in the ritual and, second, unless something happened to prevent it, she had lied to him for the second time, when he asked her if her family had participated in the ritual.

But, even so... even so, he wanted to believe. He wanted to believe in that person who, along with his grandfather, linked him to his forgotten past. He wanted to believe in those feelings that arose when he talked to her about their childhood together, maybe that's why he was willing to give her a chance to, at the very least, explain herself. At the very least he wanted to know why she was lying to him over and over again, he wanted to know why she believed that by hiding things from him she was protecting him. Deep down, he knew, he knew when she was lying to him, perhaps it was because of the bond the Bodhisattva imposed on them, and so, despite the obsession her words denoted, he could also assure that, whenever Manaka proclaimed her love for him, there was no trace of doubt or lie.

All the memories he had of his past cast doubt on his feelings for the girl, for better or worse. She was dangerous, of that he had no doubt, she was hiding things from him, and this memory confirmed it, of that he had no doubt either, but, even so... the memories of their childhood playing together... as well as the feelings they brought... made him doubt.

He was trying to repress them, while at the same time holding on to them...

He wasn't sure what to do, as long as he could see the girl's memories, sooner or later he would know the truth; but, he wanted her to be honest with him, for her to be the one to tell him; however, he was a magus, and as a magus, he couldn't afford to blindly trust anyone, that was something he had learned with the passage of time in the Clock Tower. The best he could do, was to try to get her to confess to him on her own, and pray that it wasn't something he couldn't forgive, otherwise, he had no choice but to find out through dreams.

Shirou stirred as he continued to sleep, but he couldn't move, something was clinging to his person tightly...

The red-haired man opened his eyes, he felt uncomfortable, as if he couldn't move freely, he tried to free himself from this grip; but to no avail, it seemed he was being held tightly. Wait, held? by whom? wasn't he in the hotel room resting? This chilled his bones, could it be that... The Einzbern had detected them and decided to attack them by surprise? But the barrier... Shirou shook his head and prepared to project a weapon. Carefully, he opened his eyes... Strange, he was looking at the ceiling of his room, it was being illuminated by the moonlight, he had not been bound, drugged, or gagged, nor had he been moved from his bed, and yet he was still somehow restrained.

Seeing that only his body was immobilized, Shirou made an effort and raised his head, the first thing he saw, was the clock in the room that marked a quarter to nine, the second thing he could see was a clump of blond hair and delicate hands holding him and preventing him from moving.

"Oh no." thought the boy. He knew that clump of blond hair well and she had warned him that she would soon regain her physical form; but, of all the moments she could have chosen to make her presence known, did it have to be this one!?

-Your heart is beating fast, are you nervous? -whispered the girl, her tone of voice seemed to be a mixture of amusement and nervousness.

Without giving him time to answer, she stood up and...

-Oh god... -Shirou couldn't help but exclaim in astonishment, he knew she would react in some way to Altrouge's statement; but he didn't expect this, on the other hand, maybe this wasn't the girl's intention, after all, the last time she was present, physically speaking, was 9 years ago, more or less, so it was impossible that the clothes she had then still fit her; because yes, at this moment, she was semi-naked in front of him, the little emerald green dress barely covering enough to avoid giving him a full show, leaving very little to the imagination.

Besides, there was another problem, Manaka was beautiful, dazzling; but in the world of unconsciousness her body had not reacted for obvious reasons; but now, that was impossible.

Manaka smiled internally as she saw the look on the boy's face, from astonishment to embarrassment passed over his face, she was a little amused to see him embarrassed, no, it wasn't exactly amusement she felt, she was pleased to see him embarrassed, after all, that was a sign that he saw her as a real woman. If she was honest, she was a bit too, her flushed cheeks were the greatest proof of this; but, she couldn't help it, not that she wanted to either, her clothes no longer fit like they did when she was 12 and, besides, the dress was a bit ragged after the events in which the fourth grail war ended.

She, at first, was extremely angry, it was not enough to have the woman performing a very intimate contract with Shirou, plus all the "games" she made him play, but, she also dared to take her first kiss, that was not something she could tolerate, no, that was not something she would tolerate without a doubt. So, even though he was still not at full capacity, she decided to go back.

Shirou started to come out of his stupor-. Mana-...

But he couldn't say anything else, just like a certain Princess, she silenced him with a kiss. It was a rather tender kiss, without an overflowing and crazy passion, it was more delicate and ephemeral, which was surprising considering the girl's personality. No, maybe it was like that because of the girl's personality, at the end of the day, even with her high degree of obsession, she was still a maiden going through first love?

Once again, the boy's mind had been thrown into a whirlwind of emotions with this simple kiss, it was strange, he remembered that she was someone who was greatly embarrassed by such simple things as a compliment or holding hands, well, in fact, he wasn't much different from her as a child either; however, just as he had changed since that time, it seemed that Manaka had changed as well.

She broke away and, on her face, there was nothing but a look of pure satisfaction, happiness, and desire. I've waited almost a decade to be able to do that," said the girl smiling beautifully and innocently. Although I'm still very, very angry! at that bloodsucker for stealing your first kiss; but I plan to collect soon," she said with extreme sweetness and her smile became too "cute" to mean good things. Still, we can leave that for later, right now, I prefer to look at other things, I must say that seeing the blushing face of the person you love, is really pleasant.

At her words, Shirou turned to the side, both because of the shiver her words caused him, and because of how embarrassed he was, if he could be even more embarrassed after seeing the beautiful body her friend was showing off in almost plain sight. Then, he saw the figure of his father lying on the bed next to his, for a moment, he was reminded of the time when he was feeding Altrouge and his father entered the room, which caused him, inevitably, to tense up and worry.

Manaka let out a small laugh. Relax, he won't wake up no matter how much noise we make.

This caught the boy's attention, and he immediately asked worriedly, "What did you do to him?

She lowered her gaze as if she were a scolded puppy, looking hurt. I didn't do anything wrong, Shi-kun, I would never hurt someone precious to you.

Seeing the girl's hurt look, he couldn't help but feel bad and regretful. Sorry, Mana, I didn't mean to accuse you of hurting Kiritsugu. It's just that he is very weak, and I'm worried about the damage the curse is doing to him.

At his words, she shook her head and smiled again, "Don't worry, you would worry about me just the same, wouldn't you?

To her surprise and instinctively, he nodded, "Are you all right now?

-Well, I'm not fully recovered yet, but I'm healed enough to be able to get out and about on my own.

-And... Your clothes...? -asked the boy, still embarrassed and, if he was honest, excited.

-Well... I've grown a bit, as you can see..." answered the girl embarrassed. "They don't fit me as well as before...".

-And what did you do to Kiritsugu? -asked Shirou still worried.

-I just hypnotized him to make him sleep until I allowed him to wake up, I also slightly modified his memories. -Seeing the look on his face, she dismissed his worries. I only did it to make him believe that I am a friend you made in the Clock Tower, and that you trust and are close enough to allow me to help you in the invasion against the Einzbern. Oh is that..." Manaka made a hesitant and innocent expression. Do you think we can explain everything about our relationship, about Lady Kannon, and all that?

Shirou frowned. No, I guess not, at least, not now," then, the boy looked intrigued. Will you help me, Mana?

She nodded resolutely-Of course, Shi-kun, what kind of girl would I be if I didn't help the one I love in this situation? -She asked as if it were the most normal thing in the world. In fact, I'd even prefer it if you didn't put yourself in danger and let me take care of everything; but I know you well, and I know that you won't stay out of it, right? "Besides, with the dangers to be found in the castle, I absolutely cannot let you go alone."

Though still nervous, he smiled and nodded- Yes, thank you, Mana.

Suddenly, a beeping sound rang throughout the room, it was the alarm he and his father had prepared to get up and start the operation, just as Manaka said, even with the noise, Kiritsugu did not wake up.

-We must start the operation," said the red-haired man, then, he turned to the girl. Mana, could you...? -asked the boy making a great effort to look at the girl's face and ignore the rest of her figure, which, in a sense, was very difficult, because the girl looked really beautiful as she was illuminated by the dim moonlight that filled the room.

Manaka was also similar in a sense to that girl he had seen this afternoon. When she was a child, both he and Ayaka had compared her to a fairy, like those found in the legendary Avalon: beautiful, glowing, and seemed to be able to do anything, a beautiful young innocent. Now, the childish part had disappeared thanks to her growth, if before she seemed to be a perfect little fairy, now he was sure that he and Ayaka could compare her to a beautiful Fairy Queen, her childish beauty, like a porcelain doll, had become a seductive and dangerous charm that seemed to shine more than ever.

Her beautiful features, her fine skin, her beautiful blonde hair and blue eyes, and her beautiful figure, would certainly make anyone fall enraptured.

To the boy's unawareness, Manaka was able to hear each and every one of his thoughts, and they only made him smile with satisfaction and complacency. She too picked up on his intentions and nodded as she stepped aside.

Quickly, he opened his suitcases and took out both his suit and other clothes that, he thought, could be of use to Manaka, as well as making sure that these were engraved with protective runes. Thus, the girl was dressed in a white shirt and black pants, along with her jacket.

For a moment, the girl debated whether she should take them, in reality, she could simply fix her dress with her mana, and the only reason she had left it as it was currently, was because she wanted to see her lover's embarrassed face; on the other hand, the idea of wearing Shirou's clothes somehow appealed to her, so, for now, she would accept them, and she would repair her dress later.

Before asking Manaka to bring Kiritsugu out of hypnosis, Shirou proceeded to take the equipment his father had stored in the backpacks they would both carry; however, before he could say anything to her...

Manaka hugged Shirou from behind and whispered, "By the way, Shi-kun, did you like what you saw?

-M-Mana," answered the boy completely nervous, at this moment he really cursed being a growing teenager, the hormones were really annoying sometimes...

She smiled as she saw him react-. I'm not embarrassed or bothered to show my body if it's to you, Shi-kun, though I wasn't planning to do it so soon," she said playfully, though she was thankful that the boy didn't see her, or he would be able to notice that even her ears were red. As I said, I don't find a boring outcome where I win without any competition fun; but, don't get me wrong, I know they don't and won't stand a chance, I'll be the one who wins in the end, after all, I'm the only one who can fulfill your wish.

"My wish...". The memory of the girl and her lifeless eyes came back to his mind-. Mana, you... don't you have a wish?

She looked at him quizzically. What do you mean?

-You always talk about fulfilling my wish; but... don't you have one too? Isn't there something you wish for?

-Hmn..." Manaka lowered her gaze, then raised her face and smiled a beautiful smile. Yes, of course I have a wish, and it's that the person who brought light into my life be happy. I want you to be happy, Shi-kun, and I will do everything in my power to make it happen.

There it was again, conviction and sincerity without any hesitation. "You really make it hard for me, you know." thought the boy. Thanks, Mana, I don't remember what I did to make you so devoted to me; but, I really hope I'm worth it.

-Of course you do, silly! Now come on, I'll wake up your father and we'll go invade that castle," she said as she approached the freelancer.

-How did you manage to hypnotize him?

-Don't you remember, Shi-kun? I told you, I'm an amazing magician; besides, due to his current state, his magic resistance is quite low right now," said the girl as she began to whisper some words in a language he didn't know.

Then, Kiritsugu started to wake up, and Manaka moved away from him, so that he wouldn't suspect anything.

-Shirou, Manaka, are you ready? -asked the man.

Shirou watched a bit dumbfounded as his father seemed to treat Manaka normally, something similar happened with Altrouge as well, when he saw this kind of thing, he couldn't help but think that sorcery was really something absurdly dangerous in many ways, and on top of it all, something that could be extremely frightening.

They looked at each other for a moment, and she winked at him candidly. Yes," they both replied, after that, Shirou proceeded to take some of the equipment and Manaka helped him by taking some of it as well.

-We'll wait for you outside, in front of the car, old man," said Shirou leaving, and accompanied by the girl, after having momentarily opened the barriers that his father had placed in the room.

Kiritsugu nodded and the two teenagers left the apartment. Thanks to this, the magus assassin was left alone in the room, he frowned, for several minutes, silence reigned in the room, then, his magic circuits activated and he narrowed his eyes-. This is...

Without pausing for a moment, the magus assassin began to analyze the room, there seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary, nothing out of the ordinary. After the quick analysis of the room, he set out to investigate the corners of the room, there, camouflaged, were a series of engravings that Kiritsugu had made in the afternoon, these generated a special delimited field. In fact, the magus assassin had created two bounded fields in the place: the first one, very similar to the barrier he had created years ago in his residence in Japan, was extremely difficult to detect and warned of any magecraft signatures entering it by a small bell Kiritsugu had placed in the room. The second bounded field, made with the Emiya family's Temporal Manipulation Sorcery, used an expanded version of the Innate Time Control created by Kiritsugu, in short, it reproduced the temporal stagnation within the room.

Usually, realizing such a bounded field required great preparations, which he had gone to the trouble of making, and large amounts of magecraft energy as the field expanded and the temporal deviation became wider; however, this field was confined only to the small room they had rented and to a maximum of a stagnation of twice the normal time; moreover, this could only be used for a few seconds, as that was the maximum time the magus assassin's body could withstand. All this reduced the expenditure of energy that would have to be used to use it.

Its function was simple, in the case of an enemy surprise attack, this field would be in charge of giving them "a few seconds of time" that would allow the magus assassin and his son to adapt to the situation. Obviously, both would also suffer from the effect of the bounded field, but both knew how they should act as efficiently as possible when their time slowed to twice their speed, allowing them to use those seconds as effectively as possible, unlike the rest of the magus. Furthermore, Shirou had also come up with a second way to use this barrier for a rather effective, if risky, counterattack, how his son had come up with this idea, Kiritsugu did not know, Shirou was reluctant to tell him, all he could find out was that it was related to the same classmate who had asked him for an autograph, Flat, and to a bizarre manga he had lent to his son.

Be that as it may, the important thing was not this, the important thing was that the outer barrier had not reacted indicating to them that someone had trespassed their domain, so, the inner barrier had not been activated either. Kiritsugu erased the engravings knowing that leaving them behind could bring trouble in the future, then took his things and left the room; however, his target was not the parking lot where Shirou and the girl were waiting for him; but the places where he had installed the first barrier.

And, again, he was met with the same answer...

He frowned. It wasn't broken, or altered, in any way... So how, then, was she able to break through it without activating it? Coming from her, I see it possible... -Kiritsugu felt the desire to take a cigarette and smoke, if not for the fact that he was in this situation, he would probably do it.

He headed towards the parking lot while asking himself several questions; why? Why was he showing up just now, after almost a decade? And what was his relationship with his son?

...

On the other hand, with Shirou and Manaka, on their way to the car they had rented...

-By the way, Mana, I haven't introduced you to him before, have I? -asked Shirou.

-Hmn? To whom? -asked the girl. "I have to make a good impression...".

Shirou raised the katana hanging from his belt. This is my ancestor, Muramasa Sengo.

-Enchanted," Muramasa was quick and curt, there was no noticeable animosity in his tone; but neither was there the opposite. He did not trust this girl, he could tell she was clearly dangerous, in more ways than one. While the dead apostle was as well, at least she made no secret of it.

To his surprise, and Shirou's, she bowed as a way of showing respect. Pleased to meet you, sir. I'm Manaka Sajyou, I've known Shi-kun since we were children, and I hope I can continue to be by his side for the rest of my life.

Although he still didn't trust the girl, the old blacksmith was pleased with the show of respect, after all, from his point of view, most of Shirou's classmates were disrespectful brats, especially Flat-. As long as you don't try anything mean towards the boy, you won't have a problem with me.

The girl nodded, "Thank you very much.

Although a bit confused by Manaka's attitude, the redhead continued to the car, followed by her friend.

Finally, after about 22 minutes, Kiritsugu reached the car and the three of them, four counting Muramasa, boarded it and proceeded to the part of the barrier that was closest to the river. To the group's good fortune, it didn't take long and, at ten to ten o'clock, they were already right in front of it.

Shirou pulled out the equipment he and his father had prepared for the operation. They both divided it up; but most of the firearms were taken by his father, these were: his Calico M950, the Walther WA2000, some grenades, and some explosives, as well as a night vision binocular. In addition to his distinctive mystic code, the Thompson Contender.

For his part, Shirou carried his three swords: Neocaliburn, Vorpal, and Muramasa, he also had his rifle, the Black barrel, some grenades and explosives, just like his father, and, most importantly, the missile launcher. Although mobility was a bit of a problem for him, the weight wasn't thanks to the Reinforcement, even so, and to his good fortune, Manaka decided to help him by carrying some of his equipment.

-Ready? -asked the freelancer.

They both nodded.

-Mana is much better than me as a magus, I think it's best we entrust this task to her," said the boy.

Kiritsugu nodded. I trust your judgment, Shirou. Unbeknownst to the red-haired boy, these words meant much more than he realized.

Shirou nodded and turned to the blonde. Mana, can you...?

He didn't have to finish the sentence, the girl nodded fervently-. Sure, leave it to me.

Manaka approached towards where the barrier should be, which, despite not being visible, she didn't seem to have problems to know its exact location. Then, using one of her fingers as if it were a pencil, with her Od, she wrote a series of symbols.

Shirou analyzed the process with interest. That's surprising, you're not reversing the flow of mana, instead, you're causing a small sequential disruption within the barrier, right?

Manaka nodded, "Reversing the flow of mana in the barrier is the surest way to cause a breach in the barrier; but, if we're talking about maintaining stealth, the most efficient solution is a small sequential disruption, large enough to create an opening for us to enter through, but small enough that it can repair itself and not alert the Einzbern.

-That's really smart, plus you're doing it in such a complicated barrier..." Shirou watched the process in amazement, while the theory was simple, the practice was much more complicated. How long will it take you to use this method? An hour and a half, two?

Manaka smiled, "Fufu, now...". -Once Manaka finished, they felt as if something had changed in the atmosphere.

-Already?

Manaka nodded. Yes, it's done.

-B-But, y-you only took a few seconds? -asked the surprised boy.

Manaka pouted, "Mou, Shi-kun, didn't I tell you that I'm an amazing magus?

-Yes... I knew it, but... You're... more amazing than I assumed.

Manaka smiled, "Thanks for the compliments, Shi-kun. Among the effects of the barrier, there was a disorienting effect that made it impossible to reach the castle, and caused the uninvited to get lost in the forest, now it won't affect us; but we must be quick," explained the girl.

-"We have to reach the castle before the barrier is repaired or we will have to rely on our abilities to deal with the disorienting effect in order to move forward. "And, in Kiritsugu's current state, he will have to rely solely on the satellite image. -Shirou said before turning to his father, "Old man, I want you to take this." Joining his hands in front of him and towards Kiritsugu, he projected a copy of Avalon. It floated momentarily to the stand-alone and was introduced inside it. It's just a copy, so it will unravel over time and only heal you until it spends all the mana it's made of and disappears. Its healing is also not as powerful as the original, but it should give you some survivability.

Avalon's projections were special compared to the others, for starters, it was the only construct he could project without any degradation, and, secondly, these projections worked, just like the original, with Gray's residual mana, hence, creating multiple Avalon projections without being near the girl would greatly weaken the healing ability of the original and the other copies. It wasn't the best move if the boy wanted to maintain his chances of survival; but, being a single copy, and in order to increase his father's odds, he was willing to take the risk.

Kiritsugu nodded, "Here we part..." To Shirou's surprise, his father came up to him and hugged him. "Thank you for everything you've given me, Shirou. Please, both of you, Illya and you, take care of each other. This is my last wish.

-What-what?! Kiritsugu! Why!? -Shirou glanced at his father and saw him give a calm, serene smile. No... You're not thinking about...!

The man turned without answering and walked away down the path he had planned to walk. Shirou hurried to follow him, or at least he tried to, the moment he wanted to run after his father, Manaka stopped him by holding his hand.

-Mana! -the boy shouted.

To his surprise, she looked at him seriously. Shi-kun, it's not that he has resigned himself to die, it's that he has decided to accomplish his goal to the point that he is willing to die if that will see it through.

-But...!

-I know..." said the girl with as much understanding and gentleness as she could show. But, Shi-kun, you must remember, we are magus. This conclusion is the result of the life we decided to lead; because we magus walk together with death.

-Still..." the boy tried to reply.

She smiled sadly at his devastated expression and gently hugged him to comfort him. Shi-kun, at this point, death is inevitable for your father. If I had recovered earlier, or if I were in full condition, I could do something; but, at this point, he is kept alive by sheer force of will. You can't prevent his departure; but you can help him choose how he wants to go.

-Huh?

-As I said, he is kept alive by the sheer desire to save his daughter and to see himself, together with the two of you, as a family. You can't stop him from dying; but you can get him to do so knowing that he fulfilled his ultimate goal. That way, Kiritsugu will be able to walk away with no regrets from the last part of his life, knowing that, while he was unable to save the world, in the end, he managed to save that which was most precious to him, his two children.

Shirou pulled away from the girl's embrace, and somewhat forcefully patted his face in an attempt to compose himself, and then showed a determined look and nodded-. You're right, thank you, Mana.

She smiled happily at the boy's smile and nodded.

-Well, let's begin.

At this moment, he was completely determined, he would get Illya and Kiritsugu to meet again, and nothing in that castle was going to prevent it.

For his part, with Kiritsugu...

The magus assassin walked at a brisk pace through the forest, he had been together with the Einzbern for ten years, so he knew the castle and its surroundings very well; however, since the forest contained various dangers, besides being immensely large, he did not know the outermost parts.

Kiritsugu was at the end of his strength and he knew it, he could barely use magecraft due to the atrophied state of his circuits, for that reason, the magus assassin had gathered all that equipment and carried most of it on his person, he was forced to use these weapons to make his way through the forest and into the castle. In addition, his body was very weak physically; therefore, he had to try with all his might to avoid any close-range combat.

He walked for several minutes in the forest, the snow was falling and making the path more difficult, each time he saw closer and closer the silhouette of the great castle of the Einzbern in the distance; soon... soon... soon he would see it once again, soon he would fix another of his greatest mistakes.

-Hmn? -Kiritsugu stopped, he heard something, a hiss. He turned his head to look at the place he could identify where the noise was coming from, and there he saw it, a wolf, a rather large one, and quickly decided to hide behind a tree.

These were one of the main reasons why Elder Acht would not allow him or any member of the Einzbern to go into the forest. The wolves were not only a constant danger, but also, together with the disorienting barrier formed by the forest and the evil spirits, acted as a defense system, not counting, of course, the homunculi.

The wolf began to approach their position.

-Time alter; Double Stagnate -With this aria, Kiritsugu stagnated his internal time, reducing his biological processes to a half of their normal speed, slowing his heartbeat to the point where, with difficulty, he could feel it himself. It slowed his breathing so that it slowed down, reducing his metabolism to the point where his body temperature cooled, although, the latter, could become extremely dangerous in the current environment, so he could not maintain it for more than a few seconds before putting himself in danger of death. On the other hand, his cornea was receiving twice the light that a person's eyes normally receive, which caused his field of vision to become brighter and his hearing to become dulled.

He would also suffer when returning to normal from stagnation, specifically, after stagnation there was an acceleration in his blood flow back to the original speed, which caused his capillaries to rupture and also internal bleeding. Were it not for Avalon's copy, it would be suicide to use it in its current state.

The wolf paused, as if it had noticed something strange.

Knowing that while the wolf couldn't see or hear him, he could still smell him, he grabbed a small stone lying on the ground and threw it in the opposite direction, praying that it would distract him. It hit a tree drawing the animal's attention and allowing Kiritsugu to escape while freeing himself from the effects of the sorcery.

He continued up the hill as he came closer and closer to the great castle of the old magus family. When, suddenly, the same wolf he thought he had escaped from attacked him from behind.

Fortunately, thanks to the runes that Shirou had engraved on his suit, the wolf's attack did not cause him great damage and simply pushed him several meters forward, making him fall on the snowy field. Without missing a beat, the wolf attacked the freelancer again; however, Kiritsugu protected himself from the fierce animal's fangs using his Walther WA2000, thus, the wolf bit the weapon without being able to cause any further damage to the man.

Kiritsugu considered shooting it with his Calico; but he feared that the shots would alert the Einzbern, so he kept using one hand to keep the weapon between himself and the wolf and, with his other hand, he pulled out the Phantom Punishment from his knife holder and, with one swift movement, attacked the wolf, plunging the knife into its neck, tearing it, and taking the creature's life.

The freelancer took the dead body of the animal off his shoulders and threw it aside, and without wasting any time, he hurried towards the castle. He had two good reasons to get there as fast as possible: the first was that wolves and evil spirits don't go near the castle, and the second was that wolves hunt in packs, and he was also lucky that the wraiths hadn't attacked him yet, so he had to make the most of it before he ran out.

He hoped that Shirou wouldn't encounter these, although, if he did, Kiritsugu wasn't worried, because his son was a good fighter both melee and ranged. He should be able to take care of these beasts with ease.

And, as if some deity affirmed it, several minutes earlier...

Slashhhh!

The head of one of the wolves leapt into the air, dyeing the white field dark red. Next to the red-haired man were two dead bodies, one was the one he had just decapitated and the other was burning thanks to the Sowilo rune. Five wolves surrounded the duo, in addition to the two that were already dead, seeing that they could not handle the boy, two launched themselves against Manaka, although she could destroy the entire pack with ease, Shirou asked her not to use offensive sorcery because, generally, this was showy and could alert the Einzbern. He told her to let him take care of everything this time and, although she was not happy with this request, she agreed for this time, so she did nothing to defend herself, not even when the wolves were within a few meters of her person, she trusted Shirou to take care of it. Besides, while she didn't like the boy exposing himself to danger, she liked Shirou protecting her, it was as if he was her knight and she was the princess.

With great speed, thanks to his Temporal Manipulation Sorcery; the double accel, and aided by his Reinforcement Sorcery, which he had used since the beginning of the fight, and, foreseeing that the wolves would attack his companion, he intercepted the first wolf by piercing it with a copy of the reinforced Muramasa, killing it instantly.

The second attacked the red-haired man from behind, and Shirou turned at high speed to strike the wolf in the jaw, he was wearing gloves similar to the ones he had used in the Rail Zeppelin, but these had the Ehwaz rune engraved on them, which he could use on his gloves to harden them, as well as the rest of his clothes. Before striking the beast, Shirou activated the rune with his Od and, with his reinforced hands, attacked the creature with enough force to pierce its jaw and shatter its head.

The other three attacked at the same time, trying to overwhelm the boy, one was cut in half with the real reinforced Muramasa, the other was sent flying with a terrible blow and, the third, managed to nail its jaws around his shoulder. Shirou, for his part, managed to withstand the weight of the animal, it tried to close its jaws and tear his shoulder; but, no matter how much strength he used, he could not sink his fangs into the boy's flesh thanks to the hardness of the suit. With his free hand after hitting the other wolf, Shirou used his magical energy to draw the Sowilo rune on the animal and the wolf's skin began to burn, which caused the wolf to stop biting him and throw himself on the snow trying to extinguish the flames, and after having succeeded, he fled with his skin smoking.

-Ready, let's go on, Mana.

She nodded, "We can't take too long. We wasted a lot of time destroying the evil spirits that infested the forest.

Shirou nodded, "Are you sure you managed to lure them all out? I don't want Kiritsugu to run into any of them.

Manaka nodded, "Yes, to the spirits we were like a candle in the middle of the night, it's unlikely that Kiritsugu would have run into any of them.

-You really are amazing, Mana," the boy complimented her, he had seen how she had been able to attract a huge amount of spirits with ease, only to then finish them off with extreme ease with a single move, or spell, rather. I don't even know how you did it.

Manaka smiled as she explained, "I used shamanic sorcery and certain black magic spells to attract the evil spirits to me; then, I used the sacrament of baptism of the Holy Church to exorcise them en masse as they were all concentrated in one place.

Shirou smiled a smile that showed his disbelief and irony. You talk about it as if it was something easy to do, but you used three different types of thaumaturgical systems one after another in an incredible way...

The girl winked at him, "I told you it was incredible, didn't I? -Then her expression became sterner. To our misfortune, remember when I warned you that we might attract unwanted spirits?

-Huh? Yes, but you didn't explain to me what you meant by unwanted spirits," asked the confused boy, but all his doubts were removed in an instant, an overwhelming presence became present; there, a few meters away from where they were, a being materialized: a tall man with silver-gray hair and brown skin.

"Is he a spirit? I can tell, but, no, it's impossible, unless...".

"He is just as you think, Shi-kun, he is a spirit, yes; but not just any spirit. Just like the one you faced at the Fargo family home and the one you fought alongside at the Marbury Workshop, a Ghost Liner, a Servant, a Heroic Spirit."

"M-Mana?" The boy asked surprised to hear his friend's voice directly in his head and worried about what he had just heard.

"Besides, this one's probably a lot tougher to fight than Faker, since, unlike her, he's built for one-on-one confrontations."

"That doesn't help, you know." Said the boy as he stood on guard.

The servant watched them for a few moments, after the silence, he finally spoke- "You're the boy who was guarding the territory this morning, aren't you?

Shirou looked at him in confusion, was the servant watching him when he was inspecting the barrier? If the Einzbern already knew about them, then, "Kiritsugu!". He was on the verge of panicking that the place his father was headed for was a trap, but a hand on his shoulder reassured him.

"Easy, leave it to me." Her friend smiled at her. Yes, we're the ones who have been guarding the Einzbern's territory.

-Why? I have been informed about the enemies from whom I must protect this territory, and you do not seem to be part of these, if you withdraw now, there will be no need to draw my sword," the knight spoke calmly.

Manaka smiled sweetly. It is because we are not the enemies you have orders to eliminate, on the contrary, we have come on a rescue mission.

-Rescue mission? -asked the impassive servant, although inwardly he was very intrigued.

The girl nodded, "That's right, we have come to rescue Illyasviel von Einzberm.

-Lady Einzbern? That doesn't make sense...

-Oh, but of course it does, don't you know that? Lady Einzbern is kidnapped.

This surprised the knight internally. That's ridiculous, this is Lady Einzbern's family territory.

-Not exactly, although it is her grandfather's territory, even so, she remains sequestered. She was taken away from her father, her closest family, a decade ago, forced to isolate herself from the rest of the world, confined to that castle which, for her, is nothing more than a prison," Manaka explained. Shi-kun, could you tell the gentleman who you are, please?

Shirou slowly began to understand her friend's plan, this being was a servant, and more specifically, a knight, knights are governed by a code, and Manaka was trying to appeal to that code; but would it work? After all, for a servant, his master's orders were absolute, and even so, he decided to go along with his friend's plan. My name is Emiya Shirou, I am the adopted son of Emiya Kiritsugu, Illya's father, and her adopted brother.

"Kiritsugu, yes, that's right, Lady Einbern called her father that. Although I feel I should be careful with the girl, I don't feel the boy is lying to me." Siegfried thought.

Manaka watched as the servant lightly clenched his hands tightly and smiled inwardly.

-Still, my master ordered me to stop any intruders, so please withdraw from the mountain, I don't want to have to fight against someone who possesses no evil desires.

-I... I can't do that, because this is the last chance Kiritsugu has to reunite with Illya," the boy spoke in whispers, but loud enough for the spirit to hear, then, the boy spoke with determination. That's why I can't retreat, I have to make it so that the two of them can be reunited!

-You see, Lady Einzbern's father is in the last days of his life, right now he is struggling to stay alive with the only hope of seeing his daughter again, that's why we can't retreat," Manaka explained.

-If in order for the two of them to be reunited once more I must face you, then draw your sword, hero," said the boy taking Neocaliburn.

This made the dragon knight clench his hands tighter and the girl smiled inwardly. Of course, we understand that your master's orders are absolute; however, none of us pose a threat to him as long as you protect him, we would appreciate it very much if you would allow us to have this meeting.

For a moment, the knight's expression was unreadable, but, finally, he answered, "If you are lying to me, when you approach the castle and reveal your true intentions, I will see to it that you are eliminated without any hint of doubt, and if my master orders me to deal with you directly, then I can do nothing to prevent it; however, this time, in honor of Lady Eizbern, I will let you pass.

-We thank you for your honorable act," replied the girl with a bow.

Shirou bowed as well. Thank you very much.

Having said that, the boy hurried and passed by the servant's side, followed closely by his friend; however, unlike him, she stopped behind the heroic spirit for a few moments...

-I apologize for the situation we are placing you in.

-Hmm?

-Fufu... You are a knight who fights not for the desires of others, not for your own desires, but for justice itself, and yet, tragically, you have been summoned by a master whose orders will likely lead you to wield your sword against a father who only wants to see his daughter again, at the same time that you are ordered to fight for the selfish desires of your master, who will not even have the honor of fighting for himself at your side, but plans to send the very girl he has held against her will for her entire life to serve as a substitute in a cruel war where she could easily die. -Siegfried did not know it, but, if he turned to look at the girl's face, even he could not maintain his impassivity at the sight of the young girl's angelic smile as she declared such horrendous implications. It seems that everything repeats itself, you tried to stop a tragedy and provoked a worse one, and apparently, you will do it once again. It's a real shame, hero of justice, Siegfried.

Finally, the hero could bear it no longer, he turned quickly to face the girl and; however, all he found, was the snowy field with no one around him. With his fists tightly clenched and his gaze lowered, a simple thought was furrowing the knight's mind, "It seems the curse of the Rhine still haunts me."

Several meters away, Shirou was running as fast as he could and, as if she had never left his side, Manaka was beside him.

-I'm surprised he actually let us pass," said the boy.

-We were lucky that the summoned one was an honorable knight, otherwise, we would have had to fight right there," replied her friend.

Shirou nodded- Although, even so...

Manaka also gave a small nod. A confrontation seems to be inevitable... "Although, if we are lucky, maybe we can get Saber to turn to our side, even though he is an honorable knight, he will not listen to any order that goes against his principles. We just have to make him see who his master really is...". Thought the girl, and yet she did not say anything to the boy, perhaps because she did not want to give him false hopes, at this moment, the redhead had to concentrate on those other enemies whom they could not convince with mere words, and so, the two rushed towards the castle of the Einzbern.

After several minutes, they both arrived in the vicinity of the castle. With a quick movement, Shirou used Kenaz while strengthening his eyes to improve his eyesight and, in this way, he was able to observe several homunculus guards patrolling behind the windows, as well as in the castle towers and courtyard.

Kenaz was a rune that was related to fire, it represents enlightenment and mental clarity, it alludes to the need to know what we really want, and it was also related to intuition. By using it in his eyes, Shirou not only improved his eyesight, but also, unconsciously, his gaze was diverted to the less guarded points of the fortress, as well as to those that were more patrolled, as well as to possible entrances and escape routes, all this in just a matter of seconds.

One of the most intriguing things in the eyes of the boy, were the rock golems that walked around the castle, it was known that the Einzbern family was capable of creating golems as simple as these; but, precisely because they were so simple, they would not be reduced to build them just to increase their defense.

What had made the old golem swallow his pride and decide to create these "crude" golems in order to increase the castle's defense? the boy wondered.

On the other hand, the most impressive thing in his eyes were those few serres that were patrolling along with the golems, "Those... They are not on the same level as the heroic spirit; but, they are certainly higher level spirits than the evil spirits we found inside the forest."

"That's right, Shi-kun, these are what are known as Shadow Spirits, simply put, they are incomplete, degraded, or even fake servants. Generally, there are a number of circumstances that cause them, such as a bad summoning or remnants of a servant's spiritual origin coalescing around areas with powerful magical energy when they should normally disperse and disappear." Manaka explained to him, "In this case, they appear to be incomplete and degraded spirits, much weaker than a true Ghost Liner; but they are still a danger to consider."

"I see, then no doubt this will be more dangerous than I thought."

The boy's cell phone vibrated, a message had arrived, it was from Kiritsugu, he too had reached their position-. Good, it has arrived. It's time to start, are you ready, Mana?

-Let's start the show, Shi-kun.

Shirou took the missile launcher and pointed it at one of the big walls of the castle.

With amusement, Manaka began to say, "Countdown! 3...! 2...! 1...! Fire!

BUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMMM!

Shirou fired at one of the huge castle walls, the projectile flew over the golems until it hit the wall and completely destroyed it. The castle shook, all the lights went on, all the homunculi, golems, and servants rushed to the place of impact and some screams were heard all over the place. Thus, the most important part of the operation, the distraction, had begun.

And, meanwhile, before all this happened, inside the castle...

Illya was sleeping in her big room, or at least, she was trying to, she had just met with her grandfather and he had explained a series of things that had shocked her, now she had a lot of things to think about and yet, what she really wanted at this moment, was to dream once again of seeing Kiritsugu again, of now having a brother who, apparently, had not stolen her father's affection, and who could become a new member of her family. She already knew that her mother was not coming back, but she dreamed of being able to be together with her father and her new brother.

All her life she had been locked up in the castle, and for the last ten years she had been locked up without her parents, only a little over half a decade ago, her family had decided to enter into certain relations with the Musik family, and yet they had not made any changes to their tortuous lifestyle.

Having been greatly damaged in the last ritual and found himself in an unusable state, his grandfather had begun trying to create a new holy grail to perform the ritual in another location that would allow it, even if they did not have one; but it was not something that could be accomplished overnight, after all, to establish the previous ritual, it took both the sacrifice of Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern, a living miracle to the Einzbern, the collaboration of two other magus families, and the supervision of the Wizard of the Jewels. And, after a while of trying, her grandfather decided to change the method for the new performance of the ritual, she remembered it well, it was two years ago, although she didn't know why, but it all started when that red-haired man had arrived at the castle.

Be that as it may, a few hours ago, her grandfather had asked to meet with her and, along with the various news she had received from him, he had also officially appointed her as the new head of the family, the ninth head of the Einzbern family, the only one who was not a Jubstacheit golem, and; however, she knew that this did not change her prohibition to leave the castle at all, not until that event took place. He had told her before, if she went out, she would do so alone, with no homunculus protecting her, meaning she would be food for wolves, spirits, or hunger.

Though she knew of this, though she had prepared herself to be disappointed even if she achieved her goal, she could not deny that she had a modicum of hope that things would change, and now that small hope crept across her cheeks. She endured, endured as long as she could, but she nearly went crazy when she was told that Kiritsugu had returned to the Moonlit World accompanied by her brother, who could also enjoy studying with other people inside the Clock Tower, instead of being isolated. Fortunately, she was able to contact her brother before she did something foolish, and now that her hope of changing anything by becoming the ninth head had been destroyed, she only had that little dream left where her brother and father came to end her loneliness.

BUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMMM!

Suddenly, the castle shook and shook with great force.

Illya opened her eyes and lit the gas lamps in her room. She could hear the screams of the guards inside the castle, at this moment, she was wearing white pajamas. Slipping on some slippers, she opened the door to the room, outside, she could see in the corridors the guards running, among the screaming crowd, she could hear:

-They're attacking us!

-They're coming from the back!

-What's happening? -asked the girl as she watched all the commotion in the castle.

-My lady," said Sella, who was accompanied by Leysritt. Some invaders are attacking us, Mr. Jubstacheit has asked us to keep her in her room.

This worried the girl, invaders? They had never had invaders for as long as she could remember, although, she could not deny that, in the last few months, Grandfather had been reinforcing the castle's defenses, to the point of creating simple golems as long as they served as part of an extra defense, something that for Jubstacheit, who rejoiced in his enormous capacity for the creation of homunculi almost identical to humans, but with greater capabilities, was a spit on his pride.

-Did you manage to identify them? -Illya asked.

Sella nodded, "Yes, though probably only I could tell them apart.

-What do you mean? -she asked in confusion.

-One of them is your brother, my lady.

This surprised the girl, they had come, they really had come. Illya was no fool, she knew that her grandfather would never let her be with her father, whom she considered a traitor, therefore, if they came, it would be to rescue her by force.

-Besides that, we only know that they destroyed one of the castle walls. At the moment, they are confronting the golems and guards in the back garden," said Leysritt.

With that said, they both proceeded to lead Illya back to her room as they closed the door behind them.

-Shouldn't we help? I'm the new head of the family..." said the teenager trying to facilitate her rescue.

Sella shook her head, "That's precisely why her grandfather doesn't want her involved, as the greatest creation of the Einzbern, she must be protected. -Then, despite her general stiffness, she gave a small reassuring smile, she only behaved this way when she was intimate with her mistress. You can rest assured, your father is the terror of the magus, he will make it this far, and we will not stand in the way. But if he goes out on his own, the master will take action.

-But Grandfather summoned the Shadow Servants and Saber! -the girl exclaimed worriedly.

-It's true that the lord summoned them as additional protection, even if someone were to infiltrate inside, they should be able to eliminate them. But remember, your brother was able to defeat even one of the 27 Dead Apostles, he should be able to fight them," Sella replied.

-"Anyway, I sent Fillia to look for his father, he wasn't with his brother, so he must have infiltrated somewhere else. Hopefully Fillia will find him and guide him here before any other homunculus or Shadow Servant finds him," said Leysritt.

Though still very hesitant, Illya nodded. All that was left for him was to wait, just a little longer...

...

And, in the meantime...

Once the explosion sounded, Kiritsugu could see how all the guards abandoned their positions to run towards where the bustle was, taking advantage of this, he ran towards one of the windows on the second floor and, using his weapon, smashed it to pieces and entered inside the castle.

"Wait for me Illya, we'll be together soon...". Thought the freelancer as he went inside the residence.

...

And, while all this was going on...

Shirou and Manaka had come out of the forest, they slowly walked towards the castle of the old family, with golems, homunculi, and some Shadow Servants heading towards both of them. Shirou unsheathed Neocaliburn and the blade glowed with the exterminating light from the mana he was providing.

-Ready? -asked the boy.

Manaka smiled, "Let the party begin, I'll cover for you.

Shirou nodded, "I'll take care of it.

And so, the invasion of the Einzbern castle began...

Chapter 18, Rescue part 2, Promise.

Several minutes before the beginning of the operation, in the forest...

Siegfried moved nimbly and at great speed within it, it was not complicated for him to locate the two boys again, he had to keep an eye on them to make sure their intentions were true. The knight knew that, in the worst case scenario, his master could teleport him with a command spell, in case the true objective of the two was to take his life; but, it was his duty to protect him, and he would not allow his possible mistake to cost his master a command seal.

Finally, he caught up with them, he was in his spirit form and they in the vicinity of the castle, they seemed to be watching the golems, homunculi, and shadowy spirits, "Is that...?".

"A modern day weapon, we'll use it to cause a distraction...". Manaka said in a soft voice.

This surprised the heroic spirit, not only because the girl was able to convey her words directly into his mind, but also because she was able to do so while he was in his spirit form, where she shouldn't even be able to see him, "A distraction, for what?". Honestly, the knight did not believe that she would answer him with the truth; but there was something strange with this girl, she was like a fairy with a soft and melodious voice that made it seem that there was no room for doubt or lies, he knew that the girl was dangerous, or at the very least, very skilled; but inexplicably he could not judge her as an evil person, not this girl who seemed to shine in an innocent way and yet...

BUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMMM!

The servant watched in amazement as the strange weapon had fired some sort of large projectile and the as it caused a large hole in one of the castle walls.

"As we said, this is an operation in order to reunite Lady Einzbern with her father; however, she is kidnapped by her grandfather", the heroic spirit frowned at this implication, he had not been for a long time at his new master's side; but until now, he had not struck him as someone with such dark intentions, he was stiff and cold; but not to the point of showing such cruelty; however, he could also see how lonely the Lady felt inside the castle, "So it is impossible for him to allow the two of them to meet no matter how much we beg him, in fact, Lady Einzbern's father has implored him multiple times without any kind of result, so the only thing we can do, is to do it against his wishes, and for that we plan to create a distraction that will allow Lady Einzbern's father to infiltrate inside the castle and meet with his daughter."

Siegfried narrowed his eyes and frowned.

And Manaka, as if she could see his expression, dismissed his worries with a smile as she followed Shirou to the battlefield, "Fufu... Relax, it's just as you said, with you here, it's almost impossible for us to cause any damage to your master, at this distance you should be able to reach him in a matter of seconds, and if he uses a command seal, it will be an instantaneous matter, you have nothing to be afraid of. Still, if you have so many worries, I can tell you the location of the miss's father so you'll be able to see for yourself."

This made the servant hesitate, "Why?".

"Why am I telling you all this?".

The servant nodded silently.

"Well, it's because I think that even if you go, I highly doubt you'll hurt Kiritsugu. It's a bit tiring to repeat it; but, I'll say it again, we only want him to succeed in reuniting with Illyasviel. I don't think a hero like you would end the hope of the two of them without having a good reason, do you?" she said with an innocent smile, "So you can do whatever you want, you can go and guard Kiritsugu, or you can stay and guard us, do as you wish."

"I'm so sorry," the servant replied for having to make the girl repeat herself over and over again.

"No need to apologize...," the Manaka replied.

He kept frowning; however, he decided to stay and observe the battlefield, the girl's words were not false, it took only a few seconds to reach his master's side, and an instantaneous appearance was possible through a Command Spell, so his master was in no real danger as long as he was in the vicinity. Besides, perhaps by watching the battle unfold in the courtyard, he would be able to discern the intentions and manner of action of these two.

...

And, after 10 minutes, he realized a few things...

"He's not killing them...", the heroic spirit said mentally as he watched the boy fight the homunculi; although, really, this was only one of the things that caught his attention. As he understood from his teacher, most of the warriors of his time had disappeared for the present day, and yet this boy found himself fighting like one of them, all the while wielding a sword that he could tell, was a holy sword.

"Oh, you mean Shi-kun? Well, it's not that he doesn't kill his enemies; but if he can help it, then he will choose to do so," Manaka answered him.

"I thought magi viewed homunculi as nothing more than dolls, or at least, that's what my teacher told me."

"It is a widely shared view in the community, yes; but Shi-kun is different. He possesses a friend who is also a homunculus and with whom he has developed a friendly relationship in which he feels he must protect him, on the other hand, Kiritsugu's wife, was also a homunculus, and, finally, Lady Einzbern, his sister, is also a homunculus. It is impossible for him to see homunculi as mere dolls after having interacted with one as equals."

For a moment, the servant looked embarrassed, it was true, Lady Einzbern was also a homunculus, she was simply so different from the rest that he had not even taken her into account.

On the other hand, if the boy fighting like a warrior of his time brought him surprise and some nostalgia, the girl was no less, although more than nostalgia, it only confirmed his suspicions that she was dangerous. The girl was still hovering on the battlefield, almost as if she was above it and simply lowered her gaze to judge those below her, although it seemed an exaggerated description the first time he thought of it, later it proved not entirely wrong, this girl could look as graceful as a fairy; but on the battlefield she looked like a goddess of war. The very sky was covered in powerful violet lightning attacks with an enormous amount of magical energy, this was only his trial, but he believed that even his armor would not be enough to completely rid him of the damage of those attacks.

Still, and to his surprise, she wasn't firing with the intention of killing the homunculi either, she was ignoring them and letting the boy deal with these, she was mostly focusing on the more powerful golems, and, above all, the Shadow Servants.

In her eyes, the Shadow Servants might not be able to stop them. These were degraded and much weaker than the original ones, their lack of reasoning, although it made them easier to control, as they obeyed orders to the letter, in this case represented a disadvantage and, above all, if what his master had told him was correct, then the servants from which these remnants had been formed were not particularly powerful, as his master had not wanted to take the risk of a shadowy servant of a high-level servant getting out of his control.

"Saber, where are you?" His master's voice echoed inside his head.

For a moment, Siegfried hesitated, should he tell his master the truth? Seeing how the young men found themselves fighting steadily against all those who attacked them, finally, he simply said, "I am heading to the battlefield, to the place where the explosion occurred, master."

"So I see; however, at this time, that is not a priority, return to my side, Saber," Acht ordered.

"But master, our enemies...!".

"They are inside the castle. There was a small explosion inside one of the corridors and someone caused it, the explosion outside the castle is probably a distraction, so return, Saber."

"... I understand, master."

For a moment, the hero found himself staring at the battlefield, wondering what he should do.

"I suggest you follow your master's orders, in fact, I suggest you go to the chapel, he seems to be heading there," the girl spoke again.

"You, how do you know...?".

"Don't worry about those details now, I understand that Elder Acht hates failures, it would be problematic if he began to consider you as a servant failure."

This, unfortunately, was true, his master was extremely elitist with his creations, and most of the failed creations that were found to have no use within the castle, were discarded.

In the end, the servant had no choice but to obey his master's orders and go inside the castle, he was able to know where the castle was by means of a spell of shared perception, just as his master had seen through his eyes a few moments ago, and, to his surprise, the girl was right, he was heading towards the chapel. Siegfried decided to go ahead and reached it in his spiritual form, there he observed a singular scene, inside it, along with her two maidens, was Lady Einzbern.

On the other hand...

Kiritsugu moved as agile as his body allowed him through the corridors of the huge castle. He had been away from it for almost a decade; but even so he remembered it clearly, he had one goal: to reach the bedroom he shared with Iri during his stay with the Einzbern. This was the place where he was most likely to find his daughter, and in case Illya wasn't there, then he would go to the second most complicated place to access in the castle, the chapel, and if not, then he would go straight to the old golem's room, or to his workshop.

He stopped before turning the next corner, carefully, he looked at what was behind this one, there he could see it, some kind of shadowy specter, but that thing was not a specter per se, in fact, in essence, it looked like a servant. Kiritsugu had heard of them from the elder Acht, according to him, he knew of them because, in the early years of the ritual, when the summoning system was not fully developed, there had been cases where summonings failed, these failed summonings generated incomplete and degraded Servants, Shadows of the Servants, Shadow Servants. According to what Acht had told him, they did not have a high reasoning capacity, they only followed orders, or, in the worst case, they acted instinctively.

Had he succeeded in creating a new true Holy Grail? No, if he had, then they wouldn't be Shadow Servants, maybe he had managed to create a prototype, or something like that. Be that as it may, this thing was in their way; but Kiritsugu knew that the bullets from his guns would not be enough to defeat them; they might be demoted Servants; but they were still Servants, so he took out one of the explosives he had prepared and placed it on one of the walls of the corridor. Then, the magus assassin went out to meet the shadowy servant, he didn't even cross the corridor, he kept as far away from it as possible and, without waiting a second, he shot at the residual servant.

The first bullets flew towards the Servant and, despite the speed of these, the shadowy Servant managed to react in time and block/deflect most of them, the ones that managed to hit him seemed to have some effect; however, they could barely be considered minimal damage, after having deflected the bullets, the shadow raised its gaze realizing his presence, Kiritsugu fired again while retreating and it dodged the second burst of shots; as well as all the following bursts while advancing rapidly against the magus. When Kiritsugu found that his shots were not powerful enough to do any considerable damage, and that the shadow was approaching him faster and faster, the freelancer proceeded to run even faster while activating Double Accel in order to keep his distance.

However, this was of little use, due to his current state, even with the Double Accel, the Servant was faster than him; but that was the plan, when Kiritsugu saw that the shadow was passing by the place where he had placed the explosive, he detonated it. The Servant was hit by the explosion, which not only destroyed the wall where the explosive was placed, but also shook the entire corridor, and destroyed part of the opposite wall, sending the Servant flying out of the corridor through a large hole into the castle courtyard.

The magus killer didn't stop to check if his attacker was dead; he knew that an explosion of that level shouldn't be able to kill a normal servant, maybe being a shadow it might be possible, but he didn't have the time to check, so he continued on his way as fast as he could, if that explosion hadn't killed him, then the best he could do was to get away from the site.

He kept running, he ran as fast as his body would allow him to. He crossed several corridors, climbed stairs and saw, through the windows, how a pitched battle was taking place in the castle gardens. He couldn't make out much because of the height and the darkness; but he could see how several homunculi were sent flying or hit with great force, he also observed how beams of compressed mana were shot by Manaka one after another at great speed. He narrowed his eyes, she was as dangerous as he remembered her, maybe more so. Even if she had hidden it well, it still surprised him that the teacher who had put him in so much trouble, along with that Church priest, was a girl who, though she looked older than Shirou now, when the fourth war for the holy grail was waged, must have been a child entering her teens.

He considered going to help his son; but then shook his head, he decided to trust his son's judgment, he had taken it upon himself to verify that Shirou was not hypnotized when he hugged him before saying goodbye and, to his surprise, he was, this meant that the boy had brought the girl willingly, and, thus, that he trusted her enough to bring her to this operation. However, he also wished that this other woman had been brought in, who, while he did not know what her abilities as a magus were, if she had such a powerful mystic eye to cause him such a strong suggestion for so long, then she must be a truly powerful magus. Although, to his surprise, said suggestion had started to disappear after his son had returned from the Rail Zeppelin, and, when it disappeared completely, he thought about questioning Shirou; but he decided not to do so, the woman, whoever she was, didn't seem to have bad intentions towards him, although, even so, he investigated her, but, to his surprise, he found nothing relevant, nothing except for a few things...

Although the girl introduced herself as Rouge Crimson, in her papers inside the Tower she was registered with another name; except for that detail, the rest of her record didn't seem to be anything special: all her data was normal, she was the heiress of a magus family from a small Eastern European country, her family was nothing special, just an average magus family belonging to the New Age, this term was used by the Lords of the Tower to describe the families with few centuries of antiquity, basically, for them, these were nothing more than the worker bees of the Tower. Furthermore, even though, when she and he had formally introduced themselves, Rouge had told him that she was not a magus, in her report she said that she was a specialist in Binding Sorcery. Other than these details, there was nothing strange about her report. On the other hand, the magus killer himself had been judging her since she had come out of hypnosis, and, to his misfortune, he wasn't able to notice anything different.

Still, there were things that he could notice that those in the Clock Tower could not, for one thing, because he knew that this report must be false, or at least, a part of it, because it detailed how this average magus family, through various means, became a branch family of the Emiya family and that Shirou, as their heir, had brought her to the Tower as his apprentice, which was obviously false. But what caught his attention the most were two things: this girl had appeared after what happened in the ritual of Aylesbury Valesti, and, in addition, the name Crimson Rouge...

Por un momento, el trabajador independiente considero la remota posibilidad de que esta chica fuera la Princesa de los Apóstoles Muertos a la que su hijo se había enfrentado, pero luego, solo negó con la cabeza, eso era absurdo. Para empezar, ¿por qué demonios Altrouge Brunestud seguiría a su hijo a la Torre del Reloj y se haría pasar por su aprendiz? Simplemente no podía pensar en un motivo que hiciera que la Princesa de los Apóstoles quisiera correr todos esos riesgos; por otro lado, él no había notado nada que le indicara que ella era una apóstol, el problema era que, si era realmente Altrouge, esto sería más difícil de demostrar, pues, la Princesa de los Apóstoles Muertos, normalmente aparecía como una niña de catorce años de edad, y Rouge era unos años mayor, y normalmente era impotente y complicada de identificar como una apóstol, debido a su estado como una híbrida. Para finalizar, analizándolo en perspectiva, era algo muy ridículo que, con un informe tan completo y bien estructurado como el que él había inspeccionado que la chica tenía dentro de la Torre del Reloj, ella fuera tan tonta como para presentarse con un nombre que daría pistas sobre su verdadera identidad. En pocas palabras, la situación era simplemente demasiado absurda como para ser real.

Por otro lado, si hablaba de situaciones absurdas, la adolescente que había aparecido de la nada, que era, sin duda alguna, la misma chica con la que se había enfrentado durante la cuarta guerra del santo grial, era sin duda la situación más improbable que él había esperado. Si bien nunca se reunieron personalmente, ambos unieron fuerzas temporalmente durante la guerra, lo que le permitió relacionar tanto su voz como su firma mágica con su forma actual. ¿Como pudo lidiar con su hipnotismo? Bueno, de hecho, ella fue capaz de romper todas sus defensas mentales, pero cometió un error: dejó un gran agujero en su memoria cuando manipuló sus recuerdos, ella se introdujo como una compañera que Shirou había conocido en la Torre del Reloj; sin embargo, no previó que él pudiera identificarla por su voz y por su Od, y así relacionarla con la guerra. Esto produjo que él analizara sus recuerdos, notando ciertas pequeñas discrepancias y pudiendo escapar del hipnotismo. Lo único que no había podido entender era: ¿Cómo demonios la chica atravesó todas las barreras que él había colocado alrededor de la habitación? Era como si la chica hubiera aparecido dentro de esta, o algo así. Aunque, él no lo descartaba, esa chica se había enfrentado a un magus de la Era de los Dioses como iguales durante la cuarta guerra, si lo que sabía era cierto. Por otro lado, siendo una magus tan talentosa, ¿había ella realmente cometido un error como ese? Él no lo veía probable, pero, si era así, ¿significa que ella dejó ese agujero de forma intencionada? Y si es así, ¿por qué lo hizo?

Kiritsugu no entendía la situación; pero, aun así, él decidió fingir que no conocía nada, decidió confiar en el juicio de su hijo. Shirou tendría que tomar decisiones por su cuenta en el futuro sin que él estuviera para ayudarlo, ya no le quedaba mucho tiempo... Lo único que le dolía es, que Shirou no se lo revelara por sí mismo; pero no podía enojarse; porque él hizo lo mismo cuando le ocultó sobre la cuarta guerra del santo grial.

Kiritsugu volteó su mirada y decidió seguir adelante, y, más temprano que tarde, se encontró con otros dos homúnculos, ellos lo atacaron sin mediar palabra.

Kiritsugu sabía que, en su estado actual, incluso estos dos homúnculos representarían un enorme problema, no, si era sincero, incluso en una condición aceptable, los homúnculos de los Einzbern eran un peligro a considerar. Después de todo, se decía que, incluso los que son considerados fracasos por Acht, siguen siendo superiores a 100 magus promedios. Sin embargo, esto solo se refiere a su potencial como magus, a su capacidad para usar hechicería poderosa, no a su capacidad para el combate y, más importante aún, él era especialista en tratar con magus.

Kiritsugu observó mientras corría como el primer homúnculo preparaba un poderoso hechizó elemental y, sin dudar un segundo—. Time alter; Doble Accel.

Balas volaron al doble de su rapidez original por el pasillo hacia el homúnculo, este, sorprendido por el ataque a gran velocidad, no pudo terminar de completar el hechizo y fue atravesado por las balas...

This was one of the new ways of using Temporal Manipulation Sorcery that Kiritsugu and Shirou had been working on. Due to the magus assassin's current state, using sorcery on his own body was too risky, so they thought of changing the place of application of the bounded field. In short, the magus killer had used the bounded field inside his Calico M950 machine gun so that it, which was capable of firing fifty rounds of the Parabellum projectile at a rate of fire of 700 rounds per minute, would be able to fire at twice its original rate; causing the bullets to shoot out with greater force. Obviously, as with any machinery, this sudden and forced increase in its speed put its structure at risk, in case of continuous or prolonged use; however, thanks to the Booster, he had been able to minimize this demerit.

The sudden attack at high speed caught the first homunculus unawares, who could not finish the spell in time before being pierced by the bullets, his strength was depleted by the attack of the magus, falling to the ground while he bled to death. The second homunculus had more time to react than his companion and, using his alchemy, was able to erect a wall to defend himself from the shots, at the same time reinforcing himself, in case any of the shots could hit him, after the first blast ended, he wasted no time and attacked him with a battle axe he carried, and Kiritsugu was forced to dodge it as best he could; However, in the end, it was able to corner him and the magus killer could do nothing but parry the axe with his own weapon. However, the homunculus had more strength than he did, pushing his axe harder and causing the freelancer to bend backwards. And, just as it was about to give way...

Bang!

A thud was heard and the homunculus slumped forward with its eyes rolling. Kiritsugu watched as, behind it, stood a person, a woman. She had knocked out her fellow homunculus with a blow in which she had combined both Reinforcement Sorcery and Open Logical Path Sorcery.

She was a homunculus of the Einzbern and thus possessed the same features as the rest of the homunculi, long snowy hair, pale skin, red eyes. She was tall and, in addition, dressed in an all-white suit, she seemed to be wearing a look of annoyance or displeasure.

After knocking out her companion, Fillia judged the man with a frown. Is that you, Emiya Kiritsugu?

He nodded.

-My name is Fillia, Lady Einzbern has sent me to escort you.

-Illya? -He had to be careful, in the worst case scenario, this could be a trap.

-"That's right, but we must hurry, if the lord finds out, he will eliminate us both," saying that, the woman turned and proceeded to go on her own.

Kiritsugu gave it some thought, she had attacked a homunculus so she could talk to him, it didn't make sense if what she wanted was his death, she also didn't think they would lead him into a trap if they could assassinate him at once, after all, old Einzbern wanted him dead as soon as possible. Besides, if she took him to this one, then it would make things easier for him, so, cautiously, he followed her.

They proceeded towards the room in which he once lived, to his surprise, the woman guided him using routes that would allow them to avoid the other shadows, as well as the other homunculi.

From one moment to the next, they had arrived...

Kiritsugu opened the door to the room and, to his surprise, it was empty. As quickly as he could, he pointed his weapon at Fillia. What is the meaning of this?

The homunculus did not fear for her life, despite having a greater sensitive capacity than many of her siblings thanks to having spent about a year and a half with Lady Einzbern, she still understood that she was nothing more than a disposable being, she was preprogrammed to know, understand, and accept it.

-Lady Einzbern was here, I have no reason to lie to her.

-So? -asked the man.

The woman gave it some thought. If the lady is not here, then the gentleman must have requested her presence.

-Where?

-As if she didn't care in the least that a gun was being pointed at her, she said, "Follow me, if we can catch up with him, we can avoid an encounter with the master.

Kiritsugu, hesitantly and cautiously, decided to follow once again, however, he kept pointing his gun at her at all times, in case the woman tried to make any false moves.

On the other hand, in the Einzbern's courtyard, several minutes earlier...

Shirou was in the middle of a war field, he had several people coming at him from various parts, so, in order not to be surrounded, nor attacked from various directions, he was moving all over the battlefield.

One man came at his side with a spear; three, four, five stabbing attempts, but Shirou managed to dodge them all. He not only possessed greater combat experience, but also had higher quality weapons, and had pushed his Reinforcement to its current limits, both in himself, and in his weapons, while using Ehwaz to toughen himself, Algiz to decrease the damage of his enemies' attacks, Raidho to increase his speed, Kenaz to improve his vision and his ability to distinguish the weak points of his enemies, and all this while using his temporal manipulation at twice his speed. With a quick Neocaliburn move, he broke the spear in two and, with the hilt, struck the homunculus in the head.

Another tried to stab him in the back, but Shirou held his hand and, using his own strength, threw him to the ground, then hit him hard enough to knock him to the floor.

Finally, a third tried to cut him with a sword; but he disarmed him without difficulty. Shirou avoided the cut and, projecting the phantom punishment, thrust it into his palm, destroying his magic circuits.

Homunculi were really good in combat, they were much stronger than average humans and quite agile. So much so that, even though they did not possess great combat experience, they were capable of matching and surpassing him in strength and agility if he did not fight with everything he had, as he was doing now. Thanks to his runes, reinforcement and temporal manipulation, he was able to overwhelm them with relative ease.

On the other hand, a huge golem rushed at him with intentions of crushing him. Although this pitched battle had not lasted more than a few minutes, Shirou had noticed that there were two types of Golems, they ranged from 3 meters to even 6 meters tall. The one that was attacking him was one of the former, he boy couldn't compete in a direct combat of strength against any of the golems; however, he could cut through them, moreover, none of them were able to match him in terms of speed. With ease, he was able to dodge the golem's slow punch and sneak between its legs, with one swift movement, the reinforced Neocaliburn severed the golem's leg with no problem.

He could overcome homunculi and was able to deal with golems as long as it did not require direct combat, but his real opponents were not these, those who could put him at risk were others...

"Shi-kun, jump forward!".

Hearing his friend's voice, he quickly jumped up and managed to dodge a shadowy servant that had managed to sneak up behind him and, after raising his gaze, he saw how a large amount of "violet rays" fell from the sky incinerating the shadow. An Assassin-class shadowy servant...

On the other hand, those violet rays were a spell Manaka was using, she had called it, Rain of Light; Machia Hecatia Graea. It was a "rain" formed of purple rays made of condensed magical energy; a spell created by the "Queen of Witches" and, the version she was using, was her niece's version, the one known as the Witch of Betrayal. The use of a single lightning bolt would normally require a magic circle, an aria, and a minute before casting for a normal mage or, thirty seconds with a high-speed aria. However, Manaka did not need an aria to use them, and could cast them almost instantaneously without any problem. She used them to attack both the shadowy servant and the giant golems that could do little or nothing against the speed of the attacks.

After seeing how the shadow was incinerated, Shirou prepared to face another enemy, a shadowy servant with a sword, once he clashed swords against him, he realized that this servant surpassed him in terms of strength, but, his agility and stamina, in fact, were no big deal.

The swords clashed on the snowy field, he boy knew that he couldn't just concentrate on this enemy, so he rushed to finish him off quickly, but, to his misfortune, this one decided to make it harder for him, the servant summoned a flag and it momentarily glowed before disappearing, after this, the shadowy servant attacked again, and, this time...

CLINCK!

Shirou was forced to retreat, he didn't know what the shadow had done, but now his strength was much greater than before, his agility and his resistance to its attacks also seemed to have increased. However, despite his increased speed and agility, it was still quite manageable for the boy. Shirou was able to easily keep up with the servant, this, he inferred, must have been because his eyes sensed the information and adapted it for easy processing by his brain, on the other hand, that his eyes and brain could keep up with the servant, didn't mean the rest of his body could, but to his fortune, thanks to the runes, the booster, and the double accel, his body could also keep up without much trouble. Unfortunately, even so, that didn't change that the servant was stronger and tougher than he was...

Once again, the swords collided on the battlefield, the screeching sound of the blades flooded his ears, four slashes were thrown one after another and he deflected them all, the spirit didn't seem to have any special techniques or skills with his sword, its handling was outstanding, but it didn't seem to have anything else going for it other than its great strength and powerful continuous attacks.

"Now."

Shirou charged some of his energy into Neocaliburn, not enough to create an actual attack with the sword, just enough to create a small burst that would allow him to get some distance...

Light flashed from the blade and a small burst of energy was fired at the servant, who, for his part, took a defensive stance with his sword. The attack pushed him back and the red-haired boy watched as it seemed to do some damage to him, however, it could not be considered serious damage, far from it, not that it was intended either.

The boy took care to put his sword away and, for a moment, wished he had a more efficient way to do it. Then he projected another sword, one of his most trusted weapons so far, the first he had forged and the one that had saved his life in his first fight as a magus.

Shirou rushed forward, and the servant, to his surprise, did the same, ever since he had manifested that strange banner he had done nothing but attack without pause. The shadow raised his sword and unleashed a powerful downward attack with all his might, however, Shirou hadn't even planned for their blades to clash.

Without even taking a position... Three flashes... Three cuts...

-Tsubame Gaeshi...

The servant's sword mastery was nothing special, just outstanding; but nothing more, he had no way to block the legendary technique of the Japanese swordsman. A technique that allowed three strikes to be launched simultaneously from all sides to create a prison, leaving no possibility of defense or evasion, ignoring the concept of time and space, momentarily using the Multidimensional Refraction Phenomenon of the Second Magic. For the shadow, it was simply impossible to prevail against this technique.

The shadow blocked the first attack, but was cut to pieces by the other two slashes. Brain and heart, the two most important points when slaying a heroic spirit, were pierced by the sword.

Shirou observed the katana with respect, the technique itself was impressive and yet, to think that the true form of the technique was even more astonishing: A sword of infinity leading to multiplicity. A way to recognize "multiple possibilities". An "infinite" sword that gives rise to several "right answers". Not even having perfectly projected the katana and having inherited all the skills and combat techniques used by its original owner, thus allowing instant mastery of it, he was able to perform such an imposing technique to the best of his abilities, of those "infinite answers" he was only able to give three immutable answers.

For him, it made sense that he could not make a perfect copy of the techniques of the swords he projected, after all, neither the techniques had been created for his body, nor the weapons he wielded, even if he was able to inherit some characteristics of the original bearers, such as strength and speed, so that he could execute the techniques, things like height, musculature, among other things, were completely out of his control.

In short, the copies of the techniques were not perfect; how faithful the copies of the techniques were to the potties probably depended on the complexity of the original technique and the skills inherited from its original creator. He speculated that, perhaps, he was able to improve his copies of the techniques by improving his own mastery over the different types of swords, but he wasn't sure about this.

"Hmm?" Suddenly, Shirou heard something and raised his gaze to the sky, there he saw a wave of 10 arrows heading towards him. The red-haired man braced himself and easily deflected the arrows coming towards his person, to his surprise, these arrows were nothing special. In the distance, he saw a shadow shooting them, it seemed to be a small archer.

Without thinking twice, the boy ran towards it to eliminate it...

Meanwhile, Manaka was floating above the battlefield. There were magus who could easily achieve magical properties like: "feet don't make contact with the ground" or "being repelled by the earth" when they used a broom, but it seemed that Manaka didn't even need something like that to use the spell and stay floating in the air.

The girl watched as Shirou moved around the battlefield, knowing that, sooner or later, he would be overwhelmed by the large number of enemies and, more importantly, since Siegfried had stopped guarding them and had entered the castle, and, knowing about the events that were happening and would happen inside it, she also prepared another spell: Curse of Karmic Annihilation.

This was an oriental curse with the ability to turn servants, humans, and automatons, into genocidal beings that could not help but bring death and destruction to everything in their path. Created by a Buddhist Onmyouji in the Heian period, known as the rival of Abe no Seimei, and also called as Douma Houshi, all those under the effects of the curse became undead beings that cannot be brought down by conventional methods, even with servant attacks.

Thus, there were no more allies or enemies, part of the golems, homunculi, and even the shadowy servants, were affected by this curse. And, from one moment to the next, a pitched war of all against all was unleashed, a massacre that painted the white ground in pure red.

Both Rain of Light; Machia Hecatia Graea, and the Curse of Karmic Annihilation, were powerful spells created by powerful magicians/magus; however, for her, who had mastered all the sorceries of the world, and who possessed a talent that even surpassed that of the magicians of the Age of Gods, it was really nothing to be surprised about.

This was the most efficient way to invade the castle, and she would have used it from the beginning if Siegfried had not been present. Manaka wanted to avoid expending as much of her strength as possible, the approaching battle would not be easy in her current state. She had already put enough effort into piercing Fafnir's armor that protected the dragon slayer from high-level spells, so that she could make him much more manipulable and susceptible to her words, and that it would be, thus, easier to "make him change sides".

-What's going on? -asked the boy as he observed how the battlefield changed radically, he had dematerialized the katana and was once again carrying Neocaliburn.

"It's a curse, those affected by it don't distinguish between allies or enemies, Shi-kun," his friend simplified the explanation, "But that doesn't matter now, we have to enter the castle, but those two homunculi are protecting the opening we caused in the wall."

"Can't you do something about them?" the boy asked as he dodged the out of control homunculi.

The blonde sighed, obviously she could; but she wanted Shirou to take over, "Shi-kun, how long are you going to prolong it...?".

"...".

Manaka sighed, "Shi-kun, you may see homunculi as people, since you have one as a friend and your sister is also one, but they aren't hesitating to kill you. Even if they're just doing it following orders, that doesn't change this fact, if you don't do what you have to do, you'll die."

Shirou frowned, "You're right, I'll deal with them."

The red-haired man dashed over to where the two homunculi stood, a woman and a man, the woman carried a sword and the man a halberd. Shirou dodged a downward attack with enough force to destroy the halberd wielder's ground and, taking advantage of the time it took for the latter to retrieve his weapon, Shirou stabbed the homunculus with Neocaliburn, piercing it through and through, at which point the other tried to cut him with her sword, and he was forced to drop his sword and unsheathe Muramasa.

The homunculus and he crossed swords fiercely for a few seconds, but in the end the homunculus ended up being overwhelmed by the boy's speed and, with a quick and fine cut, he took her life.

He felt a small knot in his stomach, he was stained by the blood of his last opponent, he had killed magical beasts and dead apostles; but this was the closest thing to a human being he had killed. Nevertheless, his father had prepared him for this, so, despite not feeling well, he didn't let it break his concentration.

Suddenly, he heard something, a distant, but clear, serene voice. That's good, you shouldn't be happy about the bloodshed, even if they are your enemies, even if they are homunculi, they have a reason to live, just like you, and they are purer than you and me.

Shirou watched in the distance, trying to discern where the source of that voice was and, in the distance, he could see it, a silhouette, a man on the great tower; but he couldn't quite make it out, though, that was... A cross?

-Shi-kun! Suddenly, Manaka had swooped down at him from the sky, and the boy had no choice but to catch her in mid-fall.

-Warn before you do that! -he shouted as he held her in his arms, then he felt something strange around him. Did you destroy the barrier?

She nodded, "We'll probably have to leave using space transportation sorcery, and the barrier could get in our way.

-What? What do you mean? -asked the confused boy.

-I'm making provisions, in case we have to fight Saber, "Or the other two", so that we can flee more easily.

-Now that you mention it, where is Saber?

Suddenly, she looked "surprised" and "worried", before exclaiming, "That's right, Shi-kun, I think he entered the castle! We have to hurry, your father and sister may be in danger!".

This surprised the red-haired man and, without thinking twice, he took the girl's hand and they both went into the fortress.

With Kiritsugu...

Thanks to Fillia, who knew where the shadowy servants were located, they managed to go undercover.

-Since when did old Acht manage to create a new prototype of the grail? -Kiritsugu asked as he looked at another of the shadows.

-Two years ago, a magus who was affiliated with the Clock Tower arrived, he was received by Lord Einzbern and, since then, the lord took up the recreation of the holy grail war twice as firmly. The summoning of shadowy servants was accomplished a year ago," the woman answered without much emotion.

-Are you still trying to perform the ritual again, despite the results of the last time?

-The only purpose of existence for Mr. Einzbern is to retrieve the Third Magic, even if he fails again and again, he will not stop until he does.

-Such stubbornness, I cannot deny that, although I do not share his desire, I can understand it.

...

Finally, after a few minutes, the two made it to the doors of the Einzbern chapel.

Fillia looked at the magus assassin to see if he would open the door; however, seeing that he had no intention to stop pointing his weapon at her, she proceeded to open it very quietly, fearing that she would find Lord Einzbern inside.

The homunculus entered inside the chapel, there, near its deepest wall, admiring a huge window where, according to what Iri had explained to her, the first three members of the three founding families of the Holy Grail War were exhibited in the form of a representation: Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern, Zouken Matou, and, finally, Nagato Tohsaka.

There were two older homunculus women, one of whom carried a large halberd, and by observing it in detail, Kiritsugu could deduce that this was made of Rhenium, a material much rarer and more valuable than the tungsten steel used in tank armor. Its density must have been about three times that of iron, which must have made it too heavy for normal humans to move in close combat. But homunculi were not normal humans, those created by the Einzbern specifically for combat could match in strength even several of the servants with outstanding strength; but, in contrast, she was probably not capable of using sorcery. The other woman wore nothing, and did not seem to be built for combat, though she surely must be good at using sorcery; but they were not her focus, in the middle of both of them, there she was...

With a mixture of many feelings, Kiritsugu whispered-. Illya...

-My lady... -Fillia spoke out loud. I have brought you the person you sent for.

-Eh? Illya turned to look at her third lady-in-waiting; but that was not the important thing, what really struck her was the man behind her.

He was paler than she remembered him, a bit thinner too, he looked tired, like a tree in the middle of a huge storm, about to be blown away by it; but holding on with his roots to keep himself steady.

-Kiritsugu...? -asked the girl, her voice was trembling, and more than a question, it seemed like a longing, a desire.

He broke inside listening to her, she looked so much like Iri, but younger, he didn't know what to say, he didn't know what to do. For Kiritsugu, what he was living, was a dream, an illusion he had been having for almost a decade. He had almost given up, at a certain point, he had almost given up hope, but now he was here, the dream came true right in front of him. And, precisely because of this, he had no idea what he should do now, his imagination had never taken him further than this point, here the illusion ended. The only thing he could do was to stop aiming at the woman and, slowly, he entered the chapel, almost as if he were in a trance.

However, if for him the illusion ended at that moment, for Illya it was different. For ten years, she had been estranged from her father, in that decade, her grandfather had told her that she had been abandoned, that a boy she had never met had stolen her father's love. She was not allowed to leave these walls, she was not allowed to make friends or maintain relationships with people on the outside, the only real relationships she had, besides the one she had with her grandfather, were with her ladies-in-waiting. All this, mixed with the ironclad training she received to learn the sorcery of the Einzbern, made these ten years seem like a nightmare, and now, at last, the nightmare was over.

Dream, illusion, or nightmare, at this moment, that was indifferent, for both of them, they were now in reality. And, unlike Kiritsugu, Illya did know what she had to do, she ran, ran as fast as she could to her father's arms and jumped into them, Kiritsugu dropped one of his weapons and received his daughter in his arms.

With a trembling voice, no, with his whole body trembling, he said-. S-Sorry, it took me longer to get back than I planned.

Illya shook his head. T-Take it easy, a champion has a duty to wait until her challengers are ready.

-I can't carry you on my shoulders anymore, forgive me... -Her voice broke with every word.

-Never mind, I am tall enough," she said with tears in her eyes. I want to go home, Kiritsugu.

He nodded, "Let's go home, Illya.

The three women could not help but smile at the sight of their dear lady's tears of happiness. But all this was short-lived, a voice shattered all illusions, or rather, reminded them of a much darker reality than they thought they were living in, making it clear to them that, despite all they had achieved, they were still in the middle of the enemy's territory.

-She's already home," he said, "I'm sorry. -From one of the side doors of the chapel, a tall man entered the chapel, Jubstacheit von Einzbern. The old golem gave an imposing pressure and slant with his gaze. And I will not let her go.

-Old Acht... -said the magus slayer as he separated from Illya and placed himself between Illya and the old golem protectively.

Kiritsugu took his Thompson Contender and aimed it at his enemy, he didn't understand, what the hell was the old golem doing here? He is an artificial intelligence created to control the Einzbern castle, in short, Acht was not a frontline fighter. Although the Einzbern can be dangerous when forced to fight, their specialization dedicated to alchemy makes them unsuitable for battle. That is the reason why, until the third holy grail war, Einzbern masters were eliminated at the beginning of the wars. And old Acht was no exception...

-You have lost the right to be related to me, traitor.

Kiritsugu narrowed his eyes. Did you know what would happen in the fourth war? You never warned me about it.

-We knew that the system had been corrupted by that weak Servant, we created the Ruler class to counteract it; however, we didn't imagine that even Ruler would betray us. Then, to both of their surprise, the man smiled. Even so, I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm glad to know that it was you, Kiritsugu.

-What do you mean?

-For a moment, I feared the worst. I thought a fearsome enemy had managed to track us down and break through our defenses.

Again, Kiritsugu sensed that something was wrong, Jubstacheit was being held at gunpoint, had no means to defend himself, and yet he spoke as if he was in no danger.

Then, the old man looked at Lady Einzbern-. Illya...

-Grandfather... -she whispered somewhat nervously.

-Go back to your room, this is over now.

This surprised the girl, how could her grandfather be so calm? Didn't he understand what was going on? Unless... "Please don't show up," the girl begged inwardly. G-Grandpa, I'm not coming back. I'll... I'll go with Kiritsugu!

The man narrowed his eyes, he emitted a great pressure with his gaze. That's not possible, I told you just now, you now have a role to fulfill as the new head of the family. Even if you are not useful, as your mother was, as a grail vessel, you can still be useful as a teacher in the next ritual.

-The next ritual? Are you seriously thinking of performing it again? -asked Kiritsugu incredulously.

-Of course, our family's goal is to win the holy grail war. And, as I said, I'm done here.

The golem raised a hand and, believing that he would use a spell, Kiritsugu did not hesitate and fired his gun.

The bullets raced across the room with tremendous speed, straight towards the old magus' head.

Clank; clank!

But these did not reach their target, a being appeared out of nowhere, no, he did not appear, he took shape, at great speed, brandished his steel, and the bullets collided with it, each and every one of them were deflected perfectly.

Ilya watched him worriedly and whispered-. Know...

Kiritsugu gulped, how, why, when? Even in the worst scenarios he had imagined, he had never thought of something like this, this was the worst possible scenario, no, it wasn't even a really possible scenario, it took almost what was a miracle for the Einzbern family, Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern, as well as the help of two other families to carry out the ritual. How on earth had old man Acht managed to replicate the ritual in just a decade? The only thing he could think of was that he had created a sub category of the grail; but, that was not the old man's goal, a sub category could not initiate the Third Magic. It didn't make the slightest sense and, even so, Acht did it, it was right in front of him, even if he didn't want to believe it, it was right in front of him, summoned in some way he didn't know, one of them, from those legends he had dealt with 10 years ago and, precisely because he had dealt with those beings, he knew there was no way he could win, he couldn't.

Siegfried made his presence known, as always, he looked serene and did not say the slightest word; however, his brow was furrowed.

For a moment, Kiritsugu remembered, the Einzbern put all their effort into seeking Avalon, the sheath of Excalibur; however, they also possessed another relic of great renown, the Das Rheingold: an endless mountain of treasure that the knight Siegfried won by defeating Fafnir. It is said that, if the treasure is allowed to flow freely, humans who find it will become prisoners of its great wealth, which will eventually cause much destruction while the country in which it is found will be filled with treachery and distrust, this is the curse of the Rheingold. This curse says that the only way to use the treasure without being cursed, is to abandon love as payment for the fortune, and as the Einzbern are homunculi, dolls that do not know true love, they had been able to use the great endless treasure freely.

This treasure should be able to be used as a catalyst to summon the great knight of vast renown, the dragon slayer who defeated the evil dragon Fafnir with the sacred/demon sword Balmung in his hands. A great national hero of Germany who has many different depictions in the various legends attributed to him. His most famous role is his introductory appearance in the German epic poem of the Middle Ages, the Nibelungenlied, portrayed as its main character. He is a character in a tragedy that had spread throughout Europe in connection with the slaying of dragons and the gold of the Rhine, and his character was established with the ancient epic Nibelungenlied, the dragon-blooded knight, Siegfried.

-Illya, I will repeat for one last time, return to your chamber. -Then Acht turned to Kiritsugu. Saber, finish the traitor.

-But, master... -whispered the knight.

Acht hardened his gaze. That is an order, Saber.

-Saber, please... -whispered Illya.

The knight clenched his fists tightly; but, silently, he raised his sword and, with inhuman speed, crossed the chapel. Kiritsugu had no time to react, perhaps he could have done something if he could use Triple Accel, but that was not the case, even as he saw his end before his eyes, his final thoughts were not for himself, but for those three people he had loved most in his life, above all, the girl behind his back.

CLINCK!

Steel hit steel, the legendary Balmung slammed into a large halberd. Leysritt managed to parry the attack, she was next to the group, so, she was fast enough to parry the blow. Using the abnormal strength she had as a homunculus that had been designed specifically for combat against servants, as well as the defensive power contained in her weapon, she pushed the man backwards in an attempt to cut him down.

Even though this attack should not hurt him, for some reason, Siegfried backed away.

She placed herself between the group and the hero- My lady, run away from here with your father, I will buy you as much time as possible.

-Lys! -Illya shouted worriedly.

Kiritsugu pondered the suggestion for a few moments; but, then dismissed it, how much time could the homunculus buy her? 10? 15? 20 minutes at most? Maybe not even that, and then the servant would hunt them down and murder them, no, if they wanted to survive this, then there was only one way: kill the master.

The freelancer turned to the other two homunculi. He turned to Fillia first. Take care of Illya," Then he turned to Sella. Do you know healing sorcery?

Sella nodded.

-Then make sure you heal her, I'll cover for her. -Kiritsugu reloaded his weapon. The only way we get out of here alive is to kill the servant's master.

It was suicidal; but it was also the only way, Kiritsugu moved just a little away from the rest of the group, so that he could have a better line of sight when it came to shooting the golem.

Though hesitant, Sella and Fillia nodded.

-I expected nothing less from some failures," the old golem exclaimed dismissively.

Kiritsugu fired at the old man using his WA2000 and Double Accel and, again, the knight blocked the bullets.

Clank!

This time the hero didn't have time to counterattack, he had to parry a descending attack from the woman's halberd. Saber was surprised, despite not being a Servant, this woman was very strong, strong enough to parry his first attack, but it was nothing he couldn't handle, if he had to put a number on it, this woman had a little more than half his strength if he didn't fight seriously.

He pushed her back and said, "If you carry a weapon, I will treat you as a warrior.

With a great and absurd speed, at the same level as his strength, the dragon knight attacked the homunculus, Leysritt was forced to retreat, the fight was completely unequal, the knight was faster and more agile than her and, moreover, was stronger than the homunculus, without fighting with all her strength. The only advantage she possessed, was the extra reach her halberd gave her and her form made for "a defensive attack", but that was all, the chapel chairs broke as Leysritt fell against them.

She struggled to her feet and saw how the man was already just a few feet away from attacking her again...

Bam!

Once again, the dragon slayer, was forced to retreat and return to protect his master by deflecting the bullets.

Kiritsugu frowned, again, the servant was quick enough to protect the old Acht, this was bad. He watched as the homunculus got back up once more, the healing sorcery her companion was providing was taking effect; but, they couldn't keep this up any longer.

She looked at him again, as if asking him what she should do.

-Once more... -said the magus killer.

Although at first, old Acht seemed interested in how long a failed homunculus could last against a heroic spirit, as the "battle" progressed, he lost interest in it. Saber, stop playing games, finish off all the traitors at once.

Siegfried's hands gripped his sword tighter and the scowl did not disappear from his face, but he followed his master's order.

Even if he didn't know why, Leysritt faced the legend in the same way again. But the results were no different, once again, Leysritt was forced to fight defensively, the worst of it all, was that, while she received one wound after another, none of her attacks could hurt the absurdly resistant skin of the hero, the man was, literally, a walking fortress. No matter what she did, she could not hurt him.

-When she returns to protect the old man, close your eyes and cover your ears," the freelancer spoke softly, so that the old magus would not hear him.

Once again, Kiritsugu shot at the old golem again and, again, the hero again blocked all the attacks, after this, Siegfried could notice how a small blackish object rose above his head. He stared at it for the few moments that it floated towards him. Siegfried, who had just seen the destructive power of a modern weapon, figured that even that large projectile they had used to bring down the wall would not cause him mortal harm, so he did not fear the damage this small object might do to him.

This was a hand grenade, an explosive projectile that was thrown by hand or with a specific weapon, what you normally want to achieve with this weapon is that it explodes when the target is within its effective radius, as was the case with the heroic spirit. But the knight did not care, he did not even make an attempt to defend himself, the grenade was coming from the front and his biological armor would take care of eliminating the damage, something like the explosion of this small projectile would not be enough to hurt him.

The grenade exploded and immediately the hero understood the mistake he had made, because, after the explosion of the grenade, he could not see or hear anything at all, he was blind and deaf at the same time. The weapon that had been used against him was not an ordinary grenade, it was not meant to hurt him, but to stun him, it was a stun grenade.

At the moment of the explosion, it had released a blinding flash of light that momentarily activated all the photosensitive cells in the retina of the servant's eye, making his vision impossible for approximately five seconds to a minute, or until the hero's eye returned the retina to its original state. On the other hand, an incredibly loud noise was emitted along with the explosion of the grenade, dulling the servant's hearing, as it interrupted the fluid in the semicircular canals of his ear.

BAM!

All this caused the knight to be unable to react for several seconds, and Kiritsugu, who was already prepared for all this, took advantage of that time to fire a shot.

The hero responded by swinging his sword during the small moments in which he was stunned, slashing right and left to make it impossible to reach his back, he did not know if his enemy knew his only weakness; but if he did, he would not allow him to approach easily. However, that did not seem to be the aim of the man he faced.

Once he regained his vision, he saw him pointing his gun at him, however, in his body he felt no wound, he doubted that his attacks could do him the slightest harm, but then, why had he shot him? Though being of few words, this time the man prepared to speak. I must praise you magus, if you had a Servant under your command, that would probably have been the end of me, it's a pity that's not the case. -To Kiritsugu's surprise, the Servant spoke as if he really regretted that it was not the case.

Kiritsugu smiled, "You're wrong, I never intended to defeat you in direct combat, I'm an assassin, not a frontline fighter. If you want to break a chain, you aim at its weakest link.

That made Siegfried startled, he understood immediately, this man had never aimed at him, he always aimed at a single person.

A watery cough echoed throughout the room. Des... You wretch, you really are a filthy heretic, Emiya Kiritsugu.

Quickly, Siegfried turned his gaze without turning his back on his enemy, there he saw... his master staggering, the old golem clutched his chest bleeding to death. Kiritsugu was very displeased, he knew that the old man, despite not being made for battle, was much tougher than a normal human, but he hoped the bullet was powerful enough to end his life in one shot.

-Master! -the knight raised his voice as he stepped back and approached the knight.

-W-what did you do to me? What did you shoot me with? I'm just using my circuits to provide Saber with mana, your Bullets of Origin shouldn't affect me at this level...

-What I shot at you wasn't an ordinary Origin Bullet. It's a gift from a mutual acquaintance.

Once again, the old golem coughed up blood again. T-This is... It can't be... Angra Mainyu?

The curse of Angra Mainyu, also known as the curse of all the evils of the world, manifests itself in the form of a blackish ichor that will kill anyone who touches it unless they can remove it from their body before it melts. Those who do not dissolve will be mentally assaulted by all the evil in the world, eventually becoming insane or cursed by its after effects.

Kiritsugu underwent an operation in order to create this last bullet, this one was different from the others, it had been made to concentrate the curse of Angra Mainyu, which was already at its peak for having been growing and devouring the magus for a decade.

The old golem felt the curse begin to devour him at great speed. As it was at its peak and concentrated inside the bullet, it began to devour him with greater speed than it should, and not only that, inside his head, the old golem felt as if hell was being imprinted directly into his brain. The curse was showing him an invisible darkness, an ugliness that could not be recognized by humans, all the crimes of the people in the world were forcibly imprinted in his head. For a moment, he felt as if his will was twisted so that the desire to destroy everything emanated with tremendous force from deep within him, completely clouding his judgment. Moreover, he watched as his body began to atrophy and his magical circuits began to corrode.

Even if it took a few days, a week, or even a month, old Einzbern knew that his days were numbered, and, even if his current body was nothing more than a humanoid terminal, as his true form was a monolith inside the castle, Acht knew that, the moment he died, Illyasviel would take care of shutting him down before he could create a ninth terminal. As all these thoughts filled his head, for a moment, he was amazed at how the heretic had endured this curse for ten years; but then, that didn't matter to him in the least, he never considered his death, and now he would die with no way to avoid it...

Acht had presided over the Einzbern family since the second holy grail war, which took place around the 1860s, and since then he had pursued the goal of regaining the Third Magic they had lost long ago, this was the primary goal of the Jubstacheit-type golems, of which he was the eighth. He worked for 140 years to achieve this goal, his only pride being his homunculus creation skills, and what he despised most were those that turned out as failures, failures. In pursuit of his goal, he had failed in three holy grail wars and, for a decade, he had been searching for a way to create a new grail; but, only after meeting with that magus, he managed to see a light at the end of the road. But that no longer mattered, he would not survive to see his plan completed, he did not win any of the three wars of the holy grail and now he would die without being able to participate in the last one, Acht's whole life could be described with one word: Failure. He was a failure, he had failed in each of his attempts and would be replaced by the daughter of the man who ended his life, a homunculus who had a better chance of achieving his goal than him.

Ira, after considering all these things, Acht felt more fury than ever in his life, he was a failure, the thing he hated most in the world. As long as he stayed alive, the golem could try to retrieve the Third Magic again and again, even if he failed; but now he would die without having succeeded. The old golem raised his hand and said angrily as he looked at both Illya and Kiritsugu, "Saber, by my command seals, I command you, finish off the traitors, kill the heretic! And his daughter as well! -Two of the three shard-shaped marks lit up on his hand; but as he did so, he felt the curse accelerate at an overwhelming speed, as if reacting to the activation of his circuits and his command seals.

-H-Hold on, m-master! -The effect of the two command seals instantly came upon the Servant, he didn't even have time to resist, although he didn't mind killing his enemies, after knowing the situation, killing Illya, Kiritsugu, and their maidens, was something that went completely against his principles; however, no matter how much he tried to resist, he couldn't stop himself, two command seals forced him to carry out the order.

Once again, Saber attacked the group again; Leysritt stepped in, but Saber, no longer playing around, split his halberd in two and attacked Leysritt with an upward slash, throwing her out of his way.

Sella tried to stop the hero by using the alchemical magic of the Einzbern to modify the structure of the castle by making a wall emerge from deep in the ground. But this was nothing to the legendary sword, Balmung.

Once cut into pieces, he struck Sella throwing her against the wall and knocking her unconscious.

The heroic spirit only took a few seconds to cross the chapel, everything had happened in just a few moments.

The fear of death was glimpsed on Illya's face, in a desperate attempt to save herself, she tried to attack the servant-. Angel Note: angel poem! -Using her hair, she created several familiars, birds, specifically, Ibis. Zelle, attack!

The Ibis attacked with magical energy shots against the hero, but this was to no avail, the sorcery dissipated upon contact with his skin.

The hero raised his sword with great effort while gritting his teeth, the girl watched the glow it emitted reflecting the moonlight, she had made up her mind, her life would end here, waiting for the slash, she closed her eyes...

Blood, drops of blood ran down her face, a metallic taste touched her lips. It was her blood, wasn't it? Yet, she felt no pain, was this the superhuman sword-wielding skill Saber possessed? If so, she was grateful. Illya had been reunited with Kiritsugu and, even if it was only for a few moments, the loneliness of a decade was dispelled, her father loved her, he had not abandoned her, and that was more than she thought she would get in life.

Glup...! Glup...!

A few seconds passed and nothing changed, her consciousness did not fade, she felt the drops falling on her face; but nothing else. With fear, she opened her eyes and was frightened to see the edge of the sword a centimeter away from her face, from its blade, blood was sliding and soaking her face, it was not her blood, Illya raised her face a little to see its origin...

-Hmn! -Illya swallowed saliva, there was his father, the sword pierced his chest, blood emanated from it until it stained his face.

Kiritsugu coughed blood, he hadn't thought much about it, he knew he couldn't do anything, none of his weapons were capable of hurting the heroic spirit, and even, his sacrifice would be useless, the heroic spirit would kill her after finishing with him. But, even so, Kiritsugu could not afford to stand by and watch his daughter being killed in front of his eyes, even if his sacrifice was worthless, even if it was only worth a few seconds, it was better than just watching her death.

Deep inside, the hero praised the man's courage and loyalty, he pulled the sword out of his enemy's chest, letting his dying body fall next to his daughter's.

-Kiritsugu! -Illya cried out between sobs as she tried to cover her father's wound with her hands, staining herself with blood, she didn't know healing sorcery per se and the only thing she could do was to use her sorcery to lessen the pain Kiritsugu was feeling.

Illya turned her gaze and suffered deja vu, again, the sword reflected the glow of the moon before attempting to take her life.

The servant's hands were shaking as he tried to stop himself by force, but the command seals made it impossible, at that moment, he heard the laughter of the old golem, he was mocking for the mortal wound he had caused to the man and before the vain attempt of his daughter to save his life, this was more than he could bear, concentrating only on not disgracing his principles even more, the knight took his concentration to the limit in an attempt to defy the order of his master. Taking advantage of the fact that he already had his weapon raised, with a swift movement, the hero turned and threw his sword with immense precision towards his master. Balmung crossed the chapel with a thunderous speed and the dying golem did not have time to dodge the attack, the force of this was enough to send the golem flying, at the same time that Balmung pierced his chest and made him crash against the wall, just below where the painting representing the three founding families of the war was.

-Sa... -A simple exclamation was the last thing that came out of Acht's mouth before his duties ended for good.

Illya watched in surprise at what had just happened; however, her gaze returned to Saber almost immediately...

Despite all the effort Siegfried was putting in to resist, the effects of the command seals had not ceased, once again, the heroic spirit was directed towards the girl...

-S-Saber... Please stop... -Illya whispered as she tried to keep Kiritsugu alive.

His hands went towards the girl, but stopped halfway, resisting with all his might, he said to the young girl-. H-Run away, please...

And with that plea, a greenish flash covered the servant, Illya closed her eyes and, when she opened them again, Siegfried was no longer in the chapel.

Lady Einzbern had no idea what was happening, but she didn't even have time to process it, with a loud bang, the chapel door was forced open. Illya turned her gaze to see two people enter the room, a blonde girl and a boy, and, to her surprise, it was the same boy she had seen in the afternoon.

Manaka and Shirou had entered the chapel after having traversed much of the castle and destroying several shadowy servants in their path. Thanks to Manaka, they had been able to track the place where there was a higher concentration of mana and made it all the way to the chapel, or at least, that was what she explained to the boy.

Shirou analyzed the situation, there were two women on the ground, one of them unconscious and the other bleeding to death, in the farthest part of the chapel, there was a man nailed to a wall by a large sword, with just a glance at this, he could identify her and managed to learn the identity of the servant; but none of that mattered when he saw the figure of his dying father.

Shirou ran to him- Kiritsugu!

He crouched down beside the girl at his father's side.

-S-Shirou... -the man whispered.

-Wait! I'll project another copy of Avalon, it will heal you!

He shook his head, "Don't do it, it won't do any good," Kiritsugu turned his head towards Illya. Illya, he is your adopted brother, his name is Shirou, from now on, he will be by your side and protect you...

This made Shirou surprised, for, of all the homunculi, the one who was his sister, was also the one he had met in the afternoon.

Illya denied fervently- K-Kiritsugu, you can't die now! We were supposed to be together from now on! W-We're supposed to be a family...

-Forgive me... -Kiritsugu stroked her cheek, "I've disappointed you again...".

She shook her head even harder.

Then the man turned to his son. Shirou, promise me you'll protect Illya. -Kiritsugu coughed blood after saying the last word.

Seeing his dying father pleading with him, he couldn't stop some tears from escaping from his eyes, without hesitation, the boy nodded. I promise.

Kiritsugu smiled. I-In the magus world, betrayal is the general rule, but you are family. Even if you don't share blood ties, that doesn't matter, take care of each other, stick together and seek a future for the two of you, if I have one wish, it's that you can be happy.

At that time, guilt filled Shirou, he couldn't take it anymore-. Forgive me Kiritsugu, I haven't been honest with you... I... have also kept secrets from you.

Kiritsugu smiled a small smile. I know.

This surprised the boy. W-what? How? Since when?

-Since you came back from the Rail Zeppelin, the suggestion started to disappear since then.

At that moment, Shirou understood, Altrouge had sold his mystic eyes from the charm to the train, the suggestion he put on Kiritsugu must have weakened since then until it disappeared. So why...?!

-I told you, didn't I? I trust your judgment. In my life, I ended up murdering all the people who trusted me, I couldn't save my first love, I murdered my father, also my teacher... I distrusted every person in this world, I used all people as tools, from my own wife to my apprentice, for once I wanted to do the opposite, to save the people I love and trust them with my life, just this once, not to be the magus killer, but... -Kiritsugu couldn't speak anymore the blood choked him.

-Kiritsugu! -shouted Shirou and Illya.

-You have to run away, quickly, before the heroic spirit returns...

-I'm afraid that's impossible," Manaka approached after addressing Leysritt's condition. He won't disappear so easily, and he'll catch us before we have any chance to flee. It may sound ridiculous; but if we want to have any chance of survival, we have to face him.

-I know, "Where is he? Can you feel him?" -He said, and thought, Shirou.

"He used one of his abilities to get out of the chapel, it's probably an attempt to give us time to flee; but...". Manaka turned to the old golem, "He used two command spells, it's unlikely he'll be able to hold out long enough to give us a realistic chance to flee."

Shirou nodded.

-Shi-kun, it's coming! -Manaka said loudly for all to hear.

Shirou sat his father on one of the chapel chairs, then said to Illya. Stay with him, he's been waiting ten years to be with you. I'll take care of the heroic spirit.

Illya looked at the boy in surprise at his firm intention to face a being who was obviously superior to almost any magus.

Kiritsugu wanted to say something, but Shirou stopped him with a smile. You have given me all the teachings I needed, father. Now let me take care of the rest.

Kiritsugu nodded, he had trusted Shirou to leave him alone in the Clock Tower for almost two years, he had taken him along with him to the hell that was Aylesbury, plus everything that happened in the Rail Zeppelin, he would trust him for this too, and to keep his promise.

However, even so, the magus killer still had one last request to make. Take care of him. -These words were not directed towards any of his children, but to the young mage.

Manaka smiled, "I wouldn't have come back just to let him die, don't worry, I'll keep him alive. -Manaka walked away along with Shirou, "This is for the best, even if it would have prevented you from being stabbed by Siegfried, all that awaited you were a few last months where the curse would have devoured you to the point where you would lose all your faculties as a human being, you would have suffered a real hell, and Shirou and Illya would have suffered it with you, besides, you would have also complicated my relationship with Shirou. For you to die here, it's the best thing for everyone, Kiritsugu. At least, in this world, you managed to save your daughter."

Shirou walked away from the chapel and headed towards the snowy garden carrying Neocaliburn.

-You know what's crazy, don't you? -asked his ancestor.

Shirou nodded, "I know, but I can't back down this time. Like a sword, I can't back down from a challenge like this, I'll cut through that dragon slayer's armor.

Muramasa smiled, "You're a pretty bold brat; but you're right about one thing, a sword that flinches from armor is one not worth shaping.

-Even so, fighting that servant is still crazy under normal conditions, you know? -Manaka said next to him. You're lucky that we have some pros in our favor, though, unfortunately, we also have some cons.

-I just have to hold on until he runs out of mana... -Shirou turned to his side. I'd ask if you could help me, but I think the question would make you angry..." Manaka smiled.

Manaka smiled, "I'm glad you're getting the hang of it.

-What pros and cons were you talking about? -Muramasa asked the girl.

-He's the legendary dragon slayer, Siegfried," whispered Shirou.

Manaka nodded, "One of Germany's greatest heroes, thanks to this he is being upgraded by the cultural sphere.

-Cultural sphere? asked the red-haired man.

-The cultural sphere is one of the factors that increases a Servant's power, Shi-kun. Simply put, it is a geographical boost they receive due to recognition, the more they are recognized in the place where they are summoned, the more boost they receive, if the boost is enough, they can even receive additional Heroic Treasures, or weapons and armor of their legend, etc. -Then she looked at him with an uneasy smile. In Siegfried's case, several of his stats are boosted, and worse, he gets his magic core back.

-Magic core? -asked the boy.

Manaka nodded with a frown. It is a special attribute of Siegfried gained from his dragon blood, it is different from a magic circuit. While a magus's circuits can be considered a machine that creates magical energy, Saber's magical core acts as a factory that creates magical energy.

Shirou was greatly troubled by this revelation. Does it mean that there is no way for her to exhaust her magical energy and disappear?

-Fortunately, no; but it does make things much more difficult," Manaka sighed. You see, Shi-kun, the masters function as an "entry passport" for this era, without a master and without the vessels (the classes), the servants cannot stay in the world and are forced to return, and, to our fortune, Siegfried lost his master, in short, his magical energy will continuously deplete until he disappears, although, unfortunately, thanks to his magical core, this may take longer than with other Saber-class servants. The only way to avoid disappearing is with certain high-level skills, such as, for example, a high-ranking independent action, or the incarnate spirit skill, and, even then, if the servant needs to fight with all his strength, he will still need a master.

-So, is there a chance to make it disappear?

Manaka nodded, "Yes, but because of its magic core, it will be much more difficult. To make him disappear, I estimate that we must force him to use Balmung at least twice to deplete much of his energy. And, even then, we're lucky, with a decent master, he should be able to perform twice as many attacks consecutively without completely exhausting himself.

This made Shirou look at her worriedly. That means surviving two Balmung...

Besides that, that's not the only problem we have, it's said that he obtained an armor-like skin after defeating the dragon of his legend, the so-called Fafnir armor. If I remember correctly, it's a continuously active Heroic Treasure that allows his skin to cancel physical attacks and spellcasting equivalent to rank B or lower," her friend informed her.

-Rank B?

-Yes, Shi-kun, servants have ranks in their parameters and abilities. If what I studied is true... -she dissimulated the last part.

"Wait. So Flat wasn't wrong about the video game terms!?"

-Also, attacks register as damage only after subtracting defensive values from them by an amount equal to B rank. Simply put, all A-rank attacks are effectively reduced to E-rank attacks, meaning that even qualifying hits aimed at his vital points show up as minor scratches that his master can quickly heal.

Thank goodness he lost his master, he's a one-man fortress.

Manaka nodded, "I'll help you in any way I can to defeat him, while I can't make him weaker, I can make you stronger.

-Huh?

-First of all, deactivate all your runes, Shi-kun.

-Why?

-I'll hold them with my magical energy, you must concentrate all yours to resist the fight.

He understood and deactivated them, and Manaka began to activate the ones engraved on his clothes, as well as to reattach the others. He activated Ehwaz on his clothes and gloves to harden them. He then used Algiz, a rune related to the Valkyries, to envelop him with its power and protect him, weakening any attacks he might receive. He also used Raidho, to help him increase his speed. Almost to finish, he used Kenaz, on the boy's eyes to improve his eyesight, and, as this was related to clarity and "seeing what we wish to see" this should help him notice any weak points or flaws in his enemy's posture. Finally...

-Shi-kun, your sword," Manaka asked him.

Sensing what she wanted to do, he raised Neocaliburn.

Manaka used Yr on it, so that, thanks to it, the red-haired man could use his sword as efficiently as possible.

Basically, she used all the runes the red-haired man knew, but, thanks to her greater mastery and understanding of them, the runes increased their efficiency to a greater degree than they could do if he was the one using them.

-Well, I guess that's it?

-No, not yet, Shi-kun. Even with all those protections, you're no match for Siegfried, even in the state he's in.

-So, what do we do?

-Stand still... -Manaka placed his hand on the boy's back and his Od began to flow towards Shirou. This is a more powerful and advanced form of Reinforcement, the mage who created Machia Hecatia Graea was quite good at using it. Believe it or not, this type of Reinforcement, in the era of the Gods, was quite common, but in the current era, I guess it would be considered as part of those strange reinforcements so advanced that they are considered "all-powerful".

And Manaka was right, if her strength was already quite considerable, compared to other normal humans, even though she couldn't be considered over human, with the help of this reinforcement, she had really reached heights she never thought possible-. Thank you, Mana. -Shirou took off the rest of her weapons and gave them to her, she couldn't fight with so much weight.

She took them and they both reached the snowy garden. Just as I expected from the Einzbern, you can feel it, can't you, Shi-kun?

The red-haired man nodded, "A ley line runs under the castle, it's one of the reasons the apprentices of the wizard of the Third Magic chose this place.

-Yes, this will help us," she then turned to the boy. Siegfried used his ability to "flee" as far away as possible, but he will be back in no time. There are a few last things I want to tell you, Shi-kun.

-Hmm?

-Another advantage we have in our favor is that Siegfried is weak to anti-dragon weapons, and I don't think I should tell you any more," Shirou nodded with a smile. And another thing, be careful with his mana blast, this is an ability that allows the increase of his performance by infusing weapons and body with magical energy and expelling it instantly. Simply put, it recreates the effect of a jet burst by expending large amounts of Magic Energy. Using it will weaken Siegfried faster, but by using it, even a simple stick can be turned into a weapon of considerable power, and it can also be used to improve his speed and defense. What I mean is, from the start, go all out, this is an endurance race, and we have the odds stacked against us.

Shirou nodded and, all at once, declared the aria. Time Alter, triple accel -Generally, thanks to his booster, he could handle the repercussions of the double accel with relative ease; but the triple accel caused him much more serious repercussions that his booster could only mitigate, leaving everything in Avalon's hands; however, thanks to Manaka's booster, he should be able to handle the triple accel without taking huge risks.

Finally, Manaka began to float once more. I'll cover you from above.

Shirou nodded and prepared to face his enemy by activating his mystical eyes as well.

Suddenly, from the forest, Siegfried resurfaced, he seemed to be in pain as he did everything in his power to stop himself, resisting the command spells with all his might. The hero saw the two teenagers standing on what would become a real battlefield.

He was about to warn them to stay away; but he watched as the boy raised his sword against him, it glowed with a rather powerful light, and the dragon slayer watched the boy carefully.

Shirou nodded, "Dragon-blooded knight...".

The heroic spirit was surprised that the boy recognized him.

-I understand that the command spells force you to kill the people behind me, but your master is already dead. Once you spend the mana you possess, you will disappear. -Shirou got into position, holding Neocaliburn with both hands. Until that happens, fight me!

The knight understood the boy's intentions and nodded with a smile. I see... -Siegfried stood on guard. Then please hold out against me until my strength is exhausted! -With that said, Siegfried lunged at Shirou.

On the white field, as the snow fell, the clash of steel against steel was heard. At a speed absurd for today's humans, the hero and the boy clashed. Siegfried was much tougher than Shirou, his sword could barely and barely cause him some scratches, however, without a master to heal him, these small wounds could not be healed, on the other hand, while Shirou was tough, he could do little against the hero's strength that greatly surpassed him, so, the boy stayed on the defensive. This was already normal for him, few times he had been able to match his enemies in strength, so he was used to fight against opponents that surpassed him, on the other hand, although the servant could cause him wounds without great difficulty, it was not easy to cause mortal wounds, thanks to the protection of the runes, added to his reinforcement, he had become quite resistant, and his wounds healed almost instantly.

For a moment, it became a fight of opposites, Siegfried was stronger; but Shirou was a bit faster, Siegfried was tougher; but Shirou made up for it with absurd regeneration.

Clink! Clank!

The sound of swords echoed across the snowy field, with a ferocity not seen since the age of myths. More than a dozen times, Balmung and Neocaliburn lashed out at each other.

Small, light cuts reflected on the hero, and while Shirou had none, for Avalon was doing its job, sweat beaded on his face and his stamina was diminishing more and more.

It was undeniable that while the confrontation was not entirely one-sided, Siegfried had greater stamina and combat experience, controlling the pace of the fight at all times.

But this slim balance in the fight was completely shattered when, from one moment to the next, Siegfried's offensive speed and power reached a new threshold.

"Mana blast?".

A swift and powerful attack...

If it weren't for his mystical eyes, he wouldn't even have been able to react; however, thanks to them, he was barely able to defend himself in time, as he also raised his speed even higher. Time alter, Square Accel!

Pain shot through his bones and muscles; for a moment, he was sure that one of his bones had broken and that his muscles had probably been torn, as he was thrown into the air.

Avalon began to heal him quickly and, although he reacted at great speed, he almost had the sword on him again. However, it did not go through him, but rather through him, and Shirou took advantage of this to take the initiative and begin to launch one slash after another at great speed, forcing the hero to retreat as he was attacked in his back, his only weak point.

Siegfried raised his gaze and instinctively used his mana blast again to quickly move away from his position and back towards the forest. From the heights, Manaka made the spell live up to its name and it descended like a rain of light from the sky.

At first, the dragon blood knight nimbly dodged the girl's shots, but then, his strategy changed, he stopped dodging them for some reason. This was crazy, each light beam fired possessed A-ranked attack power, even if his armor decreased them to E-ranked attacks, being several, and with no healing, it made no sense for him to let himself get hit, this attack was not a Heroic Treasure, and Siegfried saw to it that no attack hit him in a state of complete defenselessness, therefore, the additional effect of his armor was not activated, thus, Siegfried endured all the damage of the multiple attacks while advancing in an attempt to face the girl and she fired against him. However, he stopped before reaching her, a light shone in the distance...

Shirou took advantage of the time Manaka had bought him with her spells and had charged Neocaliburn with his Od and the mana he had been able to absorb from the ley line.

Seeing the attack, Siegfried was surprised that the power of the sword was so similar to the weapons of his time and, without even wasting a moment, he took Balmung in an offensive stance while ignoring Manaka's attacks and the sword began to fill with his magical energy.

In an attempt to overwhelm his opponent before his attack was ready, the red-haired man unleashed the power of Neocaliburn which advanced like a burst of magical energy in the form of light towards the dragon knight; but, unlike Shirou, Siegfried did not take more than a few moments to charge a large amount of his magical energy into Balmung and have his attack ready. Quickly, the heroic spirit unleashed the power of his magna sword in a powerful horizontal attack, a semi-circular crescent wave that expanded around him with the simple purpose of destroying everything in its path.

The ground shook and the snow was completely evaporated by the clash between the two swords, for an instant, it seemed that Neocaliburn's attack possessed more strength and yet, from one moment to the next, the twilight wave grew larger equaling the light, as the earth was razed to the ground, both attacks collapsed on top of each other.

Shirou didn't understand what had happened at first, he knew that Siegfried could use Balmung in two ways, the first was this wave attack, which was more powerful up close, but weakened as the wave expanded to cover more ground. The second was a powerful straight line attack like his, which gained strength by concentrating on a single point. If Siegfried had used the second one, with its powerful magical energy, he would have been able to overwhelm it with ease, instead, by using the first one, thanks to the distance they were at, he was forced to put more magical energy into it to be able to match it.

After a few seconds, he understood. Using the mana blast that drained his energy the more he used it, receiving Manaka's attacks head on without worrying about his wounds, and this attack that had forced him to expend more energy, these were mistakes that an experienced warrior like Siegfried would not make, the only reason this was happening, was because the heroic spirit was fighting, not fighting him, but fighting himself. Siegfried should have been holding back as much as he could to not kill it, taking as much damage as he could to make the fight in his favor, and expending as much magical energy as he could to get the fight over as quickly as possible.

"Thank you." Thought the boy, if the hero was doing everything he could to give them a chance at victory, then he would fight with everything he had to achieve it so that his efforts would not be in vain.

Siegfried appeared from within the smoke created by the clash of attacks and again took up an offensive position in the direction of the boy. But then he was again attacked by the magical energy beams, this time, he dodged them, but did so while using his mana blast.

"Mana, it was you who stopped Siegfried from cutting me in half by making me intangible, wasn't it?".

Manaka, though she was busy trying to corner the servant, replied, "Yes, I used Flash Air to shift the space around you to momentarily turn you intangible."

"Well, in that case, I need you to help me with something, can you use healing sorcery?".

"That question doesn't please me, Shi-kun."

"If you can please use it, concentrate on maintaining reinforcement, runes, and, in case I find myself cornered, I'm counting on your Flash Air."

"What do you plan to do?" she asked, Siegfried had stopped dodging her and, seeing the boy distracted and in front of where his targets were, was forced to attack him ignoring the girl's attacks.

"I'll take more risks, I leave my life in your hands, Mana".

To the surprise of the hero, who was approaching fast, Shirou quickly pinned Neocaliburn to the ground and prepared to receive him as if he were swinging an invisible sword. For a moment, the knight tried to stop, but he was already very close, it had only taken him a few seconds to reach him, unable to do anything, he swung Balmung fiercely and, to his surprise, a devastating counterattack was the answer his sword met with.

-You, dragon of sin! Let me show you, this is the truth of ASCALON!

It's not that the boy was wielding an invisible sword, it's that it had not yet materialized, before the blow hit its target, the sword materialized and Shirou did not hesitate to use its power.

To Siegfried's amazement, the surprise attack not only repelled him, forcing him to retreat; but his armor had also been pierced...

The projected Ascalon was a C-ranked weapon, in essence, Fafnir's armor should have denied his attack completely, but due to its anti-dragon properties, it was impossible for the armor to deny the full power of the sword, since, when used against a draconic being, its power increased, forcing an extra C-ranked damage to these beings, in short, despite his armor, Siegfried received a damage equivalent to a C-ranked heroic treasure. On the other hand, Ascalon's defensive/offensive effect also allowed Shirou to fend off the hero's attack.

Once again, a fight began between the boy and the hero, and this time, Shirou took the offensive, having projected Ascalon, he inherited the abilities of its original user to master it to perfection, and at this moment, Shirou was fighting with everything he had, so, his agility increased greatly, slightly surpassing even Siegfried's, his stamina had also increased greatly, and, thanks to the reinforcement, he was stronger than the original Saint who had wielded the sword.

Even so, Siegfried was still stronger and tougher than he was, plus, while the Saint's skills were more than formidable, Siegfried's sword skills had surpassed those of any human quite some time ago.

The battle grew more intense, Siegfried smiled and, for a moment, stopped worrying about holding back, his enemy, despite being perpetually on the defensive, had demonstrated the ability to damage him with blows that, while not lethal, had damaged him more than any enemy he had faced before. More importantly, in his eyes, he could see that he did not see his person, but a future where he was to be defeated, and, even though that future was the one he was also pursuing, he could not help but desire to impose himself as a wall against that path, a show of respect from one warrior to another.

Shirou, on the other hand, was not enjoying the thrill of the fight at all, instead, a single word kept repeating in his head, "Fall, Fall, Please, you have to fall!". He gritted his teeth and held Ascalon with all his might praying that his strength would not fail him, his resistance to how much damage he could take may have been increased by using the sword, but his stamina in terms of how long he could keep fighting a battle of these levels was still much lower than the Servant's, the only reason he had held out so long was because his base stamina had been greatly improved thanks to Manaka's reinforcement. Furthermore, his magical energy output had increased since entering the Clock Tower thanks to having recovered the Emiya crest in its entirety, moreover, he was relying on the ley line, but, even so, that was nothing compared to the magical energy provided by the servant's magical core, in a battle of endurance, he would lose, and he felt as if he was beating an impregnable fortress with a normal sword.

The screeching sound of steel clashing against steel filled the garden of Einzbern Castle, with every hit, every slash, every parry, the snow falling around Siegfried and Shirou scattered. At first, the redhead didn't even have a chance to attack, but thanks to Manaka and the Flash Air, Siegfried had taken some significant attacks, and even so, he was a monster when it came to endurance, even without his armor. Also, thanks to the blonde, the boy's wounds were healing even faster than before.

Finally, it was the knight who broke this new balance, who, using a burst of mana, took distance from the boy.

Both had moved considerably away from the castle; but not far enough for the red-haired boy to be unable to harness the power of the ley line.

Shirou was drenched in sweat, panting, it seemed that at any moment he would give his last breath, he was clinging to the sword desperately as if letting it go was the same as letting go of his life, in this state, probably, he was about to reach the limit of his physical endurance.

Siegfried, on the other hand, had only a few beads of sweat running down his face, on his body were multiple wounds, none could be considered serious, but among the several minor damages produced by Neocaliburn and the Machia Hecatic Graea, more considerable wounds produced by Ascalon could also be glimpsed, and, despite all this, the knight who always seemed silent and introverted, wore a smile on his face.

With this same smile, Siegfried made up his mind, they would not beat him in a battle of endurance, so they had to make him exhaust all his mana to make him disappear, he had already exhausted enough, but there was still more to make him disappear, one more attack, one more attack with all his power was enough. Boy! If you manage to stop this! It will be your victory! -With that said, the hero held his magna sword above his head and began to unleash the full power of his heroic treasure. Oh sword, let it fill you!

Balmung began to glow with an orange light, as well as with the twilight aura. Shirou already knew, Siegfried would attack him with his most powerful attack, the full release of his heroic treasure. He didn't know if he had enough power to counter it; but there was no time for doubt.

"Mana, please!" the boy demanded.

Manaka understood what he wanted and used Flash Air to bring Neocaliburn closer towards Shirou, he took it and set out to counter the servant's attack.

Both Neocaliburn and Balmung, both swords, conserved the magical energy, the true Ether, of the Age of Gods. Balmung did so through the jewel in his hilt and Neocaliburn was imbued with it through the shards of Merodach.

-Please lend me your strength to achieve victory," said Shirou.

The light began to gather strongly on the blade of his sword.

-The evil dragon will fall and the world will now reach twilight! -A pillar of greenish energy emanated from the blade of Siegfried's sword and rose to the heavens splitting the clouds and the snowfall around them in two. The castle, and the mountain itself, trembled before the power of the legendary sword.

Compared to it, Neocaliburn's light looked like a small flame in the midst of a storm.

"Shi-kun, you have to concentrate, release all your limiters," Manaka spoke to him upon seeing the scene.

Limiters?"

"Concentrate on each of your magic circuits, both the ones you possess by birth and the ones you have in your crest. You have to bring them to their maximum capacity of magical energy production, use all your remaining Od and as much ley line magical energy as you can absorb, only then will you have a minimal chance of countering this attack."

Shirou nodded, he knew what his friend was referring to, he concentrated as much as possible and, to help him do so, he visualized that image he used to turn on his magic circuits: that of a sword being unsheathed, in a state of deep trance and complete concentration, he brought his magic circuits to the limit of their production and, unconsciously, he whispered-. Trigger... Off... This is all of me, all I've got in one last attack...

"Hmm... Not bad, not bad, that's good, but, you'll need more than that to be able to match that hero, so tell me, do you have any doubts?".

Shirou heard another voice in her mind, one different from her friend's, "Who are you?".

"It's doesn't matter now, the question you should be asking yourself is: what are you?".

"What am I...?"

"That's right, or, rather, what kind of King do you want to be? At the end of the day, that sword is meant to be wielded by a King."

Shirou would be lying if he said he hadn't thought about it. Ever since his reunion with that fairy, he had been pondering the question, he wasn't a king; but if he was, what kind would he be? He hadn't found an answer, but at the moment, he was only thinking of the people behind him, his father, his sister, and Manaka, he had to protect them. For a moment, he laughed at himself, he had had a wish, a foolish one, to protect someone being himself a sword, a weapon made for killing; but, still, he considered it a wish worth keeping, he also remembered his grandfather's wishes, Gray's, Altrouge's, and finally, the promise with Kiritsugu.

"Turn your head for a moment, look at the people you are fighting for."

"Huh?" For a moment, Shirou did so and, there several hundred meters away, right in front of the castle, stood Illya, for some reason, she had left the castle, perhaps at Kiritsugu's request. He knew, if he failed, he would die, Manaka too, and Illya would be no exception, and to end it all, everything Kiritsugu had fought for these years, would be in vain

"If I were a King, I would want to be the type that could protect those who placed their dreams and hopes in me. So please, sword of selection, grant me the power! To protect their dreams and hopes! To cut down this obstacle that stands before me!"

The person in his mind laughed with amusement. "He doesn't strike me as a bad kind of King, and I tell you this from the greatest kingmaker this world has ever seen. Looks like this new version of Caliburn agrees with that decision...".

Just like that time, when Shirou faced the specter of King Arthur, the sword seemed to react to his words. Spheres of light began to fill the entire battlefield, suddenly, these emitted a great glow and gathered all at the edge of the sword, Shirou raised it above his head and it emitted a pillar of light similar to the one emitted by Balmung. While, when confronted with the King's wraith, the ability to amplify Neocaliburn's energy and convert it into caloric values had increased considerably, it now seemed to have doubled.

The earth trembled and the clouds, as well as the snowfall, split in two as a power not seen since the Age of Gods made its presence known.

The light that destroys all evil and the twilight energy stood against each other.

Siegfried had long had his attack ready; but he resisted firing it and gave Shirou time to prepare his. Ready!? -asked the hero.

Shirou nodded.

As the two drew closer against each other, they finished the chant that allowed the full release of their heroic treasures.

-Fall! / Grant me victory!

-BAL... MUNNNNG! / NEO... CALIBRUNNNNN!

Steel clashed against steel, as did the giant pillars of energy; for the last time, Balmung and Neocaliburn clashed against each other, and Siegfried and Shirou lashed out with full force.

The ground shook, rose, crackled, and incinerated. Trees were destroyed, or were thrown flying in the distance. The snowfall disappeared and the clouds vanished. For an instant, the whole night was illuminated and the energy of the relics destroyed everything in its path. When it was all over, the entire courtyard of the Einzbern was completely destroyed, as well as a good part of the surrounding forest, if not for the fact that the castle was a fortress built by magus alchemists, it would probably have fallen as well, in fact, the walls that had been in contact with the great energy also disappeared.

In the midst of the holocaust, both of them stood.

Shirou stabbed his sword into the ground, he had no more strength, he had put everything into that attack. Avalon was draining what little remaining mana he still had left to keep him alive, he had large wounds all over his body, and if it wasn't for this one, the runes, the reinforcement, and Manaka's healing, he wouldn't have lasted to this point.

"Did I fail?" The boy wondered as he saw how the fortress had been grazed.

"Relax, Shi-kun, we're fine." Shirou looked up and saw both Illya and Manaka floating away from the incineration area.

Siegfried was standing upright on the battlefield, his armor had been destroyed and he had one more wound on his chest, but, even so, he still seemed to be able to keep fighting. Seeing the boy still breathing, the hero gave a small smile, "You held on, just as I said, this is your victory," His body began to crumble into particles of light. It was a great battle young King, one of the best I've had since the fall of the dragon. And thank you very much, for avoiding that my honor as a hero would have been stained even more, I hope that, someday, destiny will reunite us on the same side...

The servant disappeared and Shirou was about to fall; but Manaka quickly descended together with Illya at his side to support him.

-What about Kiritsugu? -asked the boy almost voicelessly.

Illya looked at him with reddened eyes, she seemed to have cried until her tears had dried up, and with a surprised expression at the question, she looked down. Already... he left...

Shirou almost fell to the ground after hearing this reply, his legs losing what little strength they had left.

Illya became worried and hurried to say-. B-But he told me it was okay, that you were sure to protect me, and that... -Illya didn't know what else to say, Kiritsugu had told her that the boy was his brother, but she had never dealt with him, and the situation was completely beyond her. Even so, she had seen part of the fight, she saw how the boy confronted Saber and nearly died multiple times to protect her and her father, she didn't want him to think that his effort had been in vain. Thank you, for protecting me... Kiritsugu, you were right, he left with a smile, and I'm sure he's proud of you...

She seemed to want to say something else, but she couldn't finish, the boy hugged her with his last strength, and before falling into unconsciousness, he whispered-. It's... a little late, but, I'm Emiya Shirou... from now on... you won't be alone anymore... since now, we are family...

Thus, he closed his eyes and fainted hugging the girl...

Chapter 19, Revelations.

In the old Einzbern castle, it was still night; however, dawn was just around the corner.

Despite the darkness, the castle was not silent, on the contrary, there was a lot of movement, homunculi were moving throughout the fortress. In the midst of this hustle and bustle, Illya was in the middle.

She still hadn't been able to process all the things that had happened in the last few hours; but she didn't have time for that right now, she would have to deal with everything as she went along. With her grandfather being killed, she was now, both officially, and in power, the head of the Einzbern family. And she had to take care of her responsibilities, she had been trained for the last 17 years for this, and the first thing she did was quite obvious, she turned off the artificial intelligence Jubstacheit, so that it would not be able to create a ninth terminal.

On the other hand, the bodies, both her father's, and her grandfather's, were being treated so that they could be properly preserved in the homunculus minting shop. At this moment, Illya was recording the damage caused to the staff of his castle, fortunately, for what was an invasion, the losses were not so high, most of the internal staff was not damaged, but a large part of the guards outside died due to a curse cast in the middle of the invasion.

Illya began to give orders, Sella had recently risen and the young Einzbern had asked her to go, along with a squad of homunculi, and take charge of restoring the broken barrier. She had sent another small squad of homunculi to take care of the bodies of her fallen brothers, and also sent a third squad to take care of the wounded, such as Leysritt, who, thanks to Manaka, had managed to survive the attack of the heroic spirit; however, it would take her several days to fully recover. Lady Einzbern had asked another of her ladies-in-waiting, Fillia, along with a fourth squadron of homunculi, to go to the nearby village and hypnotize them into believing that what had just happened was nothing more than a natural disaster; they had to hide the debacle produced by the combat between her brother and the hero. Finally, he had ordered a last squad to use the basic Alchemical Sorcery of the Einzbern; the creation and manipulation of matter, to seal the destroyed part of the castle, this would work as a patch until they could rebuild it.

On the other hand, he also had to deal with the girl who had come along with his father and brother, and of course, with this one as well. After the battle against Saber, the girl had stayed together with Shirou at all times and, after everything that had happened, she was totally exhausted and almost on the verge of fainting; so Illya had the decency to offer her a room so she could rest, although to the increase of her misgivings, the blonde had politely refused and had preferred to stay in the same room as her brother. This made Illya's distrust increase, and the fact is that yes, she did not trust the girl, since, before dying, her father had informed her about some things... And although, unfortunately, due to the state Kiritsugu was in, their talk could not be as long as she would have liked, she had enough time to inform him about Manaka's situation, how she had been his enemy in the last war, how she had reappeared somehow, and how dangerous she could become.

Still, the girl had saved her from the clash of attacks between her brother and the hero, and had saved Leysritt, so she had decided to give her the benefit of the doubt, so, Illya had decided to keep an eye on her without her noticing, just to be safe.

On the other hand, Manaka had decided to help her crush's sister by healing Leysritt, not because she really cared about the injured homunculus, but to gain her acceptance. To her misfortune, she knew that their relationship would start off on the wrong foot, and the only way to avoid it, was to hasten Kiritsugu's death, or get her away from him before he could tell her about their mutual past, she could also hypnotize him the moment he was dying, but with Shirou around, and with the fight looming over both of them, she didn't want to risk wasting time and magical energy. Another option would be to hypnotize Illya after taking care of Siegfried, but in her exhausted state, that wasn't an option, doing it later was also possible, but she knew that this, down the road, could bring her trouble, so she preferred not to do it.

Manaka sighed as she lay down next to an unconscious Shirou and hugged him with a smile, she wouldn't have to worry about all this if her initial hypnosis on the magus killer had had the desired effect; however, that hadn't been the case. Unfortunately, she had only had a few minutes before Shirou woke up and the operation began, so while she was able to achieve a high level of hypnotism on Kiritsugu, managing to infiltrate his memories organically and manipulate him at her pleasure in a very short time, she did not have enough time to manipulate his memories of the war, not only because these were old memories, but because the war left a great impression on the man, which made it more difficult to alter them, and this caused there to be a small hole in his memory that could be exploited, of course, whether or not Kiritsugu could realize this hole depended on the probabilities generated by different factors, and to her misfortune, these were not in her favor.

In the end, she took the path that she believed would bring her less trouble in the future, she manipulated Kiritsugu so that he would not harass her with questions from the beginning, and preferred not to touch her memories in haste, any wrong move could cause severe damage to her memory, which would only bring her more trouble. In case he didn't notice the hole, then everything would go according to his plans, and, in case he did, due to the state he would end up in, he wouldn't be able to tell Illya much, and nothing to Shirou. As time went on, she should be able to show the girl that she was worthy of her trust, as long as the divergence did not cause the factors to change in the extreme, increasing or decreasing the odds in a surprising way, and that these were not completely against her, she should be able to choose which of the futures she wanted to come true.

On the other hand, despite knowing the reasons, she was bothered by how attached Illya seemed to be to her crush, she had stayed close to him since he fainted, and also subtly watched over her, making sure not to leave them alone. Manaka understood his attitude, and that was because not only had Kiritsugu's warning caused her to be attached to the boy, but it was normal for Lady Einzbern to be attached to literally the only family she had left; but then again, that didn't make her like him. On the other hand, the girl didn't represent any danger against her, at least, for now; but she wasn't going to deny that she had to be careful with her as well, while in the grand scale of the multiverse anything could happen, obviously, there were things that were more or less likely to happen, and a relationship between these two was not at all unthinkable, and more so when, unlike in other worlds, Illyasviel possessed a body that represented her true age. She sighed, dealing with Illya would be much more difficult than dealing with the bloodsucker, so she would have to be careful, from her point of view, she would make quite a bit of profit if she managed to get her on her side.

She watched Shirou and, for a moment, frowned, if there was anyone who would bring her headaches in the future, it was him, and she knew it. But then she smiled, for that didn't displease her, he was the one person she would never use in any way, he would never submit his will to hers, and while she might get to manipulate him a little, it would never be to hurt him.

A gentle kiss...

For him and for him she would use the whole world as tools in order to fulfill his wish, the only exception would be him alone.

The blonde cuddled more around the boy and allowed herself to feel his warmth, for today, everything was over, and not even the great hustle and bustle in the castle would prevent her from falling asleep, the Golden King would not act, he might consider her a monster; but she was still human, so they would not face each other for now, not until his trial begins.

For all this hustle and bustle, nobody, except for that girl who had just fallen asleep, noticed some very important things that were happening around the castle...

At the top of one of the towers, stood a man, he had been observing the entire invasion of the Einzbern castle. He was a tanned skinned young man with black hair and dark, as well as golden, eyes. He wore the robes of a priest and wore a golden cross around his neck. More specifically, his vestment was a sort of red shroud and he wore a stole of the same color over the cassock. The young man possessed an innocent and youthful face, showing that he was not yet in his twenties.

-What did you think? Oh, great King of Heroes

Above the man, floating in the air, was another person. He was the same King in luxurious clothes that Shirou had encountered earlier that day before the invasion began.

To his surprise, the man smiled, "Interesting, to think that there are still humans like him today, it shows that they have not yet lost their full potential, that pleases me. -Then, he turned to the young man, his look changed radically, his eyes narrowed, showing a sharp expression. And you, what are you doing here, Ruler?

Ruler smiled innocently, "It's just a mix of coincidences. The Einzbern finished their part of the deal, so I came to report on the progress of our plan. It seems that luck smiled on me and I was able to observe him too, Muramasa Emiya Shirou.

The King frowned, he didn't need to use his clairvoyance to know that Ruler was lying...

Clairvoyance... There are two types of clairvoyance, psychic clairvoyance, which is the ability to perfectly perceive and observe the world around an individual; objects, people, locations, and events, with one's own mind, without error and with 100% accuracy. It is an ability anchored to the flesh of people who are considered Psychics, people with some type of mutation that has given them an abnormal ability. This is obtained when the brain is able to understand a "channel" (common sense or perception of reality) not native to humans.

And the one used by the magus, which manifests itself in the servants as a personal ability. This clairvoyance is evidence that the possessor has a perception above the ordinary, in the higher ranks it is possible that the bearers possess abilities such as precognition ("vision of the future") and other forms of perception beyond standard sight (X-ray vision, etc.).

As for Gilgamesh, he was a powerful user of clairvoyance which gave him a high degree of precognition.

Precognition is the ability to perceive the future. There are three types of precognition: the Prediction of the Future, the Calculation of the Future, and the last, and most unknown, Divination. Most users of precognition are able to predict rather than calculate, and divination, unlike prediction, does not require the analysis of information.

Prediction of the future is the ability to unconsciously gather information and automatically absorb data about the surroundings, and compare it with past events and experiences, and use it to predict future events smoothly and their respective outcomes. It is a "more human" type of precognition.

Futures Calculation, on the other hand, is the ability to purge future possibilities by choosing a certain path of options, so as to generate a high percentage that will ensure the highest probability of success in any of the possible types of futures, generating the expected outcome. Therefore, it can be described as "forging" the path to achieve a desired future, allowing its user to calculate and define the future without fail with perfect precision. This is one of the skills of the Atlas alchemists, who predict (calculate) and measure the future, allowing them to create different plans for obtaining an optimal future.

Finally, there is divination, this is the most unknown in terms of operation of the three, it is only known that it does not require the analysis of information to be performed, and that the predictions made through divination can be changed if the appropriate preparations are made.

Gilgamesh knew that Ruler had betrayed the Einzbern and, even if his appearance had changed slightly from his years in the Middle East, that would not be enough to fool the old golem, had Kirei sent him? No, Ruler tried to stay as far away from his adopted brother as possible, in fact, he only presided over Fuyuki's church when Kirei was away; however, as long as Ruler did not get in his way, he would not eliminate him, after all, Ruler was also that kind of person that the King of Heroes liked to watch, the kind of person who had an a priori impossible dream, but strived to achieve it anyway.

-Call him Muramasa from now on, the Emiya surname is marked by a mediocrity that boy doesn't need. From what I see, what's left of Saber's former master is also here, wow, he survived almost a decade with that curse, something I can consider admirable.

-That's right, it's a pity his life ended here. Also, according to what the Assembly of the Eighth Sacrament was able to find out, Muramasa-kun was one of the victims of the disaster caused at the end of the fourth war by the holy grail, he survived the fire and the curses of Angra Mainyu; but he was orphaned because of these.

This made the King laugh heartily. I know.

-Does it please you? -asked the young man quizzically.

-Of course, in surviving all the evils of the world, he showed a strength of will worthy of one who should belong to my kingdom.

-I see...

-You said you were fortunate enough to find him, the Church is interested in the boy, isn't it?

Ruler nodded, "Although not the Eighth Sacrament Assembly, on the other hand, he has come to the strong attention of the Burial Agency.

-The Burial Agency... Those who hunt for apostles?

-That's right. The boy killed the Predator Forest of Ainnash a few weeks ago. This caused Narbareck-san to place an eye on him. Because Ciel-san is on a mission in Misaki City, Japan, and because Mr. Dawn is essentially unfit for combat, even with his partner at his side, and thus it would be a danger to send him to meet the boy, it is likely that I or Merem will be sent to meet him sooner or later.

The King cared little or nothing about those names, he knew them, but they did not attract his attention. As he remembered, the half-breed named Ciel, was the woman with whom Ruler had made a pact to be able to support himself in this era. Kirei had told him that, within the Church, she was one of the few people with the magical ability to be able to sustain a heroic spirit on her own. Although what really interested him, was the information he had just heard, the murder of one of the 27 Ancestral Dead Apostles, the more he heard about the boy, the more it aroused his interest; for a moment, he wondered if he should "observe" him more thoroughly, more than he already had, but then he shook his head, the boy had not yet earned that privilege.

The girl on the other hand, Gilgamesh frowned, when he tried to see the truth this girl was hiding, he could see a few things, he had already met this woman, she had been Assassin's teacher in the previous war, and one of the most troublesome people he had ever had to deal with. This caught his attention, and made him want to see more about this woman, but, he got a strange surprise, for a moment, he felt as if unveiling the truth that this girl was hiding would be no different than unveiling the mysteries of existence itself, a job in essence interesting; but extremely strenuous, and surely fruitless. So he tried another approach, would this woman be an obstacle in his plans? The short answer was yes, but the long answer was much more interesting. Among the users of clairvoyance, he was one of the highest level, he did not predict the future, he knew them, one could say that he "looked down and supervised them", one could say that his clairvoyance allowed him an extremely advanced form of future calculation, although, of course, among the infinite possible futures, there were many so irrelevant that it did not even make sense to look at them; But the point was not that, the point was that he could not see exactly what the future would be when this girl was involved, no, rather, he could see them; but he could not be sure which future would be his future, even if he knew them. In terms of calculating the future, it was as if his calculations became inaccurate and the percentage of the future he had calculated occurring decreased accordingly. This was because the girl was like him, a high-level clairvoyance user, and just as he knew the futures and knew what events and factors would have to occur for a specific future to come true, raising the percentage of that future occurring, and giving him the right to set the future through his intervention, so did the girl. So they both manipulated the factors at their pleasure and convenience, choosing the future that most suited them, and in doing so, they made the percentages vary and their calculations become imprecise, making it difficult for each other to establish the future. All in all, it resulted in a battle between powerful clairvoyance users of the same level, and so far, there had only been one other man with the power to impair their clairvoyance.

This bothered the King, for indeed, he had a feeling that this girl was able to see even more than him, not specifically in a matter of the future, but in many other areas where even his vision was limited, just like that man. Because, although it bothered him to admit it, he had not been able to surpass her, nor to discover all the truth that she hid, just as he was also unaware of all the truth that this world kept hidden, even his abilities as a clairvoyant, had a limit.

The King smiled, did it bother him? Yes, but it excited him even more, because this girl might be a monster, but she was still human, and as a human, he would judge her, just as he would all the others, when the moment of reckoning came, only one unanswered question remained between the two of them. Between you, me, and him, who will set the future...?

-It is believed that Roa's resurrection will happen soon, if not already happened, so Ciel-san is likely to ask me for help in dealing with him. She is a bit constrained due to having to maintain my existence, normally it wouldn't affect her much, but she will have to deal with Roa and reports speak of the Princess of True Ancestors being in place, at worst, maintaining me could become a weakness, so I will have to leave for Japan shortly to ensure my perpetuation. There is also the matter of the meeting that will take place in a few days, where the remaining members of the 27 will participate? -continued Ruler, unaware of all that had happened in just a few moments.

-The world is moving, but it is impossible to avoid what I have already decided. Still, considering how skilled my opponents are, it will be better to take precautions," said the King.

-If things go as we imagine, it won't take us long to prepare the remainder of the ritual; but the system still resists, and that could increase the time quite a bit," said Ruler. Still, it's only a matter of time.

The King nodded and simply withdrew.

When he learned that the King of Heroes had departed, Ruler allowed himself to sigh. He really didn't know how Kirei dealt with him; but, although he found himself somewhat curious, he also felt it best not to find out, he had decided to stay as far away from his adopted brother as possible, his distortion was somewhat troublesome and, although Ruler would have loved to help him, he also believed it was too late for the deranged Father.

Though, if trouble was what they were talking about, his adopted brother's association with the King of Heroes was certainly a much bigger problem, and one he would have to deal with in the coming war.

While this was not relevant at the moment, he had priority matters on his agenda, and one of these was Ciel-san's request to help him deal with Roa, something he could not refuse if he wanted to continue to exist, and, the second...

Ruler pulled out some papers from his robes. This will be problematic...

On the papers was the image of a 15-year-old girl, she appeared to be Japanese. Her attire was like that of a Buddhist nun; she wore a tight-fitting dress with a slit on the left side that exposed her leg. She also wore a large white hood-like habit with a large gold necklace wrapped around it. If there was anything to denote, it was her extraordinary figure, already very developed for her young age.

-Kiara Sessyoin, why did I have to deal with her? For a Church agent, this is a really complicated job. Ah... I think I'm beginning to understand everyone's dislike of Narbareck-san. Although... -Narbareck-san told me that I could take my time with this case, as long as I helped Ciel-san, and for a mercenary it shouldn't be that complicated...

Ruler sketched a smile, this one appeared to be innocent, but if someone with enough insight were to observe him, perhaps they would be able to detect that within that innocence lay something really malicious. After this, he walked away from the place dematerializing and returning to his spiritual form.

...

Unknown to many of those present, something was happening far away from that place, more specifically, in a different celestial body, on the Moon...

In a gigantic cave, sealed in the depths of the satellite, something was beginning to move. Inside, a huge white titan that devastated the civilizations of the Earth during the Paleolithic era, which was also the dawn of the Age of the Gods, began to awaken very slowly. So slow was its slowness that, if someone were to look at the gigantic creature, one would believe that it was still in a deep slumber, but, in spite of this, the onset of slumber had become present.

What had provoked this reaction? If someone wanted to find the answer to this question, there would be three: an ephemeral dream, the feeling of an advent and, finally, another sensation, that of a light similar to the one that had destroyed her alter-ego during the paleolithic era, one that she believed had been lost for more than 15 centuries.

Perhaps for this reason, she decided to move once again, even if it was before her time, and even if her motives were contradictory. The giant decided to create a second alter-ego and, again, decided to interact with the earth for a second time.

...

Again, in the Einzbern castle...

A day had passed since his father and brother had invaded what was now his castle, and Illya was in his grandfather's office, already in charge of putting the place in order. It was a bit more complicated than he expected, but they managed to effectively hypnotize the people near the mountain into believing that it was all the fault of a natural disaster, a tremor, although in the end, they required more homunculi than expected, but they had been able to contain the situation. On the other hand, repairs to the part of the castle that had fallen prey to the collision between Heroic Treasures had barely begun and would take some time to be completed. Finally, the homunculi who had died in the line of duty had been taken care of, and now she was dealing with another matter...

Lady Einzbern sighed as she analyzed all the information she was receiving through some documents she held in her hands. She had been informed that a new holy grail war would occur since her grandfather had summoned Saber, but her grandfather had refused to give her the details, the only thing she knew for sure was that she would participate as Saber's master. Then, when her grandfather had sent for her, he had informed her about some things, such as her association with Atlas and with the Church; but, even so, there were still things she knew he was hiding from her, such as who was that magus who had visited them from time to time in the past two years, and now, she could finally unveil the whole truth.

On the other hand, there were also other things she wanted to learn about, on some vellum parchments several hundred years old, there were certain annotations, annotations of the apprentices of the Wizard of the Third Magic, and of Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern, who could be considered as her ancestor, notes about the Sensation of Heaven, the Third Magic, and about what her grandfather had planned since the beginning of the holy grail wars.

She sighed, she had many things to think about, the most important was: from now on, what would she do with her life? If she was honest, she didn't know, she never really thought about this situation; however, she had something to start with, the coming holy grail war...

...

On the other hand, in the dream world, a day later...

Once again, he was in that park, he saw how he was playing with Tachie, with Manaka, and also with Ayaka. They were having fun playing with a ball while Manaka was taking care of the younger Sajyou. This was short-lived, however, because Manaka's father entered the park and declared:

-Manaka, Ayaka, that's enough, we must go -Hiroki looked very stern at this point, as if he would not take no for an answer-. We have been here long enough.

Ayaka looked sad and Manaka complained directly. However, Hiroki countered with that Manaka had responsibilities she had to fulfill.

In the end, she had no choice but to accept it, bidding a sad farewell to Shirou and, to a lesser extent, Tachie. The two of them played together; but only after her younger version managed to get Manaka to start opening up to the two of them. Besides, they always seemed to be on opposite ends, arguing about various things and, only when he was in the middle, did they decide to leave the petty squabbles behind. However, to the older redhead, this was nothing more than a normal competitive relationship between children, so he didn't make a big deal out of it.

From one moment to the next, the world changed and the park disappeared. He was now inside a large house, Shirou saw large buildings through the windows of this one, whatever the place was, it wasn't a small town apparently, and these didn't look like any of the buildings he saw in his time in Fuyuki either, although, he did recognize Japanese city planning, so at least he hadn't left the country. Now that he remembered, Manaka had told him that, before moving to Fuyuki, she and Ayaka lived in Tokyo. So, would this be the house where they lived before they moved?

Suddenly, something caught her attention. It was laughter, it was noon, and Shirou went out into the courtyard of the house where three people were standing: a woman who seemed to be of English descent, Hiroki, and Manaka. The latter looked to be three years old, on the other hand, the woman appeared to be a few months pregnant.

Manaka was happily playing with her father, who did not seem to be as strict as Shirou had seen him in his most recent memories. Manaka also seemed to be a very happy child, and quite attached to her mother, like most infants.

Manaka hugged her mother and she gently told her to be careful. She also happily told her that she would soon be a big sister.

Inside the courtyard of the house, there was a half started structure, it seemed to be planned to be a large botanical garden. There was a

A day had passed since his father and brother had invaded what was now his castle, and Illya was in his grandfather's office, already in charge of putting the place in order. It was a bit more complicated than he expected, but they managed to effectively hypnotize the people near the mountain into believing that it was all the fault of a natural disaster, a tremor, although in the end, they required more homunculi than expected, but they had been able to contain the situation. On the other hand, repairs to the part of the castle that had fallen prey to the collision between Heroic Treasures had barely begun and would take some time to be completed. Finally, the homunculi who had died in the line of duty had been taken care of, and now she was dealing with another matter...

Lady Einzbern sighed as she analyzed all the information she was receiving through some documents she held in her hands. She had been informed that a new holy grail war would occur since her grandfather had summoned Saber, but her grandfather had refused to give her the details, the only thing she knew for sure was that she would participate as Saber's master. Then, when her grandfather had sent for her, he had informed her about some things, such as her association with Atlas and with the Church; but, even so, there were still things she knew he was hiding from her, such as who was that magus who had visited them from time to time in the past two years, and now, she could finally unveil the whole truth.

On the other hand, there were also other things she wanted to learn about, on some vellum parchments several hundred years old, there were certain annotations, annotations of the apprentices of the Wizard of the Third Magic, and of Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern, who could be considered as her ancestor, notes about the Sensation of Heaven, the Third Magic, and about what her grandfather had planned since the beginning of the holy grail wars.

She sighed, she had many things to think about, the most important was: from now on, what would she do with her life? If she was honest, she didn't know, she never really thought about this situation; however, she had something to start with, the coming holy grail war...

...

On the other hand, in the dream world, a day later...

Once again, he was in that park, he saw how he was playing with Tachie, with Manaka, and also with Ayaka. They were having fun playing with a ball while Manaka was taking care of the younger Sajyou. This was short-lived, however, because Manaka's father entered the park and declared:

-Manaka, Ayaka, that's enough, we must go -Hiroki looked very stern at this point, as if he would not take no for an answer-. We have been here long enough.

Ayaka was sad and Manaka complained directly. However, Hiroki countered with that Manaka had responsibilities she had to fulfill.

In the end, she had no choice but to accept it, bidding a sad farewell to Shirou and, to a lesser extent, Tachie. The two of them played together; but only after her younger version managed to get Manaka to start opening up to the two of them. Besides, they always seemed to be on opposite ends, arguing about various things and, only when he was in the middle, did they decide to leave the petty squabbles behind. However, to the older redhead, this was nothing more than a normal competitive relationship between children, so he didn't make a big deal out of it.

From one moment to the next, the world changed and the park disappeared. He was now inside a large house, Shirou saw large buildings through the windows of this one, whatever the place was, it wasn't a small town apparently, and these didn't look like any of the buildings he saw in his time in Fuyuki either, although, he did recognize Japanese city planning, so at least he hadn't left the country. Now that he remembered, Manaka had told him that, before moving to Fuyuki, she and Ayaka lived in Tokyo. So, would this be the house where they lived before they moved?

Suddenly, something caught her attention. It was laughter, it was noon, and Shirou went out into the courtyard of the house where three people were standing: a woman who seemed to be of English descent, Hiroki, and Manaka. The latter looked to be three years old, on the other hand, the woman appeared to be a few months pregnant.

Manaka was happily playing with her father, who did not seem to be as strict as Shirou had seen him in his most recent memories. Manaka also seemed to be a very happy child, and quite attached to her mother, like most infants.

Manaka hugged her mother and she gently told her to be careful. She also happily told her that she would soon be a big sister.

Inside the courtyard of the house, there was a half-started structure, it seemed to be planned to be a large botanical garden. There was a sign with the name: Garden, at the entrance.

Shirou inferred that something must have happened between now and his encounter with Manaka in Fuyuki Park, not only because of the personality changes of both Hiroki and Manaka, but also because of the disappearance of the man's wife and the girl's mother. Hiroki, in the more current memories, was much stricter, more cold and calculating, if the red-haired man had to describe the change in his attitude, he would say that the Hiroki he was seeing at this moment was "the father" while the Hiroki of the more current times was "the magus". On the other hand, Manaka also underwent a change in personality until her encounter, from being a happy girl, to an empty doll who seemed to have no reason to live.

Later, she watched as Mrs. Sajyou showed Manaka how she cooked, apparently sparking an interest in cooking on the girl's part. Now that he remembered, he once saw one of Manaka's souvenirs where she had prepared cookies for him, and promised to prepare more for him in the future.

In fact, he also saw how Manaka had told him that she used a secret to make the cookies taste so good, a magic more incredible than any mystery any magus could use, the magic of love. This caused him to cringe, because his younger version had not understood what Manaka had tried to tell him, he excused himself by telling himself that he was too young to notice such things, though he later remembered that he only began to notice the romantic feelings he and the girls around him had thanks to Altrouge, and at the age of fifteen... With his pride somewhat wounded, he decided not to think about it anymore.

Finally, once again, the scenery changed...

"Huh?" The boy exclaimed.

Where was he now? He didn't know, everything was very dark; but one thing was for sure, he was in a cave. He could hear the water falling from the stalagmites, and he felt a tingling sensation running through his skin.

-A boundary barrier? -asked the boy to no one in particular.

Having nowhere to go, Shirou decided to go deeper into the cave, but, every step he took, it became heavier for him. Finally, after going through the tunnel, the boy found himself in a huge cavernous room, this one seemed to be about three kilometers in diameter.

Shirou smelled an absurd amount of magical energy concentrated in the center of the place and, cautiously, decided to continue towards it. As he got closer, he could see a much higher place in the center of the cave, with stone stairs to climb up to it. Without stopping to consider it, as if in a trance, the boy used the stairs and reached the top of the cavern, feeling as if he had been here before.

-Hmm? An altar? No, it's not just that...

There was an altar made of stone in the middle of the place, as well as pillars around it.

An experienced magus would manage to perceive the three-dimensional magic circle formed around the entire cave by several magic ridges. And while Shirou could infer that there was something else in that place, his knowledge did not allow him to go that far.

Suddenly, something began to emerge from deep within the earth, the cave took on a reddish coloration and glowed so brightly that the boy had no choice but to cover his eyes to avoid the dazzling reddish glow.

Once he opened them again, he was horrified, in front of him was something truly horrifying. A fleshy, black sea, full of lumps, something that, apparently, had not yet fully materialized, if the misshapen arms were any indication of this. Said arms began to slowly stretch toward him.

Shirou recoiled somewhat in fright, but it was strange, whatever this was, it was both similar and, at the same time, different from the mud that emerged within the grail. And the strangest thing about it, was that the thing didn't seem to want to attack him, it was more like it just wanted to reach him.

However, when the arms were close enough to try, Avalon glowed from the depths of his person and the arms hastily withdrew.

A deja vu, Shirou felt a sort of deja vu, as if what had just happened he had already experienced it once; moreover, if he was honest, he also felt that it was not the first time he had seen this thing, whatever it was.

Suddenly, the light began to grow to the point where Shirou couldn't see anything else and the world became totally bright...

The light was hitting his eyes, it was really uncomfortable, so the boy turned his face away from it. Finally, he opened his eyes and realized where he was. This must be one of the rooms inside the Einzbern castle, next to him, Manaka was sleeping.

She really looked helpless in that state, he silently thanked her for everything she had helped him recently; however, recognizing her situation brought him back to reality.

-Kiritsugu... -Shirou knew that his father would die sooner or later; but he hoped that he would be able to share his last days with the daughter he had worked so hard to see for the past few years. The boy only hoped that those few minutes he gave them would be enough so that, at the very least, Kiritsugu could depart in relative peace, as well as that his sister would have been able to see that her father really loved her.

Suddenly, the door opened and a homunculus silently entered the room. If he remembered correctly, this was the same homunculus he had handed the letter to in the Clock Tower, she had introduced herself as Sella.

-Hmn? Oh, you're awake now, Mr. Emiya.

Shirou nodded. Sella, right?

That's right, I'm one of Lady Einzbern's three ladies-in-waiting.

-Illya?

The woman nodded, "Both you and your companion have slept for a little more than two days, at this moment, it is dawn, my lady sent me to see if you have had enough rest, she is waiting for you in the dining room. -Sella approached with some pieces of clothing and offered them to him, "Please get dressed and follow me.

Shirou nodded and Sella proceeded to wait for them outside the room. Taking advantage of the fact that Manaka was asleep, he changed his clothes, and then approached his companion.

-Mana... -Shirou whispered unsure if he should wake her up, she may not have been physically exhausted, but in terms of magical energy, she must have been quite drained. Seeing that she didn't wake up, he raised his voice a little- Mana, wake up.

-Hmn...? Shi-kun?

-Are you all right, Mana?

The sleepy girl slowly started to get up. "Yeah... It's just that I used up a lot of my Od during the invasion. But now that I've rested, I'm better now...

Shirou nodded, "Thanks for helping us.

Manaka smiled, "Well, I promised you that I would always help you. Although, I guess you don't remember...

The red-haired man lowered his head-. Sorry...

The girl shook her head, "It's not your fault.

Trying to lighten the mood, he said-. Illya is waiting for us in the dining room, they gave us these clothes for us to dress them and meet her.

At this moment, Shirou was wearing a white suit similar to the one worn by homunculi. It was noticeable that the boy was somewhat uncomfortable, although Manaka liked the way he looked.

The redhead presented him with a white dress. Here, I'll wait for you outside the room.

She nodded and proceeded to get dressed after her childhood friend left the room.

Finally, after dressing up, the two left to meet the lady of the castle. In this way, they made their way to the large dining room of the castle, there stood his sister, apparently, she was drinking tea or coffee, he didn't know for sure.

Illya watched as her younger foster brother entered the room, he was being accompanied by Sella and the girl who had helped heal Leysritt. If she was honest with herself, she wasn't sure how to act towards him, or rather towards them. However, after analyzing the situation, she had decided to give a vote of confidence to each.

After debating with herself, she decided to act as she was supposed to have been trained, or well, as best she could... Illya rose from her seat and, like a lady, welcomed them-. Miss... -However, she realized that she did not know the name of the girl accompanying her brother, that had not been relevant in the conversation she had had with her father.

Seeing how her lover's sister was looking at her a little confused, Manaka decided to introduce herself. Manaka Sajyou, Lady Einzbern -she answered with the same courtesy-. Forgive me for not having introduced myself the other night.

The lady of the castle didn't give it much importance and nodded-. And... -Illya wasn't sure if her next words would be the right ones; but it was her father's last wish and, besides, she would end up calling him that anyway in the future, it was something she longed for; but the words didn't come out. Her- Herma...

Seeing how the girl had trouble referring to him as her brother, Shirou interjected-. If you find it more comfortable, then, you can call me Shirou. Eh... -Shirou didn't know how to refer to his sister either. In fact, now that he was suffering from this problem, he realized something very important: Kiritsugu never forced him to call him father or dad, that's why, he always called him old man, since it was much easier for him to refer to him that way; however, right now he regretted this, he only called him dad in his last moments and, considering the relationship they both had, and the trust his guardian had placed in him, Shirou thought he should have addressed him that way a long time ago.

Illya smiled at his offer. Thank you, in that case, if you wish you can simply call me Illya. I thank you both for helping with my rescue, for risking your lives fighting Saber for me.

-No problem, I promised to help Kiritsugu so he could see you again, and after everything he told me about you, I wanted to meet you too," the boy replied.

-In my case, I couldn't let Shi-kun face all those dangers on her own, so she doesn't have to thank me either, since she's Shi-kun's older sister, it's also a pleasure to meet her," replied Manaka.

At this, Illya smiled at them and invited them to sit down to have breakfast together...

-I apologize if breakfast takes a while, most of the castle staff is either repairing the defenses or rebuilding the castle, the repair process has just begun," Illya explained.

Both Manaka and Shirou stood up from their chairs and offered to each other, "If you want me to-!

Seeing that they spoke at the same time, they both stared at each other. Illya raised an eyebrow and they both couldn't help but let out a laugh.

-I was going to offer to prepare breakfast, if you don't mind? -Manaka said.

-Me too... -Shirou spoke.

For Manaka, cooking was both a way to fulfill her promise to her childhood friend and also a way to show her affection, as well as a way to improve the way she was viewed by both her crush and his sister. Although, on the other hand, she knew that cooking was one of Shirou's hobbies, along with the rest of the housework, and his work as a blacksmith, so competing against him for this one would not be a good idea-. Shi-kun, is it okay for us to cook together?

This surprised the boy; but then he smiled and nodded-. Sure.

Although a bit confused, Illya smiled and said. Well, if you wish, I wouldn't mind trying the foreign food. So, Sella...

-Yes, my lady?

-Guide our guests to the kitchen.

-Order.

And so, both were led by the homunculus to the kitchen of the great fortress...

...

An hour later...

Illya was very surprised to see a large amount of food on her table.

-Isn't this... a little too much...? -Illya asked.

Shirou smiled as he scratched his head, "Well, I was thinking of cooking a feast because, in the end, despite all the bad things that happened, the operation was successful. Although I think maybe I overdid it a little...

Deep down, Manaka knew this wasn't entirely true, cooking was one of the ways Shirou de-stressed, the fact that he cooked so much wasn't because he was consciously preparing a feast, but because he got carried away, after all, it was impossible for him to have gotten over Kiritsugu's death in such a short time. Since he didn't want to worry his sister, she decided to play along. I'm not good at preparing small meals...

-Well, in that case, let's make sure to enjoy the food... -replied Lady Einzbern still surprised. That said, she proceeded to try a bite, and... "Oh my...". Her maids were not bad cooks, far from it; but this food was on a whole different level. Was foreign food so delicious? Or were her brother and his companion cooks of such a high standard as to make these delicacies? Whatever the case, she couldn't stop a smile from glimpsed on her face as a slight blush took over.

Soon, she realized the effects the food was causing and raised her gaze to see the faces of her companions; Shirou and Manaka were not looking at her, they were concentrating on the food; however, she could glimpse a proud smile disguised on both of their faces. For a moment, she felt the urge to pout, but she restrained herself and tried to maintain the dignity she should show as a lady heiress of a millenary magus family.

It was worth saying that, after that breakfast, as long as they were willing, Illya was more than delighted that they were both the cooks of the castle.

The breakfast took place in silence; but not an awkward silence, quite the contrary, Illya was so delighted with the food that conversation was the last thing on her mind. For the first time in a long time, she enjoyed the act of eating, she had delicious food, as well as company to share it with, that alone made the breakfast change radically.

After breakfast, Shirou decided to start a conversation. Illya, what do you plan to do now?

-Hmn? -This question did not surprise the girl, she had been thinking about it for the past two days, she always thought that, after Kiritsugu rescued her, the three of them would live together; maybe even away from the Moonlit World; however, that was impossible now, she was the head of the Einzbern family and her brother was the head of the Emiya family; moreover, he had become quite famous in the Clock Tower lately, so disappearing would not be easy. Finally, there was that matter, the war...

Illya sighed a little sadly, "If I'm honest, I'm not sure. I thought that once we escaped away from the castle, we could live together somewhere far away from the Moonlit World; however, that is no longer possible, as I am now the head of the Einzbern family and, more importantly, because of a matter in which I am obligated to participate.

Shirou understood his sister's feelings; but he also knew the reality. Yes, for various reasons, I too cannot leave the Moonlit World. At least, not for now.

For a moment, they were both silent; but Illya quickly broke it. You see, Shirou, since Kiritsugu was our father and since his last wish was for us to stay together as a family, protecting each other, I have decided to give you a vote of confidence.

-Thank you.

Illya observed with a sharp look at Manaka, he had to be careful, he didn't know exactly what this girl's relationship with his brother was. No offense Miss Sajyou; but you should ask this question. Shirou, considering who Sajyou was to our father, can we trust her?

Obviously, Illya was referring to her participation in the previous war of the holy grail, Manaka knew that the girl was going to ask it, she could have taken actions so that she wouldn't do it; but she preferred not to do it, for several reasons, among these, the answer of her lover?

-It is true that, in our world, betrayal is always at the edge of the corner, and I understand what Mana's position was regarding what happened in the past; but, I have also decided to give her a vote of confidence.

Manaka smiled at the girl for her friend's answer; but, inside, she was thinking about many other things, she already knew that Shirou knew more than what she had revealed to him, but the problem is, she didn't know how much he knew exactly, and asking him, would be admitting his lies, on the other hand, she couldn't read his mind when trying to find out, Lady Kannon's protection safeguarded the boy's mind from any malicious intentions and, specifically, from her. And for him to reveal this, was obviously a warning, it was like saying to her, I will trust you for now; but I know you are hiding things from me.

She would have to be careful, or this could turn against her...

Shirou, on the other hand, had knowingly revealed this, perhaps by pressuring Manaka, Manaka would stop lying to him. He knew she wouldn't hurt him, not only because she was his friend, but also because of the karmic bond, and while he still distrusted certain things about his relationship with her, there were certain things he was sure about-. Manaka is my childhood friend, and we both have a sort of contract that binds her to me. We don't know to what extent it affects us, but I know that, if I die, she will die too, so I don't think she will betray us. -This sounded a bit cold, but in the magus world, only this kind of thing could generate some kind of trust, and he hoped Manaka realized that.

Manaka smiled cheerfully, easily understanding the red-haired man's intention. If that doesn't convince you, Lady Einzbern, then there is something else you should know. Due to the speed in which the operation was executed, I could not tell you, Shi-kun, but I cannot get too far away from you either. If I do, our bond forces me to return to a form... well, let's just say I can't do much in that state.

Illya sighed, "Well, in that case, I'll break a lance in favor of both of you. I can assume, you both know it's the holy grail war, right?

They both nodded.

Lady Einzbern showed a rather serious expression. Well, then, I'll make it clear: the ritual will be performed once again.

This did not surprise the duo very much; they had already come across certain clues that indicated to them that something was going on in the shadows; for example: Heartless' clues, Faker's summoning, and Siegfried's summoning.

-But how? -Kiritsugu told me that it was impossible to perform the ritual again because Fuyuki's leylines were too weakened and they had not found another mystical territory in which to perform the ritual.

Illya nodded, "That's right, this time we will use a different method, grandfather explained it to me, just before Kiritsugu came to the chapel. So listen carefully...

Once again, they both nodded.

Illya began his explanation. Two years ago a man came, a magus from the Clock Tower, he came to propose to my grandfather to re-enact the holy grail war. Obviously, my grandfather explained to him that the magic lines of Fuyuki were very weakened, and that we had not obtained a mystical territory that met the necessary requirements to perform the ritual... Although, in fact, this is only a half-truth... You see, we are not sure how; but during the end of the fourth holy grail war, when the great grail descended into the world, something happened, and this caused the great grail to be severely damaged. While we can reassemble or transplant the grail system, it is impossible for us to create a new grail that performs the Third Magic. And without it, then any grail we create will be just that, a holy grail...

-But you managed to summon a Ghost Liner, which means that something happened and you decided to create a new holy grail, didn't you? -Manaka asked "innocently".

Illya tilted his head, "Well, not exactly, after I explained to him that it was impossible to use Fuyuki's grail, the man told my grandfather that it wouldn't be necessary. Because there was already another "grail" in the world, or rather, something with which we could supply the holy grail.

-Does such a thing really exist? I mean, the grail is a door to Akasha, a door to the Root with the ability to fulfill desires. No, even if something like that did exist, with the world in its current state, where mana is disappearing, is it even possible to use an artifact on the level of the grail? -Shirou asked.

-Yes, it exists, and it is usable. -You said it yourself, with the world in its current state, it is impossible to use any device with a power similar to the original grail, as long as it is based on sorcery. However, "the grail" that already exists is not based on it and it is not on earth, in fact, it is 384,400 kilometers away from it.

-Oh, I see...! -exclaimed Manaka.

Shirou's eyes widened. You're not talking about...?

-That's right, I'm sure you've heard about this one in the news, I understand it's been mentioned a lot in recent years, the supercomputer found on the Moon: the Moon Cell.

-But I thought they hadn't figured out how to use it yet?

-To some extent, that's true. The Moon Cell is a computer that uses futuristic technology that has not yet been achieved by mankind. Making use of its system is really complicated, though not impossible. But there are two factors that have been making its use more difficult to achieve.

-Which two?

Illya raised a finger. The first is an internal reason, I don't know much about computers, so my explanation may not be the best, but, as I understand it, they have protection and security systems, such as passwords, encryption, rights that only administrators can use, and that sort of thing, but, on top of that, they have what is known as an antivirus.

-Do you see us as a virus? -Shirou asked.

-As I understand it, when the Moon Cell was discovered, it managed to hack into all the world's computer systems and connect to them in just two seconds. This rendered all Internet security systems useless, as anyone could access any other computer through the "paths" generated through the Moon Cell, as long as they could connect to the Internet. Obviously, this unleashed a cyber war between multiple organizations on the planet, unleashing chaos in just a few minutes, and almost causing a nuclear war, before this, the main core of the Moon Cell decided to disconnect the computer from all technology on Earth, and judged that humanity was not prepared to make use of the Moon Cell, since then, our attempt to enter has been seen as an unauthorized intrusion by the system and, therefore, sees us as a threat, so it deploys the antivirus to prevent us from being able to make use of it. Moreover, this protection is not only digital, but also physical, anyone who tries to access manually is killed by it.

-She? -asked Manaka.

-Now that you mention it, the United Nations has tried to access the Moon Cell in various ways, including travel to the Moon, what is strong enough to keep them away? -Shirou asked.

-Just one word: servants. The Moon Cell possesses the ability to summon an unknown amount of Ghost Liners, they are commanded by a servant. Specifically, that red-haired magus called her: Shielder, the guardian of the Moon Cell and the Moon Shield.

-Shielder, is she some kind of new class or something? -Manaka asked, looking "confused".

-It seems so... -As I said, there's also the digital lockout, which makes it really difficult to access the Moon Cell remotely.

-But that's only the first reason why the supercomputer couldn't be used, what's the second one? -Shirou asked.

-I imagine you've heard of the Harwey's, haven't you?

Again, the duo nodded.

-They are the leaders of the eponymous conglomerate, an absurdly powerful organization that possesses great influence, they are said to possess their own team of assassins rumored to have wiped out any opposition, they are also said to be a family of magus. In addition, they are the ones who have banned travel to the moon... Wait, don't tell me that the reason they did that was because of Shielder?

-Partly," Illya replied. While it's true that the murder of all the researchers and defense teams turned out to be one of the reasons that Moon travel was banned, the truth is that the Harwey conglomerate has been slowing down Moon Cell research ever since it was discovered. The reason is that, from their point of view, the Moon Cell is a threat to the perpetuation of their power.

-Is that where this Clock Tower magus comes in? -Manaka asked.

Illya nodded and rubbed his chin, "If my memory serves me correctly, he introduced himself as Doctor Heartless. As I understand it, he was a distinguished researcher at the Clock Tower, he also worked for the Harwey conglomerate for a while; but after he realized that the conglomerate's true intentions were to prevent the use of the Moon Cell, Heartless stole various data on the conglomerate's research to gain access to it and went on the run.

-Heartless... now I get it, that explains a lot... -Shirou whispered.

-Is something wrong? -Illya asked confused.

-Well, it's a long story, I'll tell you if you want after you're done with the explanation. I guess, after he managed to escape, he contacted you, didn't he?

-Exactly. He proposed to us to use the Moon Cell as a substitute for the great grail, and in this way, to redo the ritual of the Sensation of Heaven.

-But how would you do it? -They would need to break into the Moon Cell's system, wouldn't they?

Illya nodded, "Heartless made his moves with extreme caution, so he chose his allies well. We don't know how she pulled it off, but she got this...

She pulled something out of her garment, when Manaka and Shirou analyzed it, they were both shocked.

-Is that a contract with the Atlas Institute? -asked the mage pretending to be surprised, obtaining something like that was extraordinarily complicated.

At that moment, Shirou remembered the research he had done on Atlas, he started doing it after discovering the true origin of the Black Barrel. At its origin, seven contracts were created, the Atlas Institute is obligated to cooperate with whoever possesses one of these, as they bind the institute to provide aid to any request. It was rumored that, by the year 2000, four contracts had been recovered, but the location of the remaining three was unknown.

-As I said, it is unknown to us how he obtained it; but he used it to secure the cooperation of the Atlas Institute; furthermore, he offered it to us as a guarantee that he would not betray us," Illya spoke.

I see, if it's the Atlas Institute, then there's a chance." thought the boy.

The Atlas Institute was known for several of its greatest creations, among these were:

The Hermes: a sixth-generation computer unit based on the particle theory of Pseudo-Spiritrons that shouldn't even have been completed yet and thus shouldn't even exist in this world yet. Hermes is also the crystallization of the innermost secret techniques of the fundamental alchemy of the Atlas Institute.

Another is the Tri-Hermes, the pseudo-spiritronic processor: They are the major storage medium of the Atlas Temple, in the form of huge obelisks. It is a photonic crystal, which has even been called a Philosopher's Stone, an artifact out of place and impossible for current Earth science to create. All events are recorded in the TRI-HERMES, however, only Atlas alchemists have full access to it.

In fact, now that Shirou remembered. The Moon Cell was made of photonic crystals, just like the Tri-Hermes. If the research was correct, photonic crystals are crystals that, at the microscopic level, regularly alternate between high- and low-grade refractive index layers. Thus, it is a substance that can control the transmission of information at the speed of light, making it a valuable material for a quantum computer. Mankind had only succeeded in making photonic crystals of a few centimeters in length since intensive study of these began in the 20th century, i.e., nothing that could match the Tri-Hermes, let alone the Moon Cell.

On the Moon, there was a large vein of ore located inside an extremely large hole, comparable to a crack several kilometers wide that perforates the celestial body. It seems that, apart from its surface parts, the Moon itself is formed by these photonic crystals. So, it can be said that the Tri-Hermes is the younger and much less powerful brother of the Moon Cell, with which the alchemists of Atlas had been working for centuries and, therefore, if there was anyone who had the slightest chance of hacking the Moon Cell, it would be them.

-Did they make it? -The red-haired man asked impatiently, "Did they hack the computer?

-They're working on it. We provided all the information about the system by which the ritual of the holy grail war is executed, and the Atlas alchemists are in charge of hacking the computer and implementing it inside it. There has been progress, a year ago we were able to summon shadow servants, the summoning of the first servant per se was successfully performed almost half a year ago, and a few weeks ago we managed to summon Siegfried; but the system still resists us; however, it is only a matter of time - stated Illya.

-Does anyone else know this information? -Manaka asked.

-We, Heartless, the heiresses of the family that leads the Atlas Institute, the Eltnam sisters, and finally a few select members of the Church.

-The Church? -Manaka asked as if confused. Why them?

-Someone had to distract and hide us from the Harwey conglomerate. Supposedly, the Church and the conglomerate get along well; but, secretly, they are angry with the Harwey, as their conglomerate has diminished the power of the Church, so, knowing that there was a way to diminish the power of the Harwey, they agreed to help us. However, this information is only known to Pope Laurentis and his closest associates.

-The Pope? -asked Shirou in surprise.

Now that he remembered, Shirou had met him during the Aylesbury operation, a little over half a year ago, when he was not yet the Pope but a Cardinal. In that last half year, the last Pope had passed away and Laurentis had been elected as the new Pope.

Illya nodded, "Yes, Grandfather managed to contact the Pope when he was still a Cardinal, through the Assembly of the Eighth Sacrament, the same ones who were sending an overseer to dispute the grail of the original Holy Grail War. He has been covering for us ever since, though it is only for his own benefit.

-I understand... -said Shirou.

-As the last head of the Einzbern family, I must participate in this last true holy grail war, just as I did in the previous four. Although, if I'm honest, I don't really have any specific wishes I want to fulfill.

-When will it happen? -asked Manaka.

-We don't know, it all depends on how fast Atlas' alchemists manage to hack the computer and implement the program; however, the test that will mark the beginning of the holy grail war, should be the command spells that will appear in the body of the chosen ones.

-The chosen ones? You mean, the masters? -Shirou asked.

-Yes, but there have been certain problems with the ritual. You see, so far, we have managed to connect the Hermes and the Tri-Hermes to the Moon Cell, as they are similar, the supercomputer does not reject them; but it seems that the Holy Grail War program does not execute correctly, the Moon Cell system seems to alter the ritual in various ways and, for now, it does not execute it completely. Several simulations of the ritual have been run and, little by little, the system seems to execute it more accurately, but there are still flaws.

-I have just one last question," asked Manaka.

-What is it?

-Did your grandfather tell you all this in the middle of the invasion? -asked the blonde "quizzical".

Illya laughed lightly. Of course not, he only told me the basics. Grandfather believed that whoever was invading us was Shielder, who would have found out that we managed to summon a servant. She only seems to attack those who directly attack the Moon Cell system, so he told me everything so that she would then run away, in case we weren't able to stop her, and wait until the ritual began. Although in the end it wasn't Shielder, it was the three of you, so everything took a big 180-degree turn. In case you hadn't noticed, you had been asleep for two days.

They were both slightly embarrassed; but Shirou decided to bring up the idea that had been on his mind since almost the beginning of the conversation.

-Illya, I have to go back to London, that's something I can't avoid.

That discouraged his sister; but it was something she had already assumed.

-So, I wanted to know if... Would you like to come with me and Mana?

-Huh? -she exclaimed in surprise, Illya, in fact, had thought the opposite, to barrack herself as much as possible in her fortress, and as soon as the command spells were present, to summon a servant again to increase her protection. She did not know what this new war would be like, and she did not want to take any risks, but, now, that this proposition she would have accepted without a second thought only a few days ago was becoming a reality, it was hard to resist her...

Thinking she had taken it the wrong way, Shirou tried to explain, "Well, it's just a proposition. You see, Kiritsugu and I bought a property in London, we can live there, and it's big enough to house several people. This way we can stay together as a family. It may not be as big a fortress as this one, but we could fortify it to make it safe, and with the Clock Tower nearby, it's complicated for other organizations to move around freely, plus... Are you all right?

-What do you mean...? -asked the confused girl.

-You are crying, Lady Einzbern... Are you all right? -asked Manaka.

It was true, small tears slid down her cheeks from her eyes. A little embarrassed, she tried to wipe the tears away as quickly as possible. S-Sorry, I don't know what happened to me.

Both Shirou and Manaka couldn't help but smile a little, they both inferred what Illya's life had been these past ten years and, from their own circumstances, they both knew what it was like to be, or feel, alone and suddenly have something, or someone.

-This is only if you want to, of course... -said the boy.

She thought about it for a few seconds, this option was much more dangerous and risky; but also too tempting, besides, if her brother, her father, and her brother's friend, had managed to infiltrate the castle, could she really guarantee her safety by barracking herself here? Maybe she could; but her heartbeat asking her to go out and see the world was telling her no, finally, she answered him. I would love to leave with you..." Illya answered in a very friendly way. -Illya answered in a barely restrained, effusive manner.

-Besides, if Lady Einzbern is bound to fight in the holy grail war, then we must prepare for this one," Manaka reminded.

Shirou nodded. "The holy grail war... It may be the way to achieve my goals," the boy thought.

-There's something else, Shirou...

-What? -asked the boy.

-I found this in Kiritsugu's coat, it's his will. It seems he already had everything prepared, in case he didn't survive...

She gave him some sheets of paper that came in an envelope.

Shirou took the letter and his hands trembled for a few moments, sadness and guilt came from deep inside him once again; but they disappeared after he read the contents of the will and surprise and disbelief filled his face. W-Wait! Did he really want me to...?!

-It was his request; but it's your decision if you want to respect it. I have no idea how you will do it either, sword forging is not my area of specification, although, since alchemy is the art of manipulating matter, perhaps I can be of help?

-If you plan to do so, I might be able to help you too, Shi-kun...

"Kiritsugu...". Shirou turned to his sister and unsheathed his katana. Now that the subject has come up, I remembered that I haven't introduced him to you yet. Illya, this is my master and also my ancestor.

-A sword? -Illya asked in confusion.

-Hey, you had a golem. Is that so strange? -Muramasa asked in an obviously sarcastic manner.

-A possessed sword? -asked Illya, seeing that Muramasa's way of speaking was similar to her grandfather's, she decided to show him respect. My name is Illyasviel von Einzbern, enchanted.

Muramasa seemed pleased. Muramasa Sengo, likewise.

After explaining Kiritsugu's last wish to his grandfather, Shirou asked, "Is it possible to work with those materials? -asked the boy, feeling uncomfortable.

-I understand that you don't like it; but as you well know, it is not at all strange to use this kind of materials for the creation of weapons, and a master blacksmith must be able to work with any material. Do you understand? -For a moment, the blacksmith sighed. Besides, if this is Kiritsugu's last will, then it is a job you cannot refuse, Shirou, to do so would be to spit on his good intentions and his last wishes.

Shirou nodded- Yes, I understand... Illya, is there somewhere in the castle I can use for forging?

-Yes, the workshop that grandfather and I used to mint homunculi, come I will guide you.

Having said that, Illya, together with Leysritt, led Shirou, who was followed by Manaka, to where the old golem's workshop was located, as well as Kiritsugu's body.

Once they arrived, Shirou was greatly surprised at the size and capacity of the Einzbern's workshop, truly, it was a workshop fit for a millennia-old magus family.

-Do you need something specific?

-Yes, steel, I will use two different alloys. The first will have iron, 1% carbon, 15% chromium, 1% molybdenum, 0.2% vanadium and 1.5% cobalt. The second will consist of iron, 0.90-1.03% carbon, 0.30-0.50% manganese.

Illya was surprised to hear his brother's words, completely sure of what they wanted.

-Damascene steel? -Manaka asked.

-That's the plan... I don't think you have all the materials, do you?

Illya looked at him and frowned, however, this gesture proved to be more "sweet" than one that showed annoyance. Even if I don't possess all the materials, have you forgotten which thaumaturgical school my family belongs to? We are alchemists and, moreover, we excel in the transmutation of materials, give me a few hours and I will have all the materials ready.

The red-haired man nodded with a smile; but then, it faded to nothing, he fixed his gaze on Kiritsugu's corpse. In the meantime, I suppose I should take care of the body...

However, when he headed towards it, Manaka stopped him. Hmm?

-Let me do it," said the girl. You can check the weaponry you still possess, I'll call you when everything is ready.

Shirou nodded and thanked her friend before leaving, Ilya, on the other hand, stayed inside the workshop together with Leysritt, an uncomfortable silence surrounded the three of them. At least until they both got down to work...

Lady Einzbern kept Leysritt by her side at all times, just as a precaution; fortunately, however, it seemed that the blonde would not attempt anything malicious, instead, she focused on working her father's corpse with great skill. On her side, she had to take care of having all the materials ready that her brother needed, in short, gather the ones she had and transmute the ones she didn't, although this wasn't her only task, they had lost a considerable amount of the homunculi that were in charge of guarding the castle, so it was her duty to replenish them, by minting new homunculi.

...

On the other hand, with Shirou...

The boy was in another area of the fortress, it was the library of the castle, from one of the briefcases, he took out a computer, this was a laptop he had bought a few weeks ago. Caules had helped him pick it out a week ago on one of his outings with his friends. He still wasn't a computer expert, but he could outdo any average magus in the use of it. Shirou had used it to check a few things, for example, to access the network of surveillance cameras that his father had placed in the castle for a decade, these cameras were somewhat outdated for today, as they were already more than a decade old; but they still served their function perfectly. To their fortune, or misfortune, they had not been able to use this network of cameras to their advantage during the invasion, because the old golem had neglected the telephone line and the electric power generator Kiritsugu had installed.

Fortunately, he had just abandoned them, after a bit of maintenance, Shirou managed to get the generator and cameras working again. The boy sighed internally, if they had used these chambers against any other magus, they wouldn't have needed to have to mint so many homunculi. As for the phone line, it was still intact; but the old man had stopped paying for it, so the service was suspended. Because of this, Shirou was forced to ask his sister for help so that together they could contact a new telephone company to be able to resume the service and hire the internet service, since both were still minors, they would have to use the homunculus tuners, those homunculi created by Acht to replace the old tuners, and some hypnosis to achieve it. In the near future they would also need to hire a lawyer to transfer all the Einzbern's properties to their sister's name, probably they would have to ask Luvia for help for all this.

Once they managed to get their phone and internet service back, he planned to send an e-mail message to Luvia and Caules to inform them of their situation, fortunately, they both knew how to use electronic messaging, for Altrouge he would have no choice but to make an international call. The boy was actually glad that he had been able to buy, and more importantly, teach, the millennial apostle how to use a cell phone, surprisingly, it was much easier than teaching Rin, it took three cell phones before the pigtailed magus could use them well, and she only set out to use one upon seeing Luvia use them, and that, instead of being able to use this to denigrate her as a magus, Luvia used it to show her superiority in maintaining practicality in the present day. Long story short, they started another fight, and in the end Rin decided to buy a cell phone, and he had to help her...

Several hours later...

His sister had sent another one of her maids to look for him, apparently Manaka had already finished dealing with his father's body, so he headed to the workshop...

On a work table, he could see the bones extracted from Kiritsugu's corpse, as well as his heart, a nauseous feeling planted itself in his stomach and refused to leave.

Manaka approached him, for a second, he saw how she was wiping her blood-soaked hands. It is done, thanks to the Einzbern's treatments, the body was preserved in perfect condition, you must be careful when handling it, the curse is very powerful and it is very concentrated. There are also things I must inform you about, Shi-kun.

-First of all, Mana, where is the rest? -asked the boy without being able to look away from his father's remains.

-They are in a compartment that Lady Einzbern gave me, I don't suggest you see them," the girl answered in a low voice.

-Could we bury him?

Manaka shook her head, "While we can, I do not recommend it, Shi-kun, I extracted the materials that will be most useful for the forging of the sword; but, the curse took root throughout his body. If we bury him, it is possible that the curse will permeate the earth, and considering that there is a powerful ley line nearby, it is a risk that is better not to take.

-Then, I guess the best thing to do is to cremate him?

Manaka nodded.

-You told me there were a few things you wanted to inform me about, what are they?

-Well, the first thing, is that Angra Mainyu's curse affected Kiritsugu to enormous levels, it devoured him from the inside out, the curse corrupted most of his magic circuits, rendering them unusable; but I managed to salvage a small part. It's not much, but we could forge them into your magic crest, this will allow you to increase your magical energy output a bit and, since Kiritsugu's circuits are accustomed to the use of Innate Time Control, they should be able to help you, even a little, to make the spell more stable and easier to activate.

-I understand... -Seeing the look on the girl's face, he said. There's more, isn't there?

-Yes, you see there is a small chance that the sword you forge will not only have the properties of the curse?

This caught the boy's attention. What do you mean?

-Well, since it has been incubating and devouring Kiritsugu for the past ten years, corrupting and devouring his circuits, and negatively affecting his soul, it is very likely that the sword will acquire some special characteristics from it.

-Which ones?

Manaka began to "predict" the effects of the sword. Your father had a dual origin, Separation and Union, as you should already know.

Shirou nodded, "The Bullets of Origin work because of his dual origin.

-Yes, and it probably affects the sword. That's just my guess, and you'll have to check it out once you create the sword. The "separation" aspect will probably allow you to separate part of the curse from the sword, and the binding aspect will bind it directly to the body of the one you cut, probably, if you use it at the right time, you can bind the curse directly to its magic circuits. Also, due to the nature of the curse, the pain and fear that people will feel before they die will remain as magical energy in the form of ichor, and will become the next curse that will seek out living people to kill, in short, the curse will spread indefinitely until someone destroys the magical energy or quickly kills the affected person before the curse can feed on it.

This information surprised Shirou, his grandfather had told him about the cursed swords he had once created; but he did not believe that any of these could compare to what he was going to create, at least, in terms of curses. I understand, then, if the sword separates part of the curse and attaches it to the people it cuts, eventually the curse will lose its effect by separating it many times.

Manaka nodded, "It should be so; but the curse of all the evils of the world is not something that runs out, just like that. It is not a single curse, it is 6 billion curses sublimated into one. Also, this is not the only way to use the separating and joining aspects, just as you can separate part of the curse from your sword and join it to your enemy's body, you can probably separate the curse from your enemy's body, or from the magical energy, in case it becomes ichor, and join it back to the sword. This should also work with any other type of curse, in essence, you should be able to separate curses from objects or things and attach them to your sword, also curses that are not attached to anything other than magical energy but are tangible. As the nature of the curse of all the evils in the world is a huge cumulus of sublimated curses, unlike a simple curse, it should be able to be enhanced by absorbing other curses through the properties of separation and binding.

Although Shirou seemed surprised by all this information, he was also a bit skeptical. But that's just a theory, right? I mean, do you really think the sword can do all that?

Manaka smiled with a bit of irony. Shi-kun, while Angra Mainyu is almost useless in a battle against servants, his natural inclinations make him the third best assassin in terms of his ability to kill humans en masse, precisely, the curse of all the evils in the world, are his natural inclinations taken to their highest level. And you are placing that curse on a sword, even if my predictions are wrong, I assure you that that sword will have a "human killing ability" of the highest level.

-I understand... That will make it a very useful weapon, I suppose? -said the boy still dismayed by all the information.

Manaka smiled, "And if that sounds useful to you, just wait until we get back to Japan and I get that bonus...".

-Shirou... -Illya approached with Leysritt at her back, for a moment, she looked at her father's body parts and a look of disgust similar to her brother's came over her, she averted her gaze and focused on the red-haired man-. Here are all the materials you asked for.

Leysrrit passed by his mistress and handed the materials to the boy that were in a box, Shirou took them and answered-. Thank you, we'll start working then...

Illya nodded, "I will continue with my responsibilities...". -With that said, she went into the workshop.

-Okay, ready, Grandpa?

To no one's surprise, Muramasa sounded quite excited. Of course I am! And now that I've heard the possibilities of this new sword, I'm even more excited than before. Ah, DAMN! How I wish I could go back to forging with my own hands.

-Well, technically, you're still shaping a sword," the boy scoffed.

-You know what I mean, brat! -Muramasa snarled.

At this typical interaction between ancestor and descendant, much like that of a grandfather and grandson, Manaka just smiled.

So, they both began to forge, first, they created the two metal alloys using the ingredients that their sister had brought them and using the tools she had provided them with. Once they had the two metal alloys ready, they began the actual forging process, and started using the forge that the Einzbern workshop owned, due to their craft as alchemists. They placed the steel slats in the forge so that, together with the incoming air, the steel would reach the desired temperature.

-Remember that the ideal temperature is from 860 to 1000 ºc, maximum can not exceed 1200? -spoke Muramasa.

-Yes, it hasn't reached the cherry red color yet...

-Shi-kun... -To the surprise of the blacksmiths, the girl interrupted them.

-Yes? -asked the boy, totally focused on the forge.

-Oh, you are not using the current techniques for the creation of steel?

-Fortunately, no. Although the technique was lost about two and a half centuries ago, my grandfather was alive during its use, and learned it during his lifetime. One of his best weapons, the Myōhō Muramasa, is made of silver masco.

-That's amazing, Oji-sama.

Muramasa smiled with pleasure. Using the original technique will give better results than the new versions.

Manaka smiled, "Indeed.

They began to create the Damascene steel using the two steel alloys, the bones, and the heart of Kiritsugu, after they were satisfied with their work of shaping the steel, and reaching the maximum hardness point for the Damascene steel, the two blacksmiths proceeded to heat treat the sword, known as quenching, using cracked ammonia, then they moved on to tempering and used oil. After finishing the whole process, they began to polish the blade, making the vaceos, edges, and the end of the tip, using finer and finer sandpaper, until they finished with a polish that reflected like a mirror. Finally, they finished with the details, and finished with the hilt.

...

Several minutes later...

-Did you finish? -Illya had returned from the deepest part of the workshop, she was curious and surprised to see her brother shirtless and sweating a lot.

-Yes," the boy answered with a tired smile, "It took a lot longer than I expected, I haven't faced such a challenge since I forged Neocaliburn.

-I see... And was it necessary, well...? -Illya pointed to her naked body and turned her gaze.

-Oh? Uh, sorry... -Shirou quickly covered himself again, he had gotten used to not being embarrassed about being half naked due to his relationship with Altrouge where, on more than one occasion, he had had to give her some of his blood. The heat from the oven was perfect, and this place retains heat pretty well before dissipating it, so, for a moment, I was overwhelmed.

She nodded and tried to change the conversation. And Sajyou?

-Mana went to prepare lunch, he was busy, so I guess he took advantage and beat me to it," said the boy with a frown. By the way, Illya, what were you doing in the workshop?

-Oh, right, come on, I'll show you...

Illya led him to the deepest part of the workshop and, there, he observed a series of homunculi floating in some kind of cylindrical tanks.

-Is this where you mint the homunculi? -said the boy as he stared in amazement at the various tanks.

-Yes," Illya replied. We lost quite a few of the guard homunculi in the invasion, so I have to replenish them to secure the castle.

This made the boy lower his head. I, sorry about that...

-Hmm?

-I tried to minimize the amount of deaths during the invasion; but in the end, it was in vain.

Illya flashed him a sort of smile whose meaning he couldn't understand. It's strange that you care about that, even grandfather didn't care so much about his creations, and if they were failures, he didn't even give them importance.

-Well, I have a friend who is a homunculus, and you are one, and your mother was one too, so... well, it's kind of hard for me to see them as if they were dolls...

Illya gave a little sigh- Well, that's because they're not dolls, not specifically; but I do understand why all magus think they are.

-Hmm? What do you mean? -asked the magus in confusion.

-Believe it or not, I didn't see them any differently myself until a few years ago... -For a moment, Illya lowered her gaze slightly as she looked at the homunculi. You see, ever since I was a child, I was locked in a room with no concern for me, homunculi don't need food as long as they have a source of magical energy to supply themselves, and with a ley line nearby, I hardly needed to leave that room... -Illya touched one of the tanks with her hand. They didn't speak to me, they didn't show expressions, sometimes I thought they didn't notice my presence.

-That's because of the purity of their souls, isn't it?

Illya nodded, "The homunculi are not dolls without real feelings, but they are created to be tools, and what good does it do for a tool to have feelings? That question is part of the origin of that thought. And it is not something I can deny, it is simply the truth.

-The falsity of feelings... I guess that's the other part.

-Yes. As tools, they are designed to fulfill a single function, if you design a homunculus to fulfill the function of telling you I love you, then it will do it, even if it doesn't know what it means; it will be a sincere love, but from the human point of view, also an empty love. Of course, you can give emotions to the homunculus, but then the doubt will plague your mind, if I created it to love me, and I gave it emotions to do so, then, can I say that it really loves me?

-I think I understand, it's not just about love, affection, familiarity, happiness... All of them are achieved through time and experiences with many people, but there are times when they are not achieved, and many times you end up hurt and suffer... -At that moment, the boy realized-. To love, but not to be hurt... to love and the possibility of being hurt, are two things that go hand in hand, by using a homunculus, you take the easy way, a homunculus will not reject you, will not insult you, will not hurt you, will love you if that is why you created it; but by not going through the way that everyone goes through, by not taking risks, those who created the homunculi with that kind of purpose began to question if those inserted feelings were true. The problem is not in the homunculi, but in those who want to obtain that love, affection, or true happiness, without risking suffering, it is a contradiction.

Illya nodded. Exactly. Knowing all this made me create my own vision of homunculi. They are tools, they are born to fulfill a task and fulfill it with devotion until their death, their emotions are sincere, there are no lies, even if humans see them as empty. A homunculus does not lose its life when a newer model appears, but its life ends when humans can no longer bear the "empty" purity of its actions. That is why I will accept it, I will accept that purity, even if the rest of the world cannot stand it, because that purity is not a mistake, it is simply its nature, and because I also know that homunculi can reach self-consciousness without any feeling of inferiority like any other human being, obtaining what humans know as "true" feelings, and my mother is the proof of that. -A smile graced the young Einzbern's face. And while I wait for them to be able to teach their true value to the world, I will continue to protect that purity and give them a reason to exist, that is what I have decided.

-I think I understand, then I suppose I will stand by your side protecting that purity, the way I can recognize the value of your life and Sieg's, is by never averting my eyes.

Illya nodded with a smile, "Once a homunculus reaches self-awareness, I don't see why it should be considered inferior to another human. That is why your not looking away from me and treating me like any other person is more than enough for me.

-My lady...

Illya and Shirou turned and saw Sella approaching.

-Yes, Sella?

-I have been sent to inform you that lunch is ready, Miss Sajyou is waiting for you in the dining room.

Illya nodded and she and Shirou followed Sella into the dining room...

Five days later, inside a medieval-era castle hidden in one of the most secluded places in Europe...

Altrouge was together with his two bodyguards: Fina-blood Svelten, also known as Blood, The White Knight, and Rizo-Waal Strout, also known as Strout, The Black Knight, in the ballroom of the medieval castle.

Despite being known as the White Knight, Fina-blood Svelten is the captain of a ghost ship, and of a ghost squadron, and is number 8 of the 27 apostles, he possesses a reality marble called Parade. He is also known for liking to get blood from small children, and is on bad terms with his fellow ancestors: Rita Rozay-en and Van-Fem.

Rizo-Waal Strout, on the other hand, is one of the three oldest apostles, as well as number 6 of the 27. He owes his immortality to a time-related curse and wields a demonic sword called True Demon Neardark. He is believed to be "invincible" due to his "curse of time." Altrouge smiled.

Altrouge smiled, "It seems that old Ortenrosse is really trying hard to keep the peace.

Rizo-Waal nodded, "That he hasn't tried to kill us yet is the best proof.

Fina-blood replied with a smile. Although I, in particular, wouldn't mind if he tried.

-Not counting Ortenrosse, we have the hatred of Rozay-en, Van-Fem, Merem, and Blackmore, do you really want to pick a fight here, Fina? I'm sure I'll survive; but you? -laughed Rizo.

-It would not be a good party if we were not at a disadvantage, don't you think so, my lady? -asked the white knight.

Altrouge nodded, "It would be fun. Though it's unlikely we'd have to worry about Rita.

-Oh, that's right, thanks to the Rail Zeppelin events, we're in luck then," Fina exclaimed.

-Don't you think it's a bit pitiful to have a child clean up your mess? -asked the black gentleman rather surprised.

-I'm the kind of apostle who likes to see the bottle half full," replied the pirate.

Altrouge tuned out the conversation between her bodyguards and decided to analyze the ballroom. She saw Rita talking to Sumire, which was strange because she didn't think Sumire was coming.

Rita is known as "The Artist Lady", in short, she is a typical upper class vampire with a taste for art. She is the successor to her vampire father, having inherited his castle, where she is known to take a bloodbath every night. She is also known for her arrogance, and for doing as she pleases. Possibly due to her twisted personality, she is never satisfied with her actions. She maintains a strange friendship with Sumire; to the point where they have sworn to die by each other's hand. In addition, she is the manager of the Rail Zeppelin, and was so in a face-to-face capacity until the encounter with Aozaki.

Sumire, meanwhile, is known as "The Water Bottle" and "The Water Demon" has conquered the traditional vampire weakness of not being able to cross bodies of water, though she has also been weakened on land due to this. She is very strong, being the only undead apostle able to use a Phantasmal Marble, also known as the Manifestation of a Phantasy, normally.

The Phantasmal Marble is the ability to materialize a fantasy, a vision. It is the ability of a True Ancestor or elemental to connect their will with nature, as a means to interfere with probabilities and transfigure the surrounding world at will, according to their worldview. Since the user is part of nature, he can change the world as he wishes. But in the end, what can be realized is something that can only be achieved within the limited scope of nature.

In addition, Sumire can teleport and is considered inept due to excessive alcohol consumption. Altrouge always thought she was a lot like an older sister who got drunk easily, and although she has a castle, there is nothing there. She is a pessimist by nature, but is able to enjoy almost any activity. She is on good terms with Rita and they share that strange pact.

The Twilight Princess smiled internally, what the other apostles didn't know, with the exception of, perhaps, Rita, was that Sumire was the only former dead apostle capable of using the Fantasy Manifestation normally, she could also make use of it, but she had certain difficulties due to her condition, something that was fixed once she got her new mystical eyes.

She observed Merem as well, arguing with Blackmore, as was now usual. For a moment, their gazes met, she gave a mocking smile and he looked at her coldly before continuing to talk to the other apostle.

Merem Solomon, also known as "Crown" or the "Demon Summoner". He is the twentieth of the Twenty-Seven Ancestors of the Dead Apostles and the fifth member of the Burial Agency. Everyone knew his story: he was originally a child with the ability to talk to animals and materialize people's wishes due to his status as a "Planet Terminus". The people of his village removed his arms and legs to prevent him from leaving, while worshipping him as a deity for their own convenience. Crimson Moon took note of this and challenged the villagers to a morbid game: for an entire night, the villagers would have to imagine beasts for Merem to materialize, and if none of the creatures could defeat him by dawn, they would all be slaughtered. No creature in the villagers' imaginations could stand up to Brunestud, so he kept his promise and killed them all at dawn. The act of materializing the beasts was too much for Merem to bear, leading to his death. Crimson Moon revived him as an apostle and told him that, since he was now free of his captors, to imagine beasts to replace his lost limbs, his Demon Beasts. From this, Merem began to feel an immense sense of gratitude towards him, which he then directed to the one who could be considered his little sister, or something like that, Arcueid.

On the other hand, there was Gransurg Blackmore. Known as the "Lord of the Black Wing," as well as the "Killer Dead Apostle." He is the sixteenth of the Twenty-Seven Ancestors of the Dead Apostles. Gransurg was originally a magus from Austria, whose research involved the sanctification of birds. These eccentricities caught the attention of Crimson Moon, who sought to fight Gransurg, even though he had average thaumaturgy and no unique traits. The latter was quickly defeated and only survived due to a last-minute coincidence, which led Crimson Moon to make Gransurg his personal magus. He pledged absolute obedience to Brunestud, believing that the defeated must serve, and chose to become a dead apostle on his own through arcane research. He was also known to have made mankind believe that he had been killed, and remained "dead" for several centuries, he claimed it was simply a joke, although some think he did it so that mankind would forget his relationship with his human family and they could continue their lineage.

Both were faithful servants of Brunestud, but are constantly at odds, as Merem sees him as an idol, while Blackmore sees him as a master. Both hate her as an impostor and wish to kill her, which they tried to do at Aylesbury, both times...

Now that she remembered, Enhance had not come, which was normal considering his condition, it was said that, recently, he hunted Louvre down and ended his life easily due to the weakened state he was in. He is known as the Knight of Vengeance and, although he was stripped of his rank recently, having no one to take his place yet, he is still referred to as the eighteenth. She felt somewhat sorry for him, he was fun to talk to, unlike most of the other apostles. Thanks to the fact that she was practically harmless in her sealed form, he would not attack her, although he said that, if he ever saw her in her true form, he would kill her, and she replied with amusement that she would like to see him try.

She could also see or, rather, sense the presence of Stanrobe Calhin. He was known as the "First Ghost," and what an appropriate name, considering that he did, in fact, become a ghost after being destroyed by the Church. He still retains his immense destructive power that allowed him to destroy everyone and everything associated with him, as well as earning him the nickname "Duke of Predation". He will continue to exist for at least two hundred more years before his existence dissipates completely.

She took another look around the room and observed Van-Fem talking to Zelretch, the two seemed to be able to get along relatively well, considering they liked human culture. Or, human affairs, in the latter's case.

Valery Fernand Vandelstam, better known as Vam-Fem, is the fourteenth of the Twenty-Seven Ancestors of the Dead Apostles. One of the longest serving Dead Apostles, he felt that Ortenrosse's ideas were too old-fashioned and broke away from his faction. At some point, Fina captured Van-Fem's fifth golem castle during a confrontation, so Van-Fem began to hold a long-standing grudge against his faction. He is known to be an eccentric vampire with an interest in humans, he sought to increase his influence through non-vampiric methods in the last few hundred years, after the first world war, as part of a plan to gain a rapid increase in power, which allowed him to turn his conglomerate into one of the most powerful, and Vam-Fem into one of the world's leaders. His conglomerate is one of the few that can measure up against the Magus Association, the Church, the Scladio Family Mafia and, to a much lesser extent, the Harwey Conglomerate.

The most recent rumors about him said that, recently, he had constructed buildings in the city of Monaco and started running a weekly casino ship, Fem's Casa.

Finally, he observed old Zelretch, the Wizard of Jewels and known as the Wizard Marshall, being the only user of the Second Magic. Though Merem and Blackmore know him best as the one responsible for the defeat of Brunestud, the King of the Vampires, in a fight many centuries ago simply because of his dislike for him. During the battle, Zelretch had his blood sucked out of him, resulting in Wizard Marshall becoming a vampire classified as one of the Twenty-Seven Ancestors of the Dead Apostles, the fourth, to be exact. While he emerged victorious, or arguably ended in a draw, he paid a heavy price. He was greatly weakened by the battle, severely aging him and causing his powers to diminish. It is worth saying that he is not the favorite person of any of the servants of the Last of the Moon, although, ironically, Arcueid sees him as a grandfather of sorts.

She understood that there were apostles who did not come; besides Enhance, such as Caubac Alcatraz, who nobody knew if he was still alive, El Nahat, who was sealed by the Church together with other apostles, TATARI, who is a phenomenon created by her that only appears in a previously determined time and place, or ORT, who, literally, nobody knows if he can be reasoned with. Another exception is Ainnash, both because it was similar to ORT in that sense, and because it was already dead. However, she was surprised not to meet Nrvnqsr Chaos, where was he?

In the hall were also members of the two factions and other prominent apostles, but not nearly as important as the 27. If someone not related to the vampire world walked into this party, they would just see a bunch of upper class people with eccentric tastes having a big party. Vampires, on the other hand, would see a midnight snack.

A few light knocks from a glass were heard inside the hall and, despite being very fine knocks, they were easily audible to all present. The one who had provoked them was the host, Trhvmn Ortenrosse.

Trhvmn Ortenrosse, also known as the Lord of the White Wing, the seventeenth ancestor of the Twenty-Seven Dead Apostles, as well as the bastard who tried to kill her. The eldest of the Dead Apostles, he was a magus who became a bloodsucker through his own research. He became the first follower of Crimson Moon.

-I hope you are all enjoying this enjoyable evening," Ortenrosse began his elegant speech. With great regret, I and my... congeners, must be absent for a few moments, I hope you understand.

"Well, the time has come," thought Altrouge, holding back an inward sigh.

-Please follow me. -Before leaving the hall, the Lord of the White Wing turned to the members of his faction and narrowed his eyes. Keep up the good fellowship, please.

For his part, Altrouge was a bit more direct with the members of his faction. Try not to kill each other until we get back.

Ortenrosse frowned, he had always despised all the other "Brunestud" who have reigned since the original, in short, her and Arcueid. Though Ortenrosse not only hates Altrouge for reigning with the surname Brunestud, but for being the opposite of a classic vampire, as he is, for while Altrouge could behave like a worthy royal when she wants to, that's the problem, she behaves when she wants to.

If Sumire is known as inept for being a drunk, Altrouge is known as a walking disaster for being unstable... in more ways than one. It's not like she cared about the opinion of her fellow humans, much less cared in the least about the old vampire's behavior.

So, the members of the Twenty-Seven Dead Apostles, as well as an extra apostle, moved into a large room, which possessed an oval table large enough for everyone to sit at. They all sat in the seats where they were most comfortable, with the exception of Ortenrosse who sat at one end of the table and Altrouge who sat at the opposite end.

-As you know, we are gathered here... -Ortenrosse began.

Sensing the long rant the Lord of the White Wing would deliver, Altrouge decided to intervene. We know why we have come here Ortenrosse, let us be as efficient as possible and take care of these matters as soon as possible.

The Lord of the White Wing frowned, but continued, "As you wish, Altrouge.

The Princess closed her eyes contemplatively. Forgive me, Ortenrosse, we are not close enough to call each other by our first names, please address me by my last name, as you always have.

The old apostle clasped his hands tightly together. I understand... Brunestud. -This was the only way Ortenrosse said the surname Brunestud with extreme distaste, he said it almost as if he spat out every word.

Van-Fem couldn't help but crack a smile at the sight of the old apostle's anger, Merem was torn between being angry at Altrouge and amused at the sight of the apostle's fury, Blackmore on the other hand was quite angry at the Princess he considered an imposter. The others did not react to any great extent, at most, they showed disgust or joy according to their own positions.

Getting to the point, Ortenrosse continued, "There are several matters we will deal with, first and foremost: the death of Ainnash.

-Ainnash was a real nuisance, even for us. As you well know, he was one of those who ignored the balance between the need to drink blood and the sustainability of the society from which we feed, he sucked blood recklessly since the middle ages, and, had he continued in the same way, we would have had to make drastic decisions about him, so why do we make such a big deal about his death? We can almost say that we have not benefited from this? -said Rita.

-While that is true, due to its nature, the Prophecy of the Roses was useless, as the forest had no conscience and attacked everyone equally, therefore, at no time was an heir prepared. And that has left a vacancy in the organization, and we already have enough problems with the apostles who are sealed by the Church. We cannot afford to have any more gaps within the organization," Van-Fem declared.

-I must clarify that the Prophecy of the Roses about the defeat of the Forest of Ainnash did exist, it just could not be transmitted," Ortenrosse declared. Prophet, please declare.

Another ancestor stood up, she is the so-called "Prophet", who is in charge of declaring the "Prophecy of the Roses", she always predicts the death of the ancestors and warns them so that they can prepare a successor immediately. In short, she is an ancestor with clairvoyant abilities that allow her to predict the future. The prophetess was wearing an evening gown and her face was covered by a veil.

Tonight the Sword of Twilight will appear before you, its blade will cut off your life and, with its "Longinus", will end your existence," declared the prophetess.

-Longinus? -Sumire asked between drunkenness and sobriety.

-I was present during the defeat of the forest, and no spear was used, so it is likely that it refers to something symbolic, and not to the real Longinus," explained Merem.

Suddenly, an old phone brought by Zelretch rang, he picked it up and everyone could hear, "The Twilight Sword? Considering you were in the vicinity when the forest died, does it have something to do with you? Princess of Twilight? -asked a voice from the east.

-Alcatraz? Are you still alive? -asked Altrouge in surprise.

-That's right, unfortunately, I can't get out of my last labyrinth right now. So, I thank Zelretch for giving me a hand to assist.

-Stuck in your own maze, something worthy of our comedian," mocked Rita.

-Let's get back to the point," said Blackmore.

-Right, Bru-Brunestud," said Ortenrosse with difficulty. Answer the question, please.

-I assume by Sword of Twilight you mean him, he's the same guy who survived a game with me, he caught my eye, so I've been keeping an eye on his actions over the last few months.

-Then it's a bigger problem, not only did he manage to hurt you, but he also killed Ainnash? -said Van-Fem.

-Not to mention that he also left the easiest job for Enhance to finish off Louvre, my subordinate," stated the Lord of the White Wing reluctantly.

Merem smiled, "Well, that's not so bad, I never liked the idea of triplets...

-Merem... -Ortenrosse warned, "Whether you like it or not, that does not justify their destruction, we have lost an asset, who, with the passage of time, could have become a worthy member of our organization," then the man narrowed his eyes. I propose that we hunt the boy down.

-It will not be necessary, as the prophet said, he is the Sword of Twilight, my sword. In short, he is mine," declared the Princess.

-Oh, and how you prove it! -laughed Rita. A black knight, a white knight, and now a sword. Quite a predilection for sharp things, eh Altrouge? -she scoffed.

-Why do you ask? Are you afraid of steel, Rozay-en? -Fina-Blood replied with a smile.

-You wish, you barbarian without a shred of elegance! -replied Rita.

Ortenrosse raised an eyebrow. Are you claiming that you sent him to assassinate Ainnash?

-No, not at all. It was nothing personal, just a simple contract," Altrouge narrowed his eyes. While I may have a certain predilection in choosing my subordinates, a certain artist has a great obsession with mystic eyes. Enough to propose to me the murder of Ainnash at the cost of saving her train.

The oldest of the apostles turned to the artist, "Rozay-en? Something you wish to declare?

Rita grunted slightly. Like Altrouge, I bear no grudge against Ainnash; but I couldn't let him destroy my Rail Zeppelin just to satisfy his appetite.

Ortenrosse growled, "You brats never think about the consequences of your actions...".

"We're all brats to you." Thought all the centuries or millennia old immortals in sync.

-Whatever, that doesn't change anything. Merem, since you were there, what do you think about the boy? -asked the Lord of the White Wing.

Although Merem considered Ortenrosse to be inept, he showed some courtesy to the supposed spokesman of the apostles. Shi-chan? His fight was pretty good, as a treasure collector, I feel a bit jealous of him. He still relies on his weapons more than his own skills, so he's still an immature fruit; but he has potential, so he'll become more powerful in time.

The older apostle turned to Altrouge, "You can't just keep him as a human, just like that, not after he murdered Ainnash, and the trouble he might pose in the future.

-And what do you suggest? -she asked, looking cautious.

-You have only two options: make him one of us, or kill him before he becomes a bigger problem. We cannot allow people who pose as many risks as your sword and Enhance do as they please. This is why I have decided to choose Chaos as an enforcer, to take care of those misguided apostles who represent a problem for our species.

-Oh, right, you see, Shi-chan also possesses the fruit of Ainnash? -said Merem.

-"Oh, so that thing really exists?" "In this world?" asked Zelretch with amusement.

"Stop playing dumb, that's something you surely knew. You didn't just send us there to get these eyes, of that I'm sure," Altrouge thought with narrowed eyes.

-Oh? Then it's even better, if your sword eats the fruit, it should inherit Ainnash's power," Ortenrosse declared with a rather exaggerated reaction of surprise. This way, the tradition of inheriting the post will be upheld.

-Hmm... It was my understanding that the fruit only offers temporary immortality, is that right? -Caubac asked from the phone.

-The fruit has pretty much been a myth until now. While that is what is believed, thanks to it becoming the essence of the blood harvested from Ainnash's victims, as well as the thousands of animals that once inhabited the forest, the fruit also allows for the creation of Ainnash's children, vampiric forests with the same qualities as the original, if the fruit only had the blood of its victims, it is hard to believe that it could create these little children of Ainnash on its own. Although the original tree was a blood-sucking tree, so it would not be entirely unlikely. It's complicated to infer the fruit's capabilities, even more so when the forest evolved so much after absorbing the blood of the original Ainnash, to the point of becoming a ghostly species... -Merem explained.

-I see that the death of the original Ainnash is already public knowledge... -said Altrouge.

-I took it upon myself to keep everyone here updated, I have Shi-chan to thank for that as well. I didn't inform you of anything because, well, I assumed you already knew," smiled Merem.

-Are you suggesting that the fruit is capable of turning someone into an apostle if ingested, and thus gives immortality? -Rita asked.

-That's the theory, whether it's true or not, that's another matter. What we are sure of is that, either because of the blood of the original Ainnash, or because of the blood-sucking nature of the tree, whoever ingests this fruit should, at the very least, acquire characteristics of our species. As Ortenrosse said, until recently, the fruit was nothing more than a myth," said Merem.

-So, Brunestud, what do you decide? It's either that or make a contract with him, just as you did with TATARI to make him one of your own," asked the Lord of the White Wing.

-I already have a contract with him," Altrouge declared.

-Oh? You should have told us earlier, it would have saved us all this talk. If you already had a contract, that means you planned to convert him sooner or later, doesn't it? In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if you accepted the contract, more for the chance to have your subordinate promoted, than for whatever Rozay-en offered you," Van-Fem scoffed.

-Something like that... Although the contract was a timely thing to do," Altrouge replied, "However, I will be the one to choose when he will transform. So my association with him must be kept secret, so that he can mature properly. We don't want another case like Louvre, do we?

-As you wish... -Ortenrosse replied with annoyance overflowing in his voice, realizing Altrouge's plans to have a powerful new apostle within his faction. To their misfortune, the Princess was right, they could not afford to lose another member, as happened with Louvre for being too weak, not at this time.

-So, are we done? Can I go back to drinking? -Sumire asked.

-Not yet," replied Crimson Moon's first follower. We have two more issues to discuss. The easiest one to resolve is about TATARI, the Prophecy of the Roses has already been dictated. Prophet, please make it known to us...

-The phenomenon known as Tatari will come to an end before it completes its destined journey. Therefore, it is necessary to prepare an heir," spoke the prophetess.

-Hmm? -Since I was the one who transformed Zepia into Tatari, I know all the preordained occasions on which he will appear, and I understand that he will only manifest in a few months in the future. Your predictions, prophet, are generally delivered shortly before death, and we all know why, since by the time they are delivered, the future is already practically set; but at this point, months away, shouldn't it be complicated for you to accurately predict the future?

-Generally, yes, Princess. However, certain conditions have arisen this time that have enabled me to predict the future with a relatively large distance of time. Among these is the nature of Tatari himself, which, by appearing in a pre-established area, reduces the number of factors I have to take into account, in short, I must only see the events that will take place at his next appearance, and not what Tatari will do until his death.

-And precisely the events that will take place during his next appearance, can't they be altered with the time frame we have? -Fina asked.

-The problem is that the factors that will lead to Tatari's death are too "heavy" to be altered easily, it would take a great undertaking to do so, and the results could be catastrophic.

-And what are these? -asked Rizo.

-Now you will know, this is the Prophecy of the Roses of Tatari: The phenomenon known as, TATARI, will reach the end of his journey sooner than expected, his sentence will be dictated by the Princesses of Black and White, he will resist, but he will face Death, the Heir of Ainnash and his own Heir.

Merem and Blackmore frowned as they heard the first part of the prophecy.

"The Heir of Ainnash, eh? So that's how you came up with it, you crafty old man. Merem must have known by now, maybe if I should have killed him at Aylesbury," the Princess thought and frowned, "Are you saying I'll order Tatari killed?

-And not only you, Arcueid will be there too, as well as his sword, Death, and Tatari's own heir.

-Death? -Rizo asked.

- "I don't think he means death itself, but someone closely related to it," the prophetess stated.

-Like a title or something? -Rita asked.

The prophetess nodded.

-Well, having heard the prophecy, you don't need to be a clairvoyant user to know that these factors are more than powerful enough to seal Tatari's fate. The fact of having the brat as an enemy, is already really problematic, and, besides, Merem will run like a puppy to her mistress to help her if she needs it-Merem observed with contempt to Ortenrosse when hearing how he referred to his princess and likewise, on the other hand, several of the 27 smiled knowing that this was true-. Having you as an enemy means having your faction, Rizo-Waal, Fina-Blood, and Primate Murder, as enemies as well. And all this without taking the other three into account. I don't see a feasible way for anyone to save Tatari from all that, in fact, I wouldn't even know why anyone would try it to begin with, he's an apostle with no allies and no territory as well.

-And this was probably predicted even before the Prophecy of the Roses? -Zelretch stated.

-What do you mean Zelretchyyy? -Sumire asked, suffering from the effects of not having drunk alcohol for a relatively long period of time.

-Pfff... Zelretchyyy... -a mockery was heard from the phone.

With a movement, the Jewel Wizard hung up the phone from Caubac, then, he set about to explain-: Remember that, before he was Tatari, he was Zepia Eltnam Oberon, an alchemist of Atlas, he was considered an incomparable alchemist and a renowned head of the Eltnam family. Like other Atlas alchemists, he could calculate the future, which allowed him to calculate the TATARI equation and all its possible locations. In fact, Zepia became head of Atlas around 1400 AD, so he had full access to Atlas technology, it should come as no surprise that he managed to predict this event as well.

Altrouge frowned-. But that doesn't make sense, that would be like admitting that he knew his experiment would be a failure from the beginning, so... Why!?

Zelrecth smiled like a grandfather lecturing a child. There are extremely stubborn humans out there, Altrouge. Maybe the chances of the experiment succeeding were low, but if there was a slim chance of succeeding, maybe Zepia decided to take advantage of it, even if everything was against her. I think that's something you could understand without much difficulty, don't you?

The Princess's frown softened at these words.

-The fact that "your own heir" is involved in the event that will bring it to an end supports my theory. Back then, Zepia must have "seen" more than any of us, whether she became Tatari to take advantage of that minimal opportunity, or whether she had other motives for doing so, is unknown to us; but it is unlikely that she did not know of this event. By the way, I believe his heir is Sion Eltnam Atlasia, she is a distant descendant of Zepia, her younger sister is the current director of the Atlas Institute," Zelretch stated. She was bitten a little over a year ago by him, but she has managed to survive the conversion process in a truly amazing way and has great control over her impulses. This is probably because the effect of Tatari's blood poison as a vampire is weak and it only exists occasionally, so she can probably remain mostly human for several years, though of course this will change once Tatari fully manifests.

-Which she will do in a few months, further proof that she already had it all planned out," said Blackmore.

The Jewel Wizard nodded.

-Well, in any case, it's a problem that will take care of itself. What's next? -asked Rita.

-Well, in closing, we cannot allow Enhance to remain the Eighteenth," Ortenrosse declared.

Once again, Caubac's phone rang again and Zelrecth picked it up. Any... possible... successors? -The phone began to jam.

The Lord of the White Wing nodded, "It's someone who showed up recently, I sent Chaos to Japan to complete a mission. Yesterday he informed me of a discovery, a newborn apostle named Satsuki Yumizuka, she almost immediately converted from a human to an apostle.

This caught the Jewel Mage's attention. Her psychic potential must have been really high to be able to accelerate the conversion process to that point.

Ortenrosse nodded, "She even seems to be starting to generate a reality marble. I suggest that she be a candidate to replace Enhance. Any objections?

No one objected.

-Then I'll make it my mission to protect her until she matures.

Rita raised an eyebrow. Chaos, that Chaos? The bloodthirsty Nrvnqsr Chaos? Like a babysitter?

Sumire scoffed. Hip... Chaosy like... Hip... Babysitter. Just thinking about it makes me laugh- Somehow, she had managed to get alcohol from somewhere.

Ortenrosse sighed, not only because of his fellow ancestor's behavior, but also because he knew he was right, Chaos was not a good choice to act as a caretaker. I'm thinking about what to do about that, for now, Chaos will only be in charge of keeping her alive, I'll have to send someone else to take care of her, at least until she is able to live on her own.

Merem smiled-. Arcueid is in Japan too, as well as a companion of mine, maybe she can help you with that...

The Lord of the White Wing nodded, "Well then, as with the Sword of Altrouge, we'll keep his identity hidden so he can mature. From now on, number 7 we can call it as the Twilight Sword and Eighteen, based on the few skills it has demonstrated, we can refer to it as the Demon of Decay. - Ortenrosse stood up followed by everyone else. Well, let's proceed to enjoy the rest of the evening...

With that said, the meeting of the 27 came to an end.

"Well, at least we brokered peace between the factions, for now," thought the Princess, it was literally the first thing Ortenrosse had asked of her when she arrived at the castle. And the fact that the castle had not collapsed was proof that they were willing to tolerate each other, for now.

Again, in the Einzbern castle, several days later...

Shirou was in the world of unconsciousness once again. Although this time he was not having a dream about his childhood friend.

In fact, he was no longer dreaming in every sense of the word, instead, he was in another place, one even closer to his subconscious than the dreams themselves.

Once again, he was in that land of steel, covered by the fire of a great forge and, once again, he was standing atop a mountain of metal alloys. In the distance, he could see all the weapons he had recently encountered, such as Siegfried's magna-sword, Balmung.

Although his gaze was fixed on one specific weapon, a new katana, this one was almost entirely black and a terrible curse was emanating from its edge. It was his latest creation, as well as Kiritsugu's last will, a katana that used his body as material, one whose blade was imbued with the curse of all the evils of the world.

For the first time, he did not know if forging a sword was the right thing to do. But his ancestor had made it clear to him, besides, it was his father's last will.

He surveyed the land of steel, despite the new weapons he possessed, it was still quite empty. He wondered if it would ever be filled, then shook his head. This world would never be filled, that would be the proof of what would be his and his ancestor's greatest creation.

As time passed, it would create Unlimited swords...

Shirou did not know when this world was created and began to develop, if it was when he obtained Avalon, or when he began to forge. He did not know when it would stop developing, if that day would even come.

He did not know the beginning...

He would never know the end...

Those words were burned into his mind.

...

-Shi-kun, wake up...

Shirou opened his eyes and, a few centimeters away from him, in front of his bed and leaning towards it, was Manaka-. Good morning, Mana.

Manaka smiled. Good morning, Shi-kun.

-Sorry, I overslept... -said the boy as he stood up.

-Hmn, hmn, take it easy. These last days you've been helping with a lot of effort in the repairs of the castle, you deserve a good rest.

Shirou smiled, "Thank you, but if that's why, then you also deserve a good rest, you've been helping to improve the barrier, right?

Manaka blushed with a little embarrassment, "Did you notice?

-You've been going out in the evenings, and one day Illya and I went to check one of the places where she thought the original barrier had been weakened, and we saw you working, and Illya said, after inspecting the changes you'd made, that it was an impressive job.

-Thank you, and well, the barrier at Einzbern Castle is really amazing, for what it is.

-Hmm?

-I mean, Shi-kun, it's a huge barrier, capable of surrounding the vast territory of the Einzbern, and unifying with the territory to leverage it to their advantage. Obviously, due to its large size, it is not infallible in all its sectors, having places where it is weaker than others, such as the river. However, what I mean is that, due to its nature, it is not a really powerful barrier to stop sorcery.

-It's a disorienting barrier, isn't it?

-Yep, it uses various types of hypnotism and other forms of suggestion, as well as terrain to completely disorient anyone who enters. This barrier is very useful and practical for the Einzbern family as they live in a very large mountainous district. Unlike a small estate, which can be attacked from its surroundings by sorcery, the Einzbern's does not need it, being surrounded by several miles of forest.

-Because sorcery would never be able to reach the castle..." Manaka nodded.

Manaka nodded, "Although, of course, there is very long-range sorcery that could pass through the vast territory of the Eiznbern and hit the castle from the outside, though it is not easy to use; but those who created the barrier also took this into account. Can you guess what it does, Shi-kun?

-Hmm... -Shirou gave it some thought. For an attack like that... You'd need to have a good view of your target, I don't think the barrier is capable of creating storms or things that can obstruct the view; but, based on its disorienting effect... -Shirou smiled, "Some kind of illusion, perhaps?

Manaka smiled, "Exactly, from outside the barrier you can vaguely see the silhouette of the castle; but that's a trap, an illusion to avoid any long distance attacks, the castle is in a totally different position from what you see on the outside.

The boy looked surprised, "Wow, I didn't know that the disorienting effect reached such levels. But then, what did you do?

-I also made it powerful to stop sorcery.

-Hmm? -This puzzled him. Why?

-We don't know how the next holy grail war will go, but in case we have to fight here, there are servants with attacks or abilities so powerful that they would be able to destroy the entire Einzbern territory in one move, against that kind of enemy, the illusion of the barrier would be useless.

He had already heard about how powerful servants were from his father, and he had tested the strength of two of them, even if the fight against Faker could hardly be considered a fight; but Siegfried had clearly shown him the difference between him and a servant, so it was easy for him to believe that there were servants with the ability to destroy huge tracts of land as was the case with the Einzbern family's territory. But with such a large barrier, is it possible to make it powerful enough to block these massive attacks?

-Fufu, Shi-kun, will you make me do it again? It may not be an easy task for many, but it's no big deal for me, I've had enough time to strengthen the barrier to be able to withstand a large-scale bombardment for quite some time. -Manaka smiled, "I've taken it as a way to pass the time...

-That's amazing... Although... -Shirou frowned. True, we've been in Germany for over a week now, the repairs have just been completed, but even so, there are still problems to take care of... What do you think is the solution...? I've been thinking about it all the time.

Manaka looked thoughtful-. It is true that it is a problem, the most sensible option is for Lady Einzbern to leave one of the three to guard the castle, they are the homunculi with the most capacity to manage it; but it is also true that it would be a total waste of potential, considering old Acht's plans.

In these last few years, Acht had been making preparations for the holy grail war, one of these preparations, were the creation of Sella, Leysritt, and Fillia. Sella, originally, was created to teach Illya sorcery, and her role had not changed much; however, now her role had expanded quite a bit, not only being Ilya's caretaker, but also taking on the role of supporting her as an excellent magus; for, she possesses superb magical circuits and, as a master sorcerer, is superior to the average magus.

On the other hand, Leysritt was a special homunculus, almost a miracle, her role, in fact, is not to participate in combat, but something else planned by the old golem, however, as that job for which she was made can only be done once, the old Acht had capitalized the innate power she possessed to do that job so that she could use it to raise her physical capabilities, in this way, Leysritt had become a specialized homunculus for combat that far surpassed the homunculi made specifically for fighting, becoming the one who would be in charge of being Illya's bodyguard.

Lastly, there was Fillia, she was not like Sella, nor like Leysritt, she was somewhere in the middle, her magical circuitry was of better quality and quantity than any average magus, but not at the same level as Sella and superior magus; however, this had allowed her to maintain excellent physical capabilities, without reaching Leysritt's level of absurd strength. In short, Fillia was a homunculus of high efficiency in all her areas; but without becoming exceptional in any of these. Her role, on the other hand, was more delicate and important than either of the other two. Apparently, old Einzbern had learned a thing or two from his father; in the fourth war, Kiritsugu had used his wife as a bait, making it seem as if she was Saber's master, which allowed her to perform better from the shadows. Fillia's role was exactly the same as hers, acting as bait by posing as the Einzbern's master, placing an extra layer of defense over Illya. This would work since Illya was not widely known in the Moonlit World, in fact, the only ones who knew Illya were the Musik; but they had only met her when they first met the Einzbern, almost a decade ago, and since then they had not seen her again, both because Illya was no longer interested in them, and because Acht did not benefit from it. Even when he learned that Illya had been "communicating" with his brother, Acht would not allow Illya to show himself to the Musik.

Even if Shirou didn't like the old golem at all, he recognized that old Einzbern's plan was quite sound, leaving one of the three to manage the castle would be a waste of potential.

Shirou sighed, "Everything would be easier if the tuner homunculi were more developed; but at the moment none of them possess the capabilities to manage the entire castle.

Manaka frowned. I have an idea... But I don't know if Lady Einzbern would approve.

-What do you mean? -the boy asked.

-I could alter the Jubstacheit artificial intelligence, to change its programming.

This surprised the boy even more. I would ask you if you can do it; but if you have proposed it, I imagine you can, and more importantly, I don't want to question how amazing you are. -Shirou smiled ironically.

Manaka smiled, "Fufu, you are learning, Shi-kun. I can reprogram the A.I. to be solely in charge of managing the castle and eliminating its goal of trying to retrieve the Third Magic, among other things.

-I understand Illya's dislike of bringing back the AI... But, that would solve all of our problems... Perhaps, I can help convince her.

Manaka nodded. Thank you, that might help.

With that said, Manaka left the room allowing the boy to get ready, then, they both headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast, then, joined Illya, Sella, Leysritt, and Fillia, for breakfast.

...

After breakfast was over...

-Shi-kun, Lady Einbern, I'm going to make the finishing touches to the barrier, see you for lunch.

Illya and Shirou nodded, at breakfast, the boy had taken the opportunity to bring up the subject, and Illya agreed that boosting the barrier had been a good idea, so he thanked Manaka.

-Well, I guess I... -The young Einzbern started to say, but Shirou stopped her.

-About that, Illya, do you think you could accompany me today?

This caught the girl's attention. Accompany you in what, Shirou?

-Well, although the castle is huge and has a good kitchen, because most of the occupants are homunculi, the pantry has not been well stocked, so we need to buy food for lunch and dinner," the boy explained.

-Hmm... Well, wouldn't it be simpler to just send some tuner homunculi and let them handle it?

-Yes, sure, but don't you want to visit the nearby town?

This caught the young Einzbern's attention, for a moment, she considered what she should do, to finally, turn to her maidens-. Sella, Fillia, I will accompany Shirou to buy groceries for lunch and dinner.

-Are you sure, my lady? -Fillia asked.

-Since this is your first time leaving the territory, shouldn't you take us with you? -Sella asked worriedly.

Illya shook her head, "I need someone to guard the castle, and I only trust the two of you for this task. As for my safety, you can rest assured, not only is Shirou with me, but I will also take Lys.

-If you say so... -Sella whispered.

-In that case, have an excellent day, my lady," Fillia smiled.

Illya nodded and said goodbye with a smile, "See you later," Illya held his brother's arm tightly and left the castle with a smile.

-Hey, wait, not so fast! -asked the boy, but it seemed that the excitement overcame his sister.

It took them some time to cross the mountainous district from where the castle was located, unfortunately, due to the isolation of the Einzbern, they did not allow any kind of direct road to the castle, much less any kind of vehicle to reach it, so they had no choice but to take the road on foot. Shirou knew that, between going from the castle to the town and vice versa, plus the time it would take to do the shopping, it would take them all morning and part of the afternoon; but that would also give him more time to talk to his sister.

-Hey, Shirou," his sister called his attention and pulled him out of his thoughts.

-Yes? -asked the boy.

-Since we'll be downstairs for a while, do you feel like playing a game to pass the time?

-Hmm? A game? -What game could you play on the snowy mountain that wouldn't slow you down? he wondered. Sure, which one?

-See that over there? -Illya pointed to a tree.

-Yes, that's a sprout, isn't it?

Illya nodded, "Yep, as we descend towards the village, we'll play a game of find the sprouts, whoever finds the most, hmm...". -For a moment, an expression of uncertainty settled on the young woman's face, before a beautiful smile replaced it. Whoever wins will decide what we'll have for lunch.

Shirou smiled. Hmm, and whoever wins in the climb, will decide what we have for dinner?

-Hmm! Hmm! -Illya nodded with a smile. Yes, sounds good to me. -Illya shouted to her maid and asked, "Are you playing too, Lys?

The homunculus, carrying her halberd, which she called Riesenarm, looked at her mistress in confusion. If that's what Illya wants, then I'll join in.

Illya nodded with a smile.

-In that case, I'll start," the boy said, pointing to a sprout. The first one.

-Hey!" complained the Einzbern heiress, that was the sprout she had used as an example.

Shirou smiled, "You didn't say it was yours.

Illya pouted, "Cheater, you're as much of a cheater as Kiritsugu. But no matter how much of a cheat you are, even Kiritsugu couldn't beat me.

Shirou smiled. Then I'll do my best to beat the champion.

Thus, the three of them began to play as they walked towards the village...

...

After descending and arriving there...

-Are you all right, Illya? -Shirou asked as he saw his sister petrified as she looked at the village and the people who lived there.

-A-Ah, yes... It's just, it's very different from the pictures we have in the castle...

Shirou smiled, he was pleased by the smile that seemed to escape from his sister's mouth from the sides, as if he couldn't suppress it. For a moment, he wondered what would have happened if his sister saw a big city, where the diversity of people and structures were much greater.

-Shirou, what's that? What's that? -asked the young Einzbern excitedly.

Oh, that, that's a modern-day means of transportation, a van.

Illya smiled. Oh, right, I think Kiritsugu taught mom to drive a car. I know because grandpa always complained about that, he said it wasn't enough to install those wires up to the castle, or those things he used to keep watch, or the power plant... that's what it's called, right?

Shirou nodded.

-But he also had to bring her that noisy contraption," said the young woman imitating the old man's voice.

-So, your mother drove around the castle?

Illya nodded. So I was told.

-And what happened to the car?

-Hmm... -Illya made a thoughtful gesture. I think it was taken to Japan for the war. The only reason Grandpa let Mom keep it was because Kiritsugu had convinced him by telling him that it would help him escape from dangerous situations, so I think it's logical that they would have taken it; besides, if they had left it here... I'm sure grandfather would have destroyed it.

-I understand...

-Hey, Shirou, what's that other one? -Once again, the girl pointed to something else and, this time, she dragged the boy directly.

So, while they shopped, Illya dragged Shirou and Leysritt along for convenience.

A few hours later...

Shirou was sighing in exhaustion as he carried several bags loaded with groceries, and other things he hadn't been able to refuse to buy for his very enthusiastic sister. At the moment, Illya was happily browsing a clothing store, while he and Leysritt stood a few meters away with the bags, he was thankful that the homunculus had come with them, with one hand, she was carrying her halberd, with the other, she was helping him by carrying part of the bags. He was also glad that, even if sorcery was not her field of expertise, Leysritt could make herself and her halberd go unnoticed by the eyes of normal people.

-I know it can be a bit of a drag; but thanks for helping me, Leysritt.

-Never mind, I like Shirou," said the homunculus with her same expression and expressionless look.

This caught the boy off guard- "Eh-Eh? What do you mean?

Leysritt looked at him without understanding his question. I like to see Illya happy, and Shirou makes Illya happy, so I like Shirou.

Shirou sighed, "Oh, I see, that's what you mean...

-Shirou, Lys, look at this dress! -said Illya pointing to a nice warm orange dress. Should I buy it? I need to improve my closet...

They both approached and Shirou said to his sister. I think you should wait until we get to London, I'm sure, when you see the clothes there, you'll want to buy that kind of clothes too. And I understand that the winter there ends earlier than here, so maybe you should wait for the beginning of spring.

-Hmm... I guess it's for the best.

-In fact, we'd better go back to the castle, if we take any longer we'll be late in the afternoon," said the boy.

Illya seemed to want to object, she was really enjoying exploring the town; but she restrained herself. Yes, you're right... -As they set off on their way back to the castle, Illya lowered her gaze. We'll have to leave soon, won't we?

Shirou nodded, "Yes, we can't take much longer...".

-I still don't know who I should ask to stay, in fact, I don't even know if one staying will be enough to manage the whole castle...

-In fact... I also wanted to talk to you about that...

-Hmm? -Illya looked at him curiously.

-Well, Mana has a suggestion that will allow us to bring Sella, Leysritt and Filia with us, as well as manage the castle in a proper way...

-Sajyou? Really!?

Shirou smiled uncomfortably- Yes, but... you might not like it.

-Huh? -this confused the young girl, in fact, it was a solution to all her problems-. Whatever it is, at least I'll listen to her.

-As you could see, Mana is an amazing magus.

-Too amazing I would say... -Illya stared at her brother. Shirou, are you sure we should trust her? Kiritsugu told me that she was one of his enemies in the previous holy grail war, and one of the most dangerous magus he faced. And not only that, after everything that happened, she reappeared after almost a decade, by your side, and without any kind of explanation, and the first thing she did was to try to manipulate Kiritsugu into not asking questions. Maybe Kiritsugu might have had enough trust in you not to ask questions; but it's not my case, you know?

Shirou sighed- I know, I... there were several things I wanted to tell Kiritsugu; but in the end, I couldn't.

Illya narrowed her eyes. Couldn't, or wouldn't?

-Both... -Shirou lowered his gaze. You saw how she was when we came to rescue you, she looked like she could barely stand, I... I didn't want to put more weight on her. -But I understand that I shouldn't keep this kind of secrets from you, so I'll explain:

You see, I met Mana 10 years ago, when she moved to Fuyuki because her family was going to participate in the ritual. Back then, I knew about the existence of sorcery; but I wasn't too immersed in that world. She and I met in a park, and we both started talking while she was playing with her little sister, Ayaka, and, as time went by, we became friends.

She... Well, I found out that she participated in the war when it was ending, just before the disaster. I... I was a victim of the disaster in which the last real war ended, I lost... Almost everything, my family, my friends, and maybe more... After this one, Kiritsugu found me, saved me, and adopted me, since then, I never heard from her again, at least, not until my second year at the Clock Tower.

-Did you meet her there?

Shirou nodded his head, "Yes, although she's not a student of the Tower, in fact, she's not even affiliated with it. But yes, I did meet her. Mana gave me information and helped me deal with the Ainnash Predator Forest, and then promised to help me rescue you; however, it was troublesome to have to explain all this to Kiritsugu. Considering that your freedom was at stake, it was highly unlikely that he would allow him to come; but I believed that we couldn't make it without help, which was why Mana hypnotized him to allow him to help.

-And do you think we can trust her? Your words a few days ago... You didn't seem to trust her completely," the girl asked hesitantly.

-I don't, at least, not completely. I know she's hiding things from me; but, she's also one of the few people who connect me to my past, and she's also helped me so far, despite keeping secrets from me. -Shirou sighed, "That's why, even though I don't quite trust her, I've decided to give her a vote of confidence.

-Well, I guess I will too. After all, she did save Lys... -Then she realized she had gone off the deep end. Right! What's Sajyou's suggestion?

-Ah, yes. You see, Mana is an amazing magus, and she told me that she had the capabilities to reprogram the artificial intelligence Jubstacheit, so that it changes its purpose to, solely, managing the Einzbern castle, while recognizing you as the last head of the family and, that way, it won't have any kind of authority over you.

Illya frowned.

-I know it seems like a very risky solution, but it's the only thing we've come up with to have everything covered.

Illya was quiet for a few minutes, mulling the idea over, and then finally sighed. Okay, I understand.

-So, do you accept?

-Yes," Illya smiled and nodded, "Worst case scenario, even if the reprogramming fails and he tries to hunt us down, it will still take a while to create a terminal, by which time, we'll be out of the country, and, if we go to London, we'll be near the Clock Tower, and with your position as Lady Valualeta's protégé and the Queen's personal enforcer, it's unlikely he'll send a squad of homunculi to take us out.

Shirou gave a wry smile, "Weren't you the one who threatened to send a squad of homunculi to "defend the Einzbern name"?

Illya smiled with a blush. Hehe, well, that was to intimidate you, I really don't think my grandfather would have allowed me to do that.

While they were talking, the two brothers and the maid made their way to the old castle; by the way, that day Illya chose both lunch and dinner, and, among the things she liked, she decided to include seeing her brother wearing an apron...

...

So the day passed, in the evening, after lunch and dinner, Manaka and Shirou met in the castle library.

I talked to Illya, and she accepted the idea of reprogramming the artificial intelligence.

Manaka smiled, "Good, that takes a problem off our hands. It will take me a few days, but I'll make sure the reprogramming is a success.

-With that, we can start preparing to return... But, before that, there's something I want to talk to you about, Mana... -Shirou had put it off as long as he could; but, in a short while, they would be boarding a direct flight to London, so he had to do it as soon as possible.

-About what? -Manaka asked.

-It's about Ayaka." When he said this, Manaka frowned slightly. And also about Altrouge. -Now she was openly displeased.

The boy sighed internally, this was going to be a difficult conversation; but he had to talk about this with her if he wanted to avoid the destruction of the Clock Tower, or worse, all of London.

-Well, I hear you, Shi-kun," he said, swallowing his displeasure momentarily.

-I understand that you don't like Altrouge, but I hope you'll be able to tolerate each other and try not to kill each other.

-I can't do anything if she's the one who provokes me... -whispered the girl.

-Manaka...! -Shirou only used her full name when he was very serious with her, it wasn't something he did often, but precisely because of that, using her full name carried more weight.

She pouted and looked at him with annoyance, "Is it that important to you? That bloodsucker...

To the girl's surprise and pain, he nodded, "Yes. She's a really important person to me.

-Shi-kun... -Although on the outside she looked hurt, and it's not as if she wasn't, inside that young girl with the beauty of a fairy wore a smile that would freeze the bones of the most experienced executioner.

Seeing the girl's devastated look, Shirou also said, "It doesn't mean that you're not, Mana, it's just that all people have several people they consider important. You too, right?

-Huh? -she exclaimed in surprise.

Shirou laughed at her expression, "Why the surprised look? You have a little sister, don't you? I remember, when we played together, you used to worry a lot if she got hurt.

Manaka lowered her gaze, "That was... Nothing more than a facade."

-And I'm sure that, the more people you meet, the more chances you'll have to find people who become valuable to you. -Shirou reached out his hand and touched the girl's face, lifting it gently for her pleasure and nervousness. Mana, I know you didn't have the most... simple childhood, it's almost a norm for most magus; but right now, you can experience the world freely. I will not abandon you; but I want you to see that the world is much bigger than what you have seen so far.

"You are wrong, Shi-kun, I have already seen the whole world and much more. And I have made up my mind, for you, for your dream... everyone can be sacrificed. But precisely because it's you, who doesn't want any more sacrifices, even if it's a sham, I'll give it a try," she held his hand with some hesitation, looked down twice, but didn't quite pull away, finally, she sighed- "Okay, I think, I understand. I'll... I'll do my best; but I won't promise anything, you understand?

Shirou smiled. That's enough.

Thus, the days passed, finally, Manaka had finished reprogramming the monolith so that it would be in charge only of administering the Einzbern castle and to obey the current head of the family. Although, among her new orders, Manaka had included an extra one...

At this moment, the blonde was in front of the monolith, making sure that everything was working according to plan. Today they would be taking a flight, and thanks to her, who was of age, the paperwork to get the tickets was not so cumbersome, and, even so, to get tickets that would allow them to return soon, they had to require a bit of hypnosis.

After taking one last look at the monolith, she thought, "I may not, with the time we have, be able to create an army, but I should at least be able to create a sizable homunculus force to help us in the war."

On the other hand...

-Shirou... Shirou wake up!

Suddenly, the red-haired boy felt something riding him and woke up in a hurry, and to his surprise, it wasn't Manaka- "Illya? Why are you riding on top of me?

Her sister replied with a smile, "You wouldn't wake up, so I decided to use a little more force.

-I understand, I understand; but get off please, this position is a bit uncomfortable "And I'll be in trouble if Mana sees us."

Illya pouted, "Are you saying that I'm too heavy?

The boy quickly denied, that was clearly a black flag- No, no, no, it's just that it's a bit embarrassing, nothing more.

Illya smiled and got off his person. Good. Sajyou is taking care of making sure the AI reprogramming is working properly, meaning that, if you hurry Shirou, you can have the kitchen to yourself.

This finished waking up the red-haired man, who hurried out of his bed. I'm on it, come out for a moment so I can change, please.

Ilya smiled as he nodded and waited for his brother outside the room. Once he was ready, both brothers made their way to the kitchen.

-You're in high spirits, Illya.

She nodded fervently, "We're leaving today! I've never been on a plane before, and Shirou, what are the English like? Are they like the Japanese? A tribe that dies by slitting their throats while sitting Japanese style.

-Huh? -These words surprised the red-haired man. Who told you that?

Illya answered with a smile. Grandpa.

Shirou sighed and shook his head, "The English are very different from the Japanese, and we Japanese aren't exactly like that either. What your grandfather told you was a form of suicide that was performed in the past for honor or by orders of a superior, also as capital punishment, and it was not performed by cutting the neck, first the belly was cut open with a sword, then an assistant decapitated you so that you would not suffer so much agony, although. ... in most cases, the belly was not opened, but the gesture of bringing the sword close to the belly was a signal for the assistant to decapitate you before you had to open your belly and suffer. In fact, those who completed the ritual were considered exceptional? -explained the boy patiently. Anyway, it's been a little over 30 years since it was banned, so it's no longer used.

Illya nodded, processing the information. I understand... -Then she smiled, "It makes sense, after all, I don't think Shirou would die even if they cut open his belly and slit his throat.

Shirou smiled a smile that represented a strange mix of feelings, irony and displeasure were the most predominant. Hey, hey, I don't think I'll survive if I get decapitated... "Although if I've survived several stabbings in the belly...".

-Really? I saw you fight Saber, so I thought you could, you heal so fast.

-Everything has a limit Illya, I'm not immortal.

-Hmm...

Shirou set out to prepare breakfast for everyone, until Manaka came in and pouted while asking why he hadn't waited for her, in the end, they both finished preparing it and everyone had breakfast in the dining room.

Already breakfasted and with their bags packed, they prepared to leave. Illya, as the head of the Einzbern family, made sure everything was in order.

The young Einzbern tried to remain as calm as possible, but her huge smile and the excitement in her voice betrayed her intentions. Hurry! Hurry! Come on, Shirou!

-I'm going...

Thus, the red-haired man headed towards the group formed by: He, Manaka, Illya, Sella, Leysritt, and finally, Fillia. As he left the castle, Shirou could see out of the corner of his eye the tombs that Illya had had made for his father and grandfather. Though Kiritsugu's was only representative, and Shirou wasn't surprised that he had one made for the old golem, after all, even with the bad, he had raised her for almost her entire life, the only thing that tomb didn't possess, was the old golem's hand, it still possessed a Command Spell, and they didn't plan on wasting it. The boy took another look at the new sword in his belt and set off down the mountain in the company of the others.

Somewhere among the mountains of Egypt, in a subway academy full of mysteries?

At a distance of 500 meters below the surface, inside a massive subway cavern, where there was enough space to contain a city, was the TRI-HERMES. This site is the core of Atlas, a chamber with an artificial sky.

In front of the obelisks that form the Tri-Hermes, stood a woman.

Her name is Sialim Eltnam Re-Atlasia. She is a woman with long, bright purple hair, white skin and violet eyes. Her attire consists of a white skirt, purple shoes and stockings, and a purple blouse over a white shirt, both adorned with the Atlas symbol, she also wore a black cap and a monocle. She wore a mustard yellow tie and adorned one of her wrists with a yellow toroidal bracelet.

-This is worrisome, events are occurring at an accelerated pace. Events that were supposed to occur several years from now have begun to manifest in the present. Is this a sign that our history is approaching its end faster than expected?

-Teacher? -asked a girl.

She is a young woman who appeared to be of Indian descent, she had light purple wavy hair with part of it tied in a ponytail. She has purple eyes, a tan complexion, and wears glasses, as well as a bindi on her forehead as is customary in India. She is wearing the same uniform as Sialim.

-Rani, what is the progress of the simulations?

-We have managed to circumvent the security system momentarily once again. However, the program is still implemented with flaws.

-What about hacking progress? How long before we can implement the program directly into the core of the Moon Cell?

-Due to its structure, in the form of floors, progress is somewhat complicated; but, of the seven floors about which we have information, we have managed to access up to the fourth, once we reach the seventh, we will have a better chance of executing the program correctly.

-It's a pity we can't get into the core directly.

Rani nodded, "Their security is very strong, we would be wiped out at the earliest opportunity. However, running the program from the seventh floor should be enough.

Sialim nodded, "Good, get on with your work. This is the last chance to avoid this end of the world. We are drifting further and further away from the correct history of mankind. -Sialim bit her lip, she looked at the Tri-hermes. I hope we make it in time, no, we must, Atlas was created for this purpose...

Chapter 20, Return.

The light of a new day came in through the window of the room and gently touched the young woman's face...

Gray frowned slightly, she didn't particularly like the sunlight, although, after spending a few years in the capital, it was something she had become accustomed to. As if in a trance, she rose mechanically and began her routine...

Once dressed and groomed, she headed towards the place where her oldest friend was resting-. Add, are you awake? -A few minutes passed and he didn't answer. Add?

Suddenly, the mystic code's eyes lit up. Hmm? What's the matter, Gray? Why the living dead face? Have you decided to accept your grim self at its best? Ihihihihihi.

Just to complete her normal routine, she picked up the box and shook it hard; however, deep inside, she appreciated Add's behavior. Since that time on their bumpy ride on the mystic eye collecting train, Add had started to behave a bit strangely, this worried her and made her contact her village and, because Add was an extremely important relic to the people of her village, they had sent her what they called: a Contract with Atlas. Supposedly, the alchemists of Atlas should be able to help them.

-W-Wait, stop, G-Gray! -Add pleaded until the girl stopped shaking him.

Before leaving, she briefly caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror in her room, for a moment, she stared at herself, picked up her hair and began to make some changes to her locks, judging how she looked best...

-Oh, can it be that the indecisive Gray has finally stopped being indecisive? You want to impress someone? Ihihihihihihi...

For a moment, Gray was silent, then, she gave a slight nod, while still judging her appearance.

-Oh!? So we've leveled up, could this be the legendary day when the gloomy Gray, who always has a depressing aura, will shout something like, Hood off! And show her face to the world? -Addd asked cynically as he laughed.

-D-Do you think he should? -asked the girl in a whisper as she held her hood as if making a gesture of wanting to take it off; but without actually doing so.

-... ... ... Eh...? Wait, a-Are you serious?! -shouted the mystic code in an exaggerated manner- -Can it be that hell finally froze over? No, in your case, did it erupt? I'll have a 24/7 buffet at last!? -Gray frowned and picked up the mystic code cage again, sensing what his companion was going to do, Add immediately retracted, "W-Wait Gray! I'm your closest friend, the best one to advise you, i-if you shake me I won't be able t-talk!

For a moment, the girl stared at him. Well? What do you think...?

Still shocked by the development, Add finally decided to voice his opinion. What's not obvious? -Add sighed, almost as if she were teaching her little sister a lesson. In case you haven't noticed, silly, the one forcing you to hold back is none other than you.

-But the teacher...

-Don't give me that excuse, silly Gray! Even that stubborn egomaniac isn't so weak as to really be so bothered by your face to the point of forcing you to cover it, much less when the King Arthur he encountered has his obvious differences with you, if you know what I mean... In fact, hadn't you been the one who asked him to please keep hating your face?

-I...

-Ihihihihihihi I wondered, what would the members of the village think if they saw you now?

-Hmm?

-Who knew that the clumsy Gray, who spent her time tending to the fields and chickens, would become an apprentice to a weakling Lord, and even grow up to the point where she would think of abandoning her hood? Ihihihihi, I'm sure that bunch of oafs would be stone-faced.

-Huh? -Gray was surprised by these words.

Add sighed, "Do I really have to tell you? You may not be the smartest; but even you should have realized by now that you're not the same brat who took care of the chickens, nor the girl who locked herself in a corner of her room so she wouldn't see anyone all day, nor even the peasant girl who came to London... -Addd let out her typical laugh, "There are things that will never change, like you being a melancholic who dislikes crowded places, that's imprinted in the way you are; but there are other things that can change. The only one who really dislikes your face is none other than yourself. In short, if you want to show your face, well... just show it, I assure you that the world has faced uglier things, Ihihihi.

The girl frowned and, for a moment, an expression denoting her confusion, which then turned to mild displeasure, showed on her face. Still, as if forcing herself, she slid her hood down.

-Ihihihihihihihihi, who knows, maybe you're not ugly, but you just needed to take off your hood, after all, you've always been told you look better without it.

Once again, Gray grabbed the cage and shook it hard; however, after shaking it, she gave a small smile and whispered- Thank you...

That day was one of the most complicated for her, it was one of those times when it bothered her that her teacher lived so far away, and it was also one of those many days when she wished that no one paid attention to her. Unfortunately, many took notice of her, of course, not because they disliked her appearance, but quite the opposite. At various times, she was tempted to put on her hood, and, on more than one occasion, ended up doing so; but between Add's taunts and her own self-determination, she managed to remove it again and again. Fortunately for her, those closest to her did not make a big fuss about it, taking it as something unimportant, which she was internally grateful for.

On the other hand, earlier in the morning that same day...

A plane had recently landed inside one of London's airports. Shirou, Manaka, Illya, Sella, Leysritt and Fillia, disembarked from the plane and soon left the airport.

-Shirou, can we explore the city? -Illya spoke enthusiastically, ever since they had left the old castle, the girl had been unable to contain her excitement. For someone who had been locked up for more than a decade inside the walls of a castle on top of a mountain, almost everything she had seen since leaving the castle seemed new and exciting.

-I'd like to show you around; but, we're loaded down with luggage, so how about we unpack today and I'll show you the city tomorrow?

Illya gave a little pout; but nodded.

Shirou had not realized it until he started his return trip; but now he was carrying too many weapons: Neocaliburn, Vorpal, the Black Barrel, the Ghost Punishment that was also with him, his first katana, which he always called Muramasa, because it carried the spirit of his ancestor; but whose full name was Kokorozashi Muramasa, and now he had a new katana, Watsugunairui Muramasa, the katana made with Kiritsugu's body. And all this without counting his father's weapons, his Calico, the WA, and the Thompson Contender. He had to find a way to carry several of his weapons without them being a problem.

For a moment, Shirou thought about the names of his katanas, he thought it was funny that they all ended with the surname Muramasa; but he supposed it was part of his grandfather's pride. Kokorozashi, this kanji was composed of two characters; Tsuchi, meaning earth or clay and Kokoro, heart, mind or spirit. It is translated as desire, intention or ambition. To put an idea into practice by taking action with a strong commitment. In short, Kokorozashi Muramasa represents Muramasa's intention and desire to pass on his forging techniques to his descendants, so that one day one of them will be able to fulfill his greatest ambition. He exemplified this in the sword, as it was the katana in which his grandfather had put his all, even his spirit.

On the other hand, there was Watsugunairui Muramasa, this was, as such, the first sword he named. He thought about it for days and, in the end, decided that this was the right name. Watsugunairui, written with the kanji Warui, meaning evil or bad, and the kanji Tsugunai meaning atonement, together could be translated as the word redemption. While the katana was forged imbued with the Curse of All the Evils of the World, it was also made from the body of his father, a man whose wish was to save all the people in the world, creating one where no one would have to feel sadness. The weapon itself was contradictory, and even more so when Shirou would also use it as part of the sword that would cut through the dire fate they faced; however, this was how it was meant to be. Ultimately, when he researched Angra Mainyu, he realized a sad truth, the Angra Mainyu invoked in the holy grail war was not an evil god, but a child who had every known curse carved into his skin in an absurd attempt to atone for the evils of mankind. Shirou could never tolerate something like that; but it was as if the spirit was telling him what the name of that weapon should be: Watsugunairui Muramasa, the sword that atoned for the evils of humanity, that redeemed the lives of two tragic heroes, and that he would use to help him free the world from a terrible destiny.

All this caused him to realize that he had a serious problem ahead: the more he forged, the more weapons he would have, and obviously he could not carry them all on his person. He could leave some at his new home; but that would "reduce" his offensive potential, as well as his versatility; for while he could project them, it would use up his Od, and he needed to save as much of his Od as possible to perform his most powerful attacks. In short, he needed a way to carry with his creations without them hindering him.

The boy would have loved to be able to have the same ability his grandfather had: Territory Creation. But he had only obtained that after he had become a spirit. And, even among magus, having an ability that allowed you to do something similar was really hard to obtain, in fact, he didn't know anyone who could. Shirou sighed and hoped to find a solution soon.

Instead of heading towards his dorm, the group headed towards the London Underground station. They boarded it, and Illya revelled in watching the scenery from the carriage, enjoying the ride; what he didn't enjoy much, however, was the long walk to the Marbury Workshop from the station.

Once they managed to arrive, both Manaka, Illya, and Sella were exhausted, none of them were acutes for long walks; on the other hand, both Shirou, Leysritt, and Fillia, were in perfect condition.

-Sh-Shirou, if we're going to live here, we'll need a quick way to get to the station," said Illya.

-Tran-Tranquila Lady Einzbern, now that I have done the tour, I can take care of getting us close to the station avoiding the walk," said Manaka just as exhausted.

-Thank you... -she sighed.

Upon arriving at the workshop, the redhead's cell phone began to vibrate; it was a message from Altrouge. He was really glad that the girl agreed to have a cell phone; communicating without them would be a real disaster. The two of them had been communicating since they parted, for example: he had told her about Kiritsugu's death, to which she gave her condolences, and he also told her about Manaka's appearance, which didn't seem to please her. Shirou didn't understand why they both seemed to dislike each other without even having met; but he knew that this would cause him problems, so he spoke to Altrouge, just as he did with Manaka to avoid a greater disaster, whether this would do any good, only God would know, although something told him no...

In the last conversations they had had, she had told him that they would have to have an important talk when he returned. Apparently, things had not gone entirely well at the meeting of the Ancestral Apostles and, probably, this was due to the murder of Ainnash, at least, she had confirmed to him that he would not be hunted to death by the 27.

On the other hand, the message that had just reached him said, "I'll be there in a few days, shall we meet at our apartment?"

He remembered that, while Altrouge knew they would be using the workshop for training, he didn't know that, from now on, they would be using it for living as well. In fact, now that he remembered, he had to go to his bedroom to remove the things he left there, even though he knew that was going to be a hassle in several ways...

To his misfortune, it had been missing for a little over two weeks and right after Ainnash's murder, he was sure that, as soon as he set foot on the premises of his faculty, he would have someone asking him to go to the Dean's office. On the other hand, something similar would probably happen when he entered the main building of the Clock Tower, only, instead of being sought by Lord Valualeta, he would be sought by the Queen. While the Clock Tower allowed magi to leave whenever they felt like it, over time, he had realized that it wasn't that simple; for example: Touko Aozaki was given a Sealing Designation for leaving the Clock Tower after having managed to create a puppet identical to her original body, although of course, this was because she was a genius and the Association didn't want to let her leave, much less after such an accomplishment.

This made the boy sigh, he could not leave the Clock Tower thanks to his association with Lord Valualeta; however, he well knew that he would have to do so sooner or later to help his sister with the war. Worse, it seemed that he was destined to get a Sealing Designation, just like his adoptive grandfather, since, if he managed to create the ultimate sword, just like they did with Touko, they would give him a Designation as a "reward" and, if they discovered his reality marble, it would be more of the same. It seemed that, no matter what he did, a Designation of Sealing awaited him in the near future.

But he would worry about that later, at present he had enough problems to deal with. Shirou replied to Altrouge telling him that from now on, they would be staying at the Marbury Workshop, as it would allow him to live together with Illya, so it was best that they meet there.

-Who is Shirou? -asked Illya at his side.

-She's the friend I told you about, it was a message saying she's coming in a few days.

Illya nodded, Shirou had told her who Rouge, his apprentice, was, and that she was the one he had worked with for several months. The young Einzbern knew that her brother had one, as Kiritsugu had been able to tell her a few things about this one, for example: to be careful with her mystic charm eyes, also about some suspicions he had, and about the false report he had found; but, for the most part, he could only tell her that she was someone her brother had encountered at some point, and that the details of their relationship only he knew.

Manaka frowned slightly, but decided not to show her annoyance, she had promised she would try, no matter how much it cost her. Besides, if she was honest with herself, at this moment, she also had another concern. And this one, specifically, had a face and a name; her younger sister: Ayaka.

The girl sighed, her relationship with her sister wasn't as bad as many of her other versions, at least she didn't butcher her father in front of the poor girl, or hurt him using the Sixth Beast to the point where he died from his injuries shortly after the war, as some of her other versions did. On the other hand, he also didn't try to use her as a sacrifice for a ritual that involved summoning said beast, and even then, that last part didn't change at all in this reality. Despite not having done what many of her other versions attempted, and many succeeded in doing, it's not like her relationship with her sister was good despite this, at least, not at this point. While it's true that she took care of her as a child, it wasn't because she enjoyed it, or anything like that, it was because she was ordered to and because it was her duty as an older sister, plus, it's not like she was ordered to very often either, after all, their father locked himself in his research after their mother left them and hired a maid to take care of them.

Also, while she did not do the same as her other versions, it was not because she could not; but because, unlike Arthur, who could accept the murder of all the masters as a consequence of winning the war, Shirou would not. He would detest and reject her for it, and in the worst case scenario, if one day she became a monster as many of her other versions were, the same thing could happen to her as to that other girl, Matou Sakura, who, when she became the shadow that should give birth to Angra Mainyu, in many space-time lines, Shirou decided to murder her to avoid it.

In her case, although Shirou was not strong enough to assassinate her, she would not resist if he tried; after all, she loved him to the point of giving her life for him; but that was not why she would not take the same path as her other versions, the simple fact of knowing that Shirou would detest her, was more than enough to try to avoid using those methods. Worst case scenario, she would do anything to fulfill his wish; but she would do everything she could to avoid going to the worst case scenario.

Now that she remembered, her childhood was nothing but monotonous; her father was absent most of the time immersed deep in his research. While she didn't suffer from the iron training to learn her family's witchcraft, as her innate and superhuman talent meant that she didn't need a great deal of effort to learn any kind of sorcery, she did suffer from her parent's neglect.

Since he did not need his father's training, he searched inordinately for a way in which he could use his abilities to achieve the dream of all magus: to reach the Root.

On the other hand, his relationship with Ayaka was relatively normal, at least at best, since he generally did not really acknowledge her existence, and she apparently did not seem to be much affected by the lack of her father's presence. This, in fact, was not entirely true, Ayaka was affected by the lack of attention from her father, only that, due to her sister's personality, she did not externalize it. Part of the inferiority complex that Ayaka had engendered was due to the fact that their father did not pay much attention to them, and most of the attention he gave them, was directed towards her thanks to her abilities. On the other hand, she didn't seem to be greatly affected by the lack of her mother either, after all, she practically never knew her, this wasn't entirely true either; but at least the lack of her mother didn't affect her as much as her father's disdain. But, for Manaka it was different, she knew the days when her family was united and happier...

And, yet, then she sighed, did those days really matter? Even if her mother was still alive, probably, nothing would change, no... she was sure that nothing would change, she wouldn't make her regain the will to live, and her mother knew that she couldn't leave her anything that had value for her, it was for this reason that she left Garden to Ayaka and not to her.

Her mother... died shortly after Ayaka was born, shortly after she was able to finish building her botanical garden, which she named Garden, this was due to her possessing a weak constitution and the extra stress left over from the birth of her younger sister. It's not like she blamed Ayaka for her mother's death, she knew that was wrong and that she never had that intention, although she also couldn't deny that, at some point, she had some resentment towards her; but that was when she was very little, when she didn't know many things...

Thus, the second half of her childhood and the entrance to her adolescence was spent without any goal or motivation, she was not interested in reaching the Root as her father was, nor did she have any particular goal, and the only thing she did was to live day by day with her sister and the wet nurse who took care of them both, although she did not recognize the existence of either of them. An eternal routine, a burdensome monotony, without meaning, just like her life; for without wishing it, she had already achieved the dream of all magus.

"No, that's a lie, my life does have a purpose, one that you defined; but I refuse to accept it," the girl thought as she bit her lip lightly.

For a magus, this must have been the greatest happiness that could be achieved on the earthly plane; but, for her, who achieved it from birth, without even having made the effort to try; it was the beginning of that hell, for her life lacked purpose and, therefore, motivation. That is why, when her father told her about the holy grail war and she observed how many of her other versions invoked the King of Knights in distant futures, she could not help but feel a terrible and overflowing happiness knowing that she would have a goal, something that gave value and meaning to her vain existence, love at first sight should arise within her when she invoked him, and, because of this, she would seek to fulfill the wish of that legendary King.

"Maybe that's true... But don't try to manipulate me by using things that never came to pass!".

He became her knight, her savior, who would grant her a goal that not even she was capable of achieving with her own strength alone: to create a great eternal Britain, one that would not be destroyed after the fall of her reign, in short, to modify the past. While she could accomplish this with her abilities, the world-correcting force that quantum-blocked temporal alterations would easily reverse this, so she needed the grail to augment her powers so that she could modify history. After this, she would enjoy the rest of her life together with Arthur, as people who fulfilled their dreams did, it would be her Happy end.

She laughed, a sarcastic laugh full of resentment. "Happy end...HAPPY END? What are you talking about? There's never a happy end! The quantum blocks prevent me from being able to create eternal Britannia without outside help, and when I set out to use the grail you send your guardians or some heroic spirit to assassinate me, and at best, on those where I manage to summon the sixth, you send a great servant to deal with both. You just use me so that, after I die, Ayaka will summon it again and, after I'm defeated again, Arthur will start a multi-dimensional hunt in search of the sixth beast! That's all you want from me!".

At least, that was her plan; however, when the time came to summon the King of Knights, he did not respond to her call, she tried several times; but it was useless, her servant did not appear. In desperation, she was forced to summon another servant; and this was none other than a hassan-i-sabbah, one of the 19 leaders of the order of assassins; worse, she summoned the Hassan of Serenity. She didn't care if her servant wasn't one of the most powerful in the war; but what she couldn't stand was that, right after summoning her servant, she had already granted his wish. For Serenity's wish was to find someone who could pierce his poisonous skin and, to her misfortune, she could do it without even trying hard. Not even a day had passed in the war; but she had already fulfilled her servant's wish, and since she possessed no wish of her own, all motivation to participate in the conflict, instantly vanished.

"That's also... true...".

The Marbury Workshop distorted around her, as if time had stopped. Something appeared in front of her, a large sphere of bluish energy surrounded by two rings.

The event she thought would give her life meaning disappeared, and, again, she was empty. She kept looking at the most probable futures, as well as different realities, but she could see nothing for her, as if... as if... she had no future far from her monotonous life or fatal endings. And even those terrible futures, like, for example: trying to steal Arthur's control from the Magus Killer, only to be stabbed in the back by Arthur himself and thrown into the grail mud to be consumed by the Curse of All Evils in the World, or things like that, seemed better to her than a perpetual life without any ambition. At least, in those futures, she fought for something she believed in and wanted to achieve; moreover, she loved someone from the depths of her heart. However, now that the futures where she fell in love with Arthur at first sight after summoning him and where he would see her as nothing more than an enemy were far beyond her reach, what should she do? Should she choose a monotonous future? Should she try to snatch Arthur even if it would only lead to a fatal future? Were there no better options? The divergence of the world seemed to want to play against her? Or perhaps, was it on her side? Uncertainty filled her heart at the thought that she would suffer a fatal fate or a meaningless life.

These words made her hesitate. "Is it true, did I at least feel... alive in those worlds? Even if I was only going to be a sacrifice for the perpetuation of the human order...". Manaka shook her head with all her might. "No! No! NO! I refuse, it's impossible that the only worlds where I can be happy are the ones where I'm destined to die, I'm sure there are more, even if they're not the majority, they must exist, I've seen some before!". For a moment, she thought Alaya enjoyed torturing her; but this was obviously ridiculous, Alaya had no real personality, she simply acted in the best way she believed in to perpetuate the human order.

Manaka glared hatefully at the manifestation of humanity's collective unconsciousness. You're right, I participated in the war for the holy grail, I did it because they were my father's wishes; so I would fulfill them, no matter if, in the end, they were meaningless to me, and yes, divergence was on my side, because that's where I met him!

Shirou, their meeting was purely by chance, it was not something she foresaw, it was on the whim of her younger sister wanting to go out and play and explore the new city they had moved to. Since they no longer had their wet nurse to take care of them, she had to take care of Ayaka instead. So she accompanied her to the park that day, the day where her life made sense again.

But none of this mattered, the bottom line was: She hadn't been a good sister to Ayaka, while they didn't get along badly, she didn't really acknowledge her existence, and even if Ayaka didn't know it, she did. Besides, thanks to her younger sister, her life got a new meaning, a purpose. And she had him to thank for this, no, it wasn't just that, human beings can have several people whom they consider valuable, that was what he had told her, and while her heart belonged to him alone, she would never do anything to displease him, so she would try to reconcile with her sister and procure the salvation of the world as he wanted. So that his sister and he could be happy, even if, perhaps, she was not alive to see him...

"Stop trying to divert my thoughts, listen to what I have to tell you!" cried Manaka inwardly. While it was true that this was the most optimal way to reach her crush's heart, still, these words being melodiously whispered to her, were nothing more than a distraction to hide from her what he really wanted from her.

In all honesty, she sometimes worried that she could not control her interactions with Shirou to the same level as she could with Arthur, this was because, unlike with the King of Knights, there were relatively few, at least in comparison, realities where she and Shirou met that she could use as a point of comparison; and while she could calculate the future, the bodhisattva's protection did not make things easy for her with regards to the red-haired man. Besides, to be perpetually calculating the future was really exhausting. But if the sacrifice was made, if she accepted his help, perhaps she could reach them, reach more prosperous futures.

She sketched a wry smile. "Yes, of course, and at what cost? What would be the price? Aren't you the one who usually denies me those prosperous futures?".

That's because you are usually a danger with a high probability of causing the extermination of humanity on those worlds; but on this one, you can be the cause of their salvation. The realities where you and he meet and stay together are anchored to the "right history of mankind," also known as the foundation of the human order. These worlds are at the mercy of quantum time locks, which anchor a "universal" event iterated at regular intervals within a domain, for the purpose of anchoring "the average expression of phenomena and occurrences" as absolute and immutable within a confirmed history, in simpler words: quantum locks force certain events to always occur in order to avoid meaningless ramifications in diverse realities that only lead to worlds of extreme and accelerated prosperity, or, conversely, of extreme decay, and, thus, worlds where humanity stagnates or directly disappears.

The worlds where these happen are considered worlds close to the axis of the trunk of the tree of time, the history of the winners, worlds destined to triumph; but at the mercy of quantum blocks that prevent to some extent the free will of people; by avoiding ramifications that could cause fruitless futures. If humanity were to name the blockages, they would probably be known as fate.

On the other hand, there are the worlds that branch out of control, giving rise to fruitless possibilities for mankind and will be used as a sacrifice for the preservation of the worlds near the trunk. These worlds are necessary up to a certain point; because they prevent other worlds from making the same mistakes that led them to become fruitless worlds and, after a certain time, they cannot even be considered as worlds comparable to the fruitful worlds, they become "other worlds" and lose their only reason for existence. These worlds are known as worlds designated for removal, and once they are pruned, if for some reason they are anchored back to "reality", they are designated as lostbelts.

But why do such worlds become fruitless? Shouldn't it be that, whatever the future holds, the possibility of an adjacent breakthrough between them persists? Unfortunately, this is not the case. The energy to explain the proliferation of unnecessary worlds does not exist anywhere within "existence". That is, the incessant proliferation of parallel worlds that would end up becoming "other worlds" may eventually exceed the capacity of existence as a whole...

"I know that...".

You know it; but do you really understand it? If you do, you should know that there are only two choices: Submit or be sacrificed. Choose.

"In both cases we will be sacrificed. Will you guarantee me that we can both be happy in this new world near the trunk of the tree of time? That despite being a world subject to quantum blockages, he and I can stay together? That I will not die? That you will not try to murder me after you have used me?". Nothing, the voice that had been echoing in her head didn't answer her. She smiled, "I figured as much. Both of us, we are of interest to you, to our misfortune. In most worlds I am considered by you to be a threat that will devour humanity, the only use I should have from your point of view is for me to die while attempting to summon the sixth beast, only to be defeated twice by Arthur, and thus for him to begin hunting it across worlds. As for Shirou, there must always be a Shirou Emiya who pursues the ideal of the "Hero of Justice" to give rise to the Counter Guardian Emiya, thus, there will never be a paradox that takes away one of your hunting dogs. Even if the beast is not killed by the Arthur who should kill me, and even if Shirou fails to become Counter Guardian, that doesn't really matter. The more likely these events are to occur, the more the probabilities will allow the quantum locks to anchor those outcomes almost as truth. The beast will be killed sooner or later, and a Shirou Emiya will become a Counter Guardian. You'll have the sixth beast of a world killed, which will bring it even closer to the log, and you'll keep your hunting dog, happy end, won't you?".

Then...?

"Piss off Alaya, I don't need you, no, in fact, we don't need you. Even if our destiny is to be sacrificed for the sake of the other worlds, the fact that we were born in a world destined to disappear, gives us the possibility to live as we want. Besides..." Manaka took strength. "I trust him, Shirou and I will find a way for this world to survive, we will turn it into a fruitful possibility without the need for your intervention or the blockades."

The world must be regulated, otherwise it rushes to its demise.

"That's true, but you don't want to regulate us, not the two of us, you want to impose a future on us to increase the odds of optimal outcomes for your needs. I will not accept it, I will achieve it together with him, so go away."

Well, as you wish, there is a little time left for the audit to come; but it will come, it is imminent and inevitable, enjoy your life for the time you have left.

With that said, the energy sphere disappeared and the world returned to normal.

-Ma...?

Yes, this was the truth that she discovered long years ago, and that took away the meaning of her life. Alaya tried to influence her to make her believe that the right choice, and the only way to give meaning to her existence, was to be sacrificed for the sake of Arthur and the world, so that only as long as she did so, she could live as a human with a purpose again. And, at first, she believed him, she looked forward to the holy grail war and what it meant for her: the chance to love and for her life to have meaning, even if it also meant her imminent death.

-Mana...?!

What Alaya did not foresee was that the world would diverge to the point of becoming a world that would be designated for her elimination, causing her to be unable to summon the King of Knights...!

-Manaka!?

-Huh? -she exclaimed coming out of her reverie and seeing Shirou inches away from her as he held her shoulders.

-Are you all right? -asked the boy worriedly.

And not only him, Illya, and even Sella, Leysritt and Fillia, looked worried as they looked at him.

W-W-What are you talking about? I feel fine. -Manaka tried to put on a smile.

-But you're crying... -said the boy while touching his wet cheeks.

-Huh? -It's true, her cheeks were wet. She quickly wiped them and tried to make it look like it was nothing important. Relax, it's just the emotion, nothing more.

-Are you sure? -Illya asked. I'm excited too, but...

She kept trying to play it down. Easy, easy, it's nothing.

-Really? -asked the boy, still unsure.

She nodded.

-Well, if you say so...

Despite what she told him, Shirou still looked worried.

-Well, Sella, Leysritt, Fillia, I entrust you to clean and take care of the house. The three of us will prepare the workshop to be as effective as possible for our families' sorcery.

-Understood, my lady," said Sella.

Although it might not seem so, Sella, in fact, was not always stoic, she was very protective of Illya, whom she loved and cared for deeply. And that was why she used to be wary of both Shirou and Manaka. According to Illya, despite her apparent coldness with everyone but her, Sella is actually quite flighty and sometimes insecure, which is why she and Leysritt often tease each other about her "tough" personality, while Fillia usually stays out of their quarrels.

Leysritt, on the other hand, possessed a thin ego, as a result, she often speaks her mind without any consideration, and this often gets her into verbal conflicts with Sella. She and Illya are actually very close friends, and unlike Sella, she possesses a casual personality; but she has difficulty expressing her emotions, which makes her seem robotic at times. However, she seems to enjoy teasing Sella. On the other hand, Manaka had noticed that she liked Shirou, because his presence made Illya happy.

Lastly, there was Fillia, she was probably the most flamboyant of the three. As she had been created to be the false representative of the Einzbern in the coming holy grail war, she had been designed to act dignifiedly as a representative member of the family, which gave her an ego greater than the rest of the homunculi, behaving like a diga dama and magus; However, because his true goal was to serve and protect Illya, his behavior towards her was much more submissive, carrying out her orders to the letter and doing what he considered to be in her best interest, to the point of even downplaying his own life for that of his mistress. This created quite an interesting duo between her "noble" behavior and her "submissive" behavior. On the other hand, her relationship with Sella was cordial, though she also secretly enjoyed watching her companion's regal behavior being thwarted by Leysritt's teasing, what she did not enjoy, was being the focus of these same teasing when she played her role as a worthy noblewoman.

The three ladies rushed off to explore the workshop to familiarize themselves with it, Illya headed towards where the basement seemed to be and Shirou proceeded to try to follow her, until...

-Hmn? -Shirou turned to see Manaka grabbing the sleeve of his shirt, stopping him.

She was looking down. Shirou...

-Yes, Mana?

-We'll be the ones to win, won't we? We'll be the ones to defeat destiny...

Shirou didn't know why, but she looked extremely fragile when he asked her that question. So she did what she thought was best and smiled at him while taking the hand that held his shirt sleeve. Of course! We'll make it somehow, as long as we don't give up, I'm sure we'll always be able to do something.

She gave a small smile and nodded, "You're right, as long as we live, we can make it somehow...".

So, they both advanced towards the basement of the workshop...

-This is pretty big for this place," said Lady Einzbern.

-Although it's nothing compared to the Einzbern's workshop," Shirou declared.

-Well, it's a huge castle thousands of years old. It's a little hard to match workshops like that, Shi-kun," said Manaka.

-But this place isn't bad, we'll make this a good workshop. Fortunately, the Einzbern's alchemical sorcery is very compatible with the Muramasa family's blacksmithing, so we can complement each other without much difficulty. Although... -Illya approached some rather complicated engravings that were on the workshop floor, these seemed to be made with rather expensive materials-. This is... Some kind of boundary barrier?

Shirou nodded, "Yes, it's made so that I can safely practice Emiya family sorcery.

-Temporal manipulation, isn't it? -asked the girl.

-Yes.

-Then we'd better not use the space occupied by the barrier. Well, let's get started!

So, Illya, Shirou, and Manaka, finished preparing the workshop. Thanks to the preparations Kiritsugu had made, this was now a proper smithy, it possessed: several work tables with various tools, a storage room with various gems and, on top of everything else, precious metals, a forge, an anvil, molds, and a forge.

Most of these things had already been purchased by Kiritsugu and installed; but it remained to finish arranging everything.

While Shirou was very happy with how the workshop had turned out, nothing could match his ancestor's joy.

-Finally, after so long... At last a proper forge! -Muramasa shouted happily.

-Don't you think you're exaggerating, grandfather? -asked the boy mockingly.

-What are you talking about, brat? A blacksmith is nothing without his smithy! -As if he had been through a terrible ordeal, the master blacksmith said. First we had to make do with that little shed, then we had to squeeze from apartment to apartment, the ordeal only stopped at the Einzbern castle, and now at last we have a smithy.

-It seems like a real odyssey, sir... -Manaka laughed lightly.

Illya nodded, "If my grandfather had been forced to work under those conditions, he would have lost his mind.

"Was it that bad?" The boy thought, however, he preferred not to ask the question. Well, now all that's left is to organize our rooms. In my case, I don't have much to arrange, since most of it is in my dorm room.

Manaka tried to say something; but Shirou knew her well enough to stop her before she could.

-She'll have her own room too, remember the reason we were doing that was because of the lack of another bed.

Manaka pouted; but nodded.

Illya, for her part, looked at them in confusion. What are you talking about?

-Nothing important, right? -asked the boy.

Although a little annoyed, her friend nodded.

-Well, now let's continue... -Shirou stared at the forge for several minutes.

-Are you all right, Shirou? -asked Illya worriedly.

-Huh? Oh yes! I was just thinking about how to solve a certain problem I ran into.

-What was it? -she asked.

He looked at his weapons and sighed, "I have too many weapons and I can't carry them all at the same time.

-For a blacksmith, those are unimportant things, since we are not the ones who generally use the swords, we simply create them. But in your case, it's necessary for you to carry them, considering the trouble you're constantly getting into... -spoke his ancestor.

-But do you really need to carry them with you, Shirou? Isn't it enough to use your reality marble? -Illya asked.

Since his sister had decided to break a lance in his favor, he had done the same and told her about his reality marble.

The red-haired man shook his head, "It's not that simple. You see Illya, by using my reality marble, even without being deployed, it allows me Projection and Reinforcement in the real world. Weapons are produced within it, and then I bring them into the world via Projection, which greatly reduces the cost of production and allows me to prepare numerous weapons at once for projection. However, there are two problems... -Shirou held up two fingers: "The first is energy expenditure, every time I project a weapon I expend energy, although it is less than it should be thanks to my Reality Marble, even so, I have a limit. I can't simply project many weapons of the highest rank in the middle of a combat without the risk of exhausting myself, remember that my circuits are averages.

-And the second one? asked the ruby-eyed girl.

-Using weapon attacks like Neocaliburn requires me to use my Od to initiate them; therefore, I need as much Od as I have available to use them in case of need.

-How many times can you attack with weapons like Neocaliburn, Shi-kun? -Manaka asked, more to help Illya understand the situation, than to learn something he already knew.

He thought for a bit before answering his friend. That depends on how much power I use in the attack. The time when I used the most power in an attack was when we faced Siegfried. On that occasion, I was tired from the constant fighting, but on the other hand, I was also lucky that there was a ley line nearby... Without being and if it were that attack, using all my magic circuits and including the crest, I think I could use it only once, but I should be able to keep fighting as long as I don't overdo it; but I don't know how much power I would have without the help of a ley line... On the other hand, if I didn't use so much power, I could attack multiple times.

-Counting the cost of having to project it? -asked Manaka.

Shirou tilted his head, "If I had to project it the first time, I could keep fighting; but if for some reason I had to project it the second time, I couldn't keep fighting after attacking with my most powerful attack.

Manaka thought for a few seconds. I think I can help you with that...

-How?" the boy asked.

-Considering your situation... I can make you a mystic code that will allow you to carry them without being affected by their weight. It will be a portable magazine that will use the space of imaginary numbers. You won't be able to carry a large amount of weapons, because it would be a problem if you couldn't easily choose the one you need among so many of them; but you will be able to carry a good amount of them without affecting your mobility. Although I will need the materials... -This was not entirely true; but it was logical that, if she had to make a mystic code, she would need materials, if she didn't need them it would be suspicious, and she didn't want to raise suspicions.

Shirou thanked her, it solved several problems for him-. Write me the materials and I'll see how to get them. The mining town should be able to provide them, and if not, I can always use Lord Valualeta's contacts.

Manaka nodded.

-Good, with that settled we can get on with arranging the rest of the workshop. Sella, Leysritt, and Fillia, they should have lightened the work. But they are unlikely to be finished, so let's go help them," said Illya.

So, they spent the rest of the day finishing organizing the place.

The next day, the four of them left for the city. This day was going to be very busy because of the things they had to do, fortunately, they didn't have to make the long walk to the station, as Manaka was able to use the Space Transport.

Space Transport is sorcery from the realm of True Magic. Unlike Pure Space Transfer, something that requires the use of True Magic, Space Transport can be performed by anyone with sufficient skill. Although it is supposed to be nearly impossible to achieve in the present, as it requires crystallized miracles; such as command spells, or knowledge of the Age of Gods, or other special circumstances.

Shirou and Illya were amazed that Manaka was able to perform such sorcery, but she told them that it was no big deal, it's not like she was using True Magic or anything. Although Illya didn't give it much importance, Shirou felt a big shiver, Manaka said it as if she really could use True Magic; but that was a lie, it was impossible for her to use something like True Magic, right? He preferred not to think about that, something told him that he wouldn't find a logical answer.

In that way, they arrived at the London Underground station and moved to the central part of the city. They spent most of the morning strolling around the city, shopping with an excited Illya and Manaka, though for different reasons. Shirou showed them several of the most popular places in London, they went shopping, and they went to eat in a restaurant in the city, which allowed Illya to taste the typical gastronomy of the country, the latter was not really new thanks to her, since Manaka loved to prepare this kind of food, and she was flattered when the two brothers said that their food tasted better than the restaurant's food. Shirou also took the opportunity to buy himself a new suit, the last one having been almost completely destroyed in his fight against Siegfried, and, now accustomed to his life in the Clock Tower, he decided to leave the store wearing it, knowing that, although it was not planned, he was likely to meet either the Dean of his faculty or the Queen, or worse, both.

Finally, the events he wanted to prolong as long as possible, arrived. First he would have to go to his dormitory to collect the things he had left inside it and, it was quite obvious that they would be waiting for him; in front of the dormitory entrance, there was an envoy of Lord Valualeta.

-I know, you don't have to tell me, I will go to meet him," said the boy.

The envoy nodded and withdrew.

-Who was it? -Illya asked interested.

-An envoy from Lord Valualeta, he wants to see me. -Shirou turned to her friend, "Can you and Illya pick up and transport my belongings to the workshop? We can meet here after I'm done with the meeting.

She nodded, "Okay; but be careful," Manaka accepted the keys her lover offered her and made her way to her room along with the other three women.

-Couldn't you stay too far away from Shirou? -Illya asked before following her brother with narrowed eyes.

The blonde smiled, "True, I can't be too far away from him; but I didn't specify what was the maximum distance we could allow ourselves, did I?

Illya pouted. Cheater...

Thus, the four women headed for the boy's room. For their part, the red-haired man, together with his sister, headed for the Dean's office...

-Pasa...

Shirou didn't even have to knock on the door, sometimes he wondered how they knew when he arrived. Obviously it must have had a security system, some boundary barrier or something; but it was so well made that he couldn't perceive it. They entered and, once again, Inorai Valualeta Atroholm was behind her desk, she showed a firm and dignified bearing, as was common for Lords when they were working.

-My lady...

-Emiya. I understand that you took an unexpected trip a little over two weeks ago, and that you returned yesterday. I imagine you know how that shook things up a bit?

Shirou nodded. The murder of Ainnash was still very fresh, that, plus the tensions between the factions... Well, I suppose my sudden disappearance caused some concern in various ways...

Lord Valualeta nodded, "That's right, there were those who believed you might have been assassinated, who unfortunately were in the minority, and the more troublesome, those who believed you were sent to assassinate someone. -Inorai raised his gaze and, for a moment, looked at Illya, before turning his gaze towards him. And it seems that the latter were not misguided... What were you doing in Germany, Emiya?

Shirou smiled without the slightest concern, he knew he would be asked this question, so he had thought for quite some time about how he would answer it, thanks to this, and some suggestions from Manaka, he came to this conclusion-. Taking advantage of the holidays, my father and I decided to pay a visit to my sister...".

She narrowed her eyes. A visit to your sister? -Inorai held up some papers. Reports say you were seen in the southwestern corner of Germany, it is also well known that your father spent a decade with a family from that area, the Einzbern..." He nodded.

He nodded, "That's right, in that decade my father had a daughter. And for... certain reasons, the former head of the family decided that my father would no longer see her; however, we decided that my father should see his daughter one last time before he could rest in peace...

-I see... -Inorai closed her eyes for a moment. That explains why he didn't come back to you, my condolences.

Shirou bowed his head slightly in thanks.

-The Einzbern family was formed by the apprentices of the mage who discovered the Third Magic, they are expert alchemists and some of the best homunculus creators today; moreover, their lineage is over two millennia old. If it were not for their isolation, they would obtain a privileged place within the Association. So, let me ask you Emiya: Will you, or rather, as your sponsor, will I have a problem with the Einzbern?

Shirou shook his head, "We completed this last job before my father passed away, the current head of the Einzbern is my sister, who does not hold a grudge against me and, therefore, will not be affected in any way.

She nodded, "I have to assume that she is one of the homunculi that have accompanied you. Which one? I have my doubts...

-It's the one being cared for by the two homunculi wearing maid uniforms.

Inorai narrowed his eyes. Are you sure? Then... Who is the homunculus accompanying you? She doesn't look like a maid, she doesn't even dress like one, and ever since she entered the facility, she's been very attached to you," Inorai said while looking at Illya who was wearing a playful little smile.

Shirou didn't react in the slightest to the pressure the Lord was putting on him-. Oh, she, she's my servant, she was created by my sister for me. Introduce yourself...

Illya nodded and, with a smile, posture and bearing worthy of a highborn lady, she introduced herself. My name is Fillia, a servant in the service of Lord Emiya, it is a pleasure.

Lord Valualeta raised an eyebrow. A maid? Although she has the bearing... She wasn't behaving like one a few minutes ago...

Shirou nodded and smiled a somewhat uncomfortable smile. Well, yes. That was a request of mine. I don't know if you've dealt with homunculi much, but that... robotic way they behave is a bit off-putting to me. Mainly because, well, because of their similarity to humans.

Valualeta sighed wearily and with some exasperation. They may look human; but they are nothing more than dolls, tools created to fulfill a function, nothing more. Something like that shouldn't affect you.

-I know, but it still makes me uncomfortable, and if I'm going to have a servant, I prefer one that doesn't give me an unpleasant feeling all the time.

Valualeta played this down. Anyway, regardless of your personal tastes, it's as I imagined, she's the most different of the four.

Shirou resisted smiling and Illya even more so, Lord Valualeta was referring to the real Fillia, and while she must have looked amazing to any magus, being a highly efficient homunculus, the real Illyasviel was actually far more amazing than the Dean could imagine. Illya had been born of a homunculus, which was the best creation of the old golem: Irisviel von Einzbern, and her father, the magus assassin. Irisviel was given a working matrix, through which she was able to conceive, and the embryo was modified by Acht, not so that she would gain abilities similar to Iri's, which allowed her to transform into a lesser holy grail, since the old man Acht knew that the fourth war would be the last, due to the phenomenon that weakened the ley lines, but... for something else...

Since the Einzbern knew that it would be the last war, at least in Fuyuki, they did everything they could to win it, from hiring a foreign magus like Kiritsugu, to finding a relic like Avalon. Elder Acht guaranteed his victory with these measures; however, he had not forgotten that his true goal was not to win the holy grail, but what it would allow him to recover: the Third Magic.

The Third Magic, also known as the Sensation of Heaven, or the Grail of Heaven, in relation to the other four Magics, is said to have shown the future of mankind, and it would have been better if its discovery had been the last, so that the other two Magics would never have been discovered. The Third is based on the Materialization of the Soul, that is, the Magic that realizes true immortality. When achieved, the practitioner will acquire an unlimited source of magical energy because the soul will become analogous to a perpetual motion machine. This is the magic of the Einzbern lineage, and the holy grail war was established to recover this magic. It was planned to save all mankind.

The Einzbern were "born" as a factory originally created by the students of the Wizard who attained the Third Magic, they were created in the year 1 A.D.; however, the Third Magic, and thus the Third Wizard, were much older, it is said that the Third Wizard discovered the Third Magic before 100 B.C. His students tried to reproduce the Third Magic in the year 100 B.C. His students tried to reproduce it. C. His students tried to reproduce their teacher's miracle, but could not do it themselves, so, as an alternative plan, they tried to recreate a specimen identical to their teacher and have it reproduce the Magic.

After nearly 900 years of effort, Justeaze, the homunculus who would come to be called the Saint of Winter, was forged. She was a model that deviated from what the magi had intended, created entirely by accident, but her abilities were equal or superior to those of her master.

The magus apprentices of the Third Magic should have been elated at Justeaze's creation, but they could not be happy. After all, she was a mutation that was born independent of her own techniques or abilities. Even if that specimen reproduced the Third Magic, that conclusion would be harder for them to bear than 900 years of failure.

They tried desperately to create a homunculus that would surpass Justeaze with its own techniques. The artificial intelligence created to act as the central administrator of the castle, the Jubstacheit golem, was the pinnacle of their craft and became the father of all homunculi created in the Einzbern factory. From then on, all homunculi created at Einzbern were based on Justeaze.

Jubstacheit created a humanoid terminal unit and used it as the manager of the Einzbern factory. Each time a humanoid terminal reached the limit of its functions, a new one was created to replace it, Acht being the eighth terminal, although, as more humanoid terminals were created, the less personality they possessed.

In the end, the magus accepted that humans could create something that surpassed them, but not something that could save them. Perhaps... perhaps they would not have failed had a miracle like Justeaze not occurred...

Nevertheless, Justeaze managed to use the Third Magic. However, it did not pay off. With Justeaze's use of the Third Magic it would take several years to save a single person, which would make the salvation of the entire human race practically unattainable. So they looked for another way...

The magi despaired at the limits of their abilities. Some abandoned the castle, while others took their own lives. Thus, the homunculi left in the Einzbern factory were abandoned by their creators, but, in their purity, they continued to operate the factory for the sake of their ideology: the salvation of humanity, the reproduction of a miracle.

Five hundred years after the magus abandoned the Einzbern factory, a plan was devised creating a model of a device that operated over a wide area using the Third Magic, with Justeaze as its core: the Great Grail. This was the beginning of the ritual in which they would be assisted by two other families: the Makiri and the Tohsaka. And the aim of this ritual would be to recover the Third magic, the magic that, supposedly, would save humanity, the beginning of the wars for the Holy Grail.

And what does this whole story have to do with Illyasviel? Well, when it was decided to start with the plan to create the great grail, it was done through a vote in the old castle Einzbern, everyone voted yes, well, everyone except one, Jubstacheit, he was the only one who voted against this plan.

Why? Because he was still carrying the original wish of his creators: to create a specimen identical to their master and have it reproduce the Third Magic, not by mere chance as Justeaze had been born, but by using the skills and techniques that the Einzbern factory had accumulated during its almost 2000 years of operation.

Thus, knowing that the fourth war would be the last, and, having practically guaranteed his victory, Jubstacheit had mixed feelings: he would reach the goal of his creators, the Third Magic; but he would do so by following a path that they despised, using Justeaze, perhaps that was why the old golem did what he did. In a last attempt to reach the Third through the path his creators desired, he decided to modify Illya, not so that he would become a grail like his mother, but so that, naturally, he would become a specimen identical in abilities to the wizard of the Third Magic, one that would surpass Justeaze, and that could reproduce the lost miracle...

When Illya read these files, he felt somewhat sorry for Jubstacheit, in the end, despite having almost no feelings or emotions, he continued with his duty until the end of his days and, although, in his last moments, he considered himself a failure and her a failure; this was not really true. Jubstacheit was driven mad by the curse of Angra Mainyu that was consuming his terminal from within and, more so, by the knowledge that once it was destroyed, he would be extinguished and it would all end. But his true thoughts about Illya were in these files: In short, he did not know if he had succeeded or failed, Illya was too young to know if she could really use the Third Magic, so, when she grew old enough, he would give her the few files they possessed on the Third Magic, these in turn should awaken the Justeaze memories that were inside her and, only then, it would be seen if her last attempt was a success or a failure.

Moreover, the modifications would not affect the girl negatively; for Justeaze was as fragile as a snowflake, and Acht wanted Illya to overcome her, so, he saw to it that there would be no mishaps or negative consequences from these. Of course, he would never admit that he had made such modifications, this was going against the council they had reached and against the path that would most likely give them the best chance of regaining the Third Magic.

Although, and ironically, in the end, the Third was never recovered using that method. Ruler betrayed them, no, that was not entirely accurate, even if he desired the grail, if it was to achieve the same goal that the Einzbern desired, they would not see it as treason. And so it was, Ruler wanted to save humanity using the Third Magic as much as the Einzbern did; his purpose was to purify the grail using his command seals, so that it would once again have the power to retrieve the Third Magic; however, for unknown reasons, he did not or could not do so, this was what the Einzbern saw as treason.

-Emiya," said Inorai snapping him out of his reverie, "Why has the new head of the Einzbern come to the Clock Tower?

-From now on we will both live together in the old Marbury workshop," the red-haired man replied. My sister is not as closed-minded as the previous head of the family, so the Einzbern family will join the Magus Association.

-I understand... Will the young Einzbern girl join a faculty or a faction? -asked the interested woman.

-Perhaps she will enter the Faculty of Creation or Mineralogy, but I doubt she will become a student of either, after all, the Einzbern family has a history of over two millennia, as you have already said, there is little or nothing the professors of the Clock Tower can teach her in her field of study. I also doubt that he is interested in factional matters, at least, for now.

Inorai nodded. Good.

-May I be excused then? -the boy asked.

-Not yet. The blonde girl, who is she?

-An old acquaintance, until now she had decided to stay away from the Association and the Magus World; however, her sister's actions seem to have compelled her to act.

-Her sister? -Who?

-Ayaka Sajyou.

...

The woman didn't answer, as if that name didn't tell her anything at all, Shirou sighed- She's a student of the Botany Faculty and recently she's taking classes with Lord El-Melloi II.

-Hmm... I can't remember their lineage, have they accomplished anything recently?

-They are a relatively old and prominent lineage in Japan; but they haven't accomplished anything noteworthy in recent years.

-Hmm... I see, that's a pity. If they had achieved something, then we could make them part of our faction, but it's likely that, with an ancient and prominent lineage, even if they haven't achieved anything noteworthy, they would decide to join the Aristocrat Faction, right?

This time Shirou couldn't help but sketch a smile with a flash of irony.

Inorai narrowed his eyes. Am I wrong?

-Well, you probably won't believe anything I can tell you if there's no evidence to back me up; so I'll just say don't be so quick to dismiss the idea of including the Sajyou lineage in the Democrat Faction. -He then set out to explain a bit about the lineage situation. Ayaka has been studying for the past two years at the Tower, her performance has been that of an average magus; however, since she joined Lord El-Melloi II's classes, it has progressively increased, and something tells me it will increase even more with her sister present.

-Well, that's something worthy of El-Melloi II...

Shirou nodded, "They do not have strong relations with the Association, and since Ayaka's performance has not been extraordinary, and even if her lineage is ancient and prominent, that does not eliminate the fact that it is a foreign lineage, they have not joined a faction.

-What about her sister?

-As I said, nothing she says will be credible until she observes the evidence, so I recommend that she be very attentive to her entrance exam.

Inorai gave a small smile. In that case, I will keep an eye on her. -Then she took on a more serious demeanor. By the way, Emiya, if what you have told me is true, then, there is something you should know...

-Hmm...?

-You see...

...

...

...

-I understand, thank you, Lord Valualeta. -Thank you, Lord Valualeta.

Inorai nodded, "I am your patron, without me it is impossible for you to enter the Tower by proper means, that is something everyone knows. Therefore, your actions reflect on me, so I cannot let you go blindly. Remember, this is just my guess, but it is extremely likely to happen. Play your cards right, Emiya, or the consequences can be devastating...

Shirou nodded.

Then, Inorai clasped his hands in front of his face. Now that we've dealt with this, remind me, why did I decide to support you?

-Because my goal is the creation of the ultimate sword," he replied.

She nodded, "That's right, and although slaying one of the 27 Ancestral Dead Apostles is a noteworthy achievement before the Queen, that's not why I decided to support you.

Shirou sighed, "I see, you want to see what I've managed to create, don't you, my lady? -Inorai nodded, so Shirou took out his latest creation. As you know, I have been studying about Curses, I can't use them per se; but I wanted to learn how to imbue my swords with these. This is the result of my study.

The boy unsheathed his sword and, seeing the blade and feeling the curse, Lord Valualeta trembled slightly for a few moments, her expression frowned and cold sweat filled her face, although she tried not to show it. W-What kind of curse is that? I've never felt anything so sinister in all my life.

-More than a curse per se, it is a curse that encompasses many other curses within itself, an agglomeration of curses," Shirou put away his sword. My father and I came across this one a few years ago, Kiritsugu managed to keep it without it disappearing, and in the end, he allowed me to use it to create this sword. It was his last gift...

The old magus observed the boy's expression, it was strange, he had created an extraordinarily lethal sword, she could tell without him explaining what the curse did, it was something so sinister and dangerous that she almost didn't want to know where it came from and, even so, he wasn't happy or proud of his achievement.

However, even though it didn't seem normal to her, it wasn't important to her how he felt, she managed to get the answer to the concern that plagued him: had the boy lost sight of his goal because of recent events? Short answer: No. And that was enough.

-Okay, that's enough. -Inorai took out some papers and offered them to the boy.

-This is...?

-You asked me to help you find Touko, this is what I found: He's been moving around lately from here to there; but, from time to time, he comes back to the same place when he's done with one of his jobs...

-Mifune City in Japan, how convenient...

Lord Valualeta raised an eyebrow. Why?

-I asked the Tohsaka heiress for permission to own a residence in Fuyuki City. So I will soon travel to Japan with her, after finishing the paperwork, to make things official. -Shirou looked up at the dean. I could stop by Mifune while I'm in the country.

-I see, just a warning?

-What? -asked the curious boy.

Inorai looked at him with great seriousness. Touko dislikes being called Red, as I understand it, the last person who called her Red ended up being killed 30 times before Touko stopped, and she only did it because Aoko showed up, and it wasn't just that poor soul in pain, all the people who have called her Red end up the same way. Do you understand?

Shirou nodded- Thanks for the warning.

-Well, one last thing: The Queen is looking for you, you'd better go to her office," Shirou frowned, though when he realized it, he tried to bring it back to normal. To his surprise, the dean gave a slight smile. I understand the displeasure, but Barthomeloi is still the person with the most power, along with the headmaster and the Jewel Mage, within the Tower, it is not in your best interest to keep her waiting.

-I understand, then, I'll take my leave.

Lord Valualeta nodded and allowed them to leave.

Shirou left the room to join the others in one of the university town squares.

-Did everything go well? -asked Manaka, she and the others were sitting on a bench in the square.

Shirou nodded, "At least for now. Were there any problems?

Leysritt shook her head and Sella answered. None so far.

-Nothing for you to worry about for now, brother... -Who said this was none other than Fillia.

For a moment, Illya pouted, this was the part she disliked about her grandfather's plan. Where are we going now, Shirou? -she asked as she grabbed him by the arm. Despite walking since morning, she seemed to have endless energy as long as she could see something that was unfamiliar to her.

-To the main building of the Clock Tower, the Queen requests my presence?

-Are you sure there is no problem? -Manaka asked.

-I hope so...

So, the group headed towards the Clock Tower, and Illya was very astonished by this one; but she didn't show it, keeping the image of a lady, just as she had been taught since she was a child. Even if she didn't play the role of Lady Einzbern, she still played the role of Shirou's "personal maid", and although her brother could always say that he had commanded her to create her with a peculiar personality, she still had to maintain a minimum of professionalism according to the situations.

The city consisted of over forty student residences and over a hundred research buildings and school structures for various purposes, as well as commercial districts catering to the residents. Sella, Leysritt, Fillia, and Manaka, decided to explore the university town while Shirou went to meet with the Queen accompanied by Illya in her role as personal servant, Manaka wanted to accompany him; but Shirou explained to them that the Queen might see it as an act of disobedience or an insult to her power; as she had not been invited, so again, they were left to explore the facilities while Shirou dealt with another meeting.

Again, he made his way to Lorelei Barthomeloi's office, not without a warning to be careful, from his secretary, which was already a bad sign.

-Lord Barthomeloi.

-Emiya, -Lorelei raised her gaze to Illya and narrowed her eyes- -Einzbern...

Shirou prepared to explain the situation before the Queen jumped to conclusions. Pay no attention to her, my lady, she's just a servant my sister created for me.

"So this is the Queen, eh? For all the talk about her, she possesses a relatively plain appearance, for a moment I imagined her to be a true monster." Illya spoke conveying his thoughts to the boy making use of his thaumaturgical attribute.

"She may not look like one; but she has the power of one, don't be careless."

Yes, I can feel the imposing pressure he evokes just by his gaze."

Lorelei raised an eyebrow. Hmm, so I see, it seems my conclusions were right. To be honest, for a moment, I thought that the weight of being my executioner had been too much for you and that's why you ended up running away like a scared mouse.

-Nothing further from the truth my Lord, I simply had to travel to Germany to complete a contract. Nothing more.

This made her look at him. I thought the Geis you signed made it explicit that you couldn't sign another contract until the exclusivity contract was ready, did you break it?

Shirou shook his head, "Not at all, the contract I had to fulfill was "signed" before we agreed on our contract. So I was forced to travel to carry it out.

-A contract to assassinate the former head of the Einzbern family, isn't it? -Lorelei asked.

Shirou smiled, "As expected of Lord Barthomeloi, nothing escapes him.

-Naturally," she said.

-That's right, the job required my father and me to invade the Einzbern family's territory.

-And the fact that you returned accompanied by Einzbern homunculi, what exactly does that mean?

-The new head of the Einzbern is my older sister, unlike the old head of the family, she is less isolationist, so she has decided to come with me to London.

Lorelei raised an eyebrow. So the Einzbern family plans to join the Association?

-It looks that way, although I doubt she'll join any of the factions, for now. She'll probably join the Faculty of Creation or Mineralogy, though I doubt she'll join as a student.

The Queen nodded, "The Einzbern family is very specialized in its own field of study. It is unlikely that there is anyone within the Tower with sufficient skill and knowledge to teach them anything in their own craft. -Lorelei gave a small smile. This is an interesting development, the Einzbern are the last remaining remnant of the Mage of the Third Magic. Their affiliation with the Tower is a great acquisition.

Shirou nodded.

The Queen then took a contract that lay on her table and offered it to the boy. As I stated in our last meeting, here is the exclusive contract, don't take too much time to analyze it, it is a clear contract and my time is valuable.

Shirou nodded, he read the contract and, as she had said, it was quite clear and straightforward. The contract forced him to refuse any contract involving magus who were not, at the very least, Lords within the Association, unless she consented to it. It allowed her to accept contracts from independent magus or from organizations other than the Association, though it forced her to reject them if the Barthomeloi family was involved in any way, again, unless she consented to it. Finally, in the case of having multiple contracts, she is forced to take the one from the Queen. The only exception to all of the above, was the heiress of House Edelfelt, who was the only one who could, without being a Lord, offer him contracts, and these took precedence, even over hers. Besides that, the contract was quite simple, with a renewal clause every so often, among other things.

This surprised the boy, he had only intervened in favor of Lord Valualeta, he didn't believe that the Queen would give her arm to the point of letting him receive contracts from other Lords; but it's not like he was complaining, this could mean that the tensions between the Lords were worse than he thought.

As with the other contracts, he signed it and returned it to the Queen.

She took it and, in return, gave him other documents.

Shirou took them and analyzed them quickly. He raised an eyebrow and then asked, "Don't you want to complete this job yourself?

Lorelei shook her head, "It might be one; but it's not the kind I like to hunt. However, he took control of one of the Twentieth's labyrinths, which makes him a problem, since he has started a phony war for the holy grail within it. And all the researchers who have been sent in have "disappeared".

A fake war for the holy grail, when he was looking for information about the original ritual, this name: "fake war for the holy grail" had appeared several times. They were supposed to mimic the original ritual to some extent and, unlike the real one, it was not so complicated to find information about these.

-Shouldn't the Church be the one to deal with a ritual where the cup is involved? -asked the boy.

-Normally yes; but as I said, all the investigators that have been sent out disappeared, and this bloodsucking guy is not a dead apostle, but a ghostly beast, so it's up to us to take over, I'm still dealing with the transfer of supervision of the labyrinth, so in two weeks everything should be ready for you to leave.

-I see, I'll take care of it...

Lorelei looked up at the boy when she noticed his silence. What's going on? If you have something to say, say it, you have my permission.

-On the payment part... What do you mean by a sword?

-Oh, that? In one of those earlier wars that was under the supervision of the Association, in Greece, a powerful dead apostle was involved, so I decided to hunt him down. I won the war and put the apostle to death. The prize supposedly was a huge relic that belonged to the famous Greek hero, Heracles, it is a huge sword that seems to have been made from a stone slab. For me it has no use; but you should be able to do something with this one.

-I understand, it is more than enough payment. I'll leave in two weeks then. -Before leaving, he asked, "May I retire?

-Yes, but one last thing. You will not go alone, you will be sent together with Lord El-Melloi and his apprentice. You will collaborate with them.

Shirou nodded, "I understand, if there is nothing more to talk about, I will leave. Have a good day, Lord Barthomeloi.

Lorelei gave a nod and allowed him to retire.

Once again, he left to rejoin the rest of the group.

-Are you all right, Shirou? -Illya approached with concern when she saw the red-haired man's downcast face. You don't look well, what are the documents he gave you about?

Shirou smiled, "Yes, don't worry, it's about a job from Lord Barthomeloi.

Manaka asked, approaching the duo along with the others, "Something dangerous?

-I'm not quite sure yet; but probably yes. -Then Shirou turned to his sister. Fillia, do you know anything about the fake holy grail wars? I've looked into it, but maybe you know things I don't.

Illya took a while to answer, she wasn't used to being called by her servant's name, unfortunately, she would have to get used to it. Yes, are you being sent to participate in one?

Shirou nodded.

Lady Einzbern sighed, she and the rest sat around a table that was in front of a store inside the university town and ordered something to drink.

After the drinks arrived, Shirou asked her childhood friend to please create a barrier around the group.

Manaka nodded and created it with ease.

-You see Shirou, in the Third Holy Grail War a lot of things happened. This one happened at the end of World War II, things got out of control because a master was related to the Nazis, along with the Nazis, he tried to steal the Holy Grail when the Soviet Union invaded Japan; however, the United States got involved because of this, and we managed to prevent the theft by cooperating with the Imperial Japanese Army; However, despite being able to safeguard the great grail, the Nazis managed to steal some of the information about the ritual, but in the midst of their escape, the Americans managed to capture them and took the information about the ritual for themselves. -For a moment, Shirou imagined a mini-World War II happening in the middle of Fuyuki, with the Nazis, the Americans, and the Japanese as well. The U.S. government gave the information to an American magus organization not affiliated with the Association. They planned to conduct their own holy grail war, they even planned to use an entire city as a stage, the city is called Snowfield if I remember correctly; however, to our luck, the information was not enough to fully replicate the ritual, they could only faithfully replicate the part that involved the summoning of the servants, along with the command seals, although that did not stop them from trying to recreate their own holy grail...

-Did all that happen in the Third Holy Grail War?

Fillia confirmed as Sella nodded. It's in the family archives.

-But what does that have to do with the fake wars for the Holy Grail? -Manaka asked.

-As I said, the U.S. government tried to create its own version of the holy grail war; however, it would take several decades to even have something that could mimic the original war well enough. -Suddenly Illya smiled mischievously. But all this went down the drain after 1970, as you must know, it was from that year onwards that a certain phenomenon began to occur.

-The weakening of the ley lines," Shirou completed.

Illya nodded.

-Oh, I see! -Shirou looked confusedly at Manaka who seemed to have understood everything. You see, Shi-kun, the weakening of the ley lines has been progressive since 1970. The countries where Sorcery is strongest have not been affected so radically, in them the ley lines only lose their power if a great ritual is performed using them and, even then, they only lose their power in sections, not in their entirety. But the United States is different, although it is a country that has a huge historical importance, it does not have a great importance from a magical point of view...

At that moment, Shirou understood. The American leylines weakened too quickly, before the ritual could be performed, didn't they?

Illya nodded, "Exactly, the United States had no choice but to abandon all its plans to reenact the war for the holy grail. As I understand it, the information was kept confidential and abandoned; but, in recent years, a person with enormous political ties was able to get hold of it and, irresponsibly, spread the information to magus all over the world; however, as the information was incomplete, the only thing they managed to do was to recreate the original war to some extent.

Shirou nodded, if he remembered correctly, all the fake wars for the holy grail were completely different from each other, each with their own rules, there were only three things that were the same in all of them: the summoning of servants, the need for masters, and the use of command spells. As for desire, this was not really fulfilled in any of them; for what fueled these wars most of the time was an incomplete false holy grail, it did not have the necessary means to fulfill a wish nor to initiate the Third Magic, at most, after the war, they became powerful magical artifacts, thanks to the stored mana, which could be used for different rituals, there were even false wars where not a false holy grail was offered as a prize, but some kind of relic, like the war where Lord Barthomeloi participated.

-Generally, I dislike fake holy grail wars, thanks to these we had to hide the information much more carefully than the real one," Illya said with a frown; but then he smiled. But this case is special, we can use this war as a simulation of the war we will participate in.

Shirou nodded.

-When do we have to leave, Shi-kun? I have to have your mystic code ready before we leave?

-Within two weeks; besides, Lord El-Melloi II and his apprentice will be accompanying us.

-I see... -Illya nodded- -Is there anything else we have to do for today?

-Just one thing: We have to pay a visit to the Norwich dormitory," said the redhead. Tomorrow will be a busy day, too...

Hearing her next destination, Manaka lowered her gaze.

Norwich dormitory was also the place of residence of: Gray, Rin, Luvia, Svin, Flat, Caules, and Ayaka...

Seeing her gaze, Shirou took her hand. You'll be fine, I'll talk to her first and then it'll be your turn.

Seeing the atmosphere a bit heavy, Illya decided to dispel it, "Good! The faster we go, the faster we'll get out of this, then we can go home and enjoy a feast to celebrate our first day of exploring London.

Shirou nodded and Manaka gave a slight smile.

-Well, then, let's get going...

With that said, Manaka undid the barrier and the group headed for the Norwich dormitory. Each one thinking about their various matters, in Shirou's case, it was the fake war for the holy grail inside the seventh labyrinth of Caubac Alcatraz, the Twentieth of the 27 Dead Apostles...

On the other hand, in some remote part of Europe...

A fine carriage traveled a dirt road guided by strong horses, within it, rested the Princess of Twilight.

Altrouge sighed, this was too slow, it was in these situations that she understood the benefit of human technology, if Ortenrosse castle was not isolated and cars could reach this one, then her journey would have been greatly reduced. Obviously, this was not something she would suggest to the old apostle, it was obvious what his reaction to this proposal would be.

Usually, she would not mind if her trip took too long; but this time it was a little different, she was nervous and excited. This was something truly strange for her, it was not common for this kind of emotions to flood her, she could count the times she had felt so nervous and excited: The first time she met Zepia and he told her about the sixth, that occasion when she met PM and became his mistress, or the first time she performed the Aylesbury ritual. And yet, this time was very different, all the other times had something in common, they were directly related to her goal; but this time it was something more... personal? He didn't know if that would be the right word, but it was something he wanted that was unrelated to the reason for his creation.

Compared to the other occasions, this should be nothing to worry about, and yet these emotions were not fading, in fact, they were only increasing. Why? She already knew the answer, it was because she was inexperienced in this sort of thing. Throughout her life, she generally focused on completing her objective and leading her faction, something like a romance was never in her area of interest, much less with a human.

It's not like she was innocent in these types of situations, her long time of life had allowed her to observe multiple romantic relationships; but it was precisely because her knowledge came from third parties and not from her own experience, that she couldn't keep her emotions quiet.

Numerous doubts plagued her mind, what should she do as soon as she arrived, should she behave differently with the boy, should she act as if he was nothing special so that he would not get on her nerves, or maybe she should be a little more affectionate...? But she also had to keep in mind who she was, The Princess of the Dead Apostles, she had to be careful, her position did not allow her to show weakness, and she well knew that love could be considered a... On the other hand, Shirou, for a human, was quite resilient, perhaps he didn't need to worry so much... But if someone like Blackmore or Ortenrosse targeted him for harm as a way to hurt her... For a moment, she felt some anger, as well as the arrival of a headache, and something told her that this was only the first of many...

There were other issues as well, the appearance of that girl who was in love with the boy provoked a burning feeling inside the apostle, anger? Rage? Probably, she didn't know exactly how to describe it, no? She knew it, but she wasn't going to admit it. She had to be extremely careful with her, not because of how dangerous she was, but because of her closeness with the boy, that worried her.

On the other hand, there was the older sister, that was another problem to deal with. With the magus killer, she didn't think much of it, explaining to him their relationship, who he was and all that, would only end in disaster, so she used her eyes to deal with him, besides, according to what Shirou had told her, her father didn't have much time left, so keeping him hypnotized until his time came was the most effective option. With his sister, however, it was different...

Altrouge sighed...

She would have to deal with the sister for who knows how many years, it was obvious that, sooner or later, he would realize who she really was. On the other hand, she no longer had her mystical eyes of enchantment, and... no, even if she did have them, hypnotizing the girl for life would obviously bring trouble in the long run.

So what could he do?

The answer was, in fact, "simple", and was in plain sight; however, it could bring catastrophic results; but it was, from his point of view, the best way to go, and knowing Shirou, perhaps he should do it without his consent.

Finally, away from the boy who was bringing him great headaches, the new girl who had just appeared, and the latter's sister, was that other girl with whom he could also be said to have some sort of rivalry. However, at least, from his point of view, he would not have to give the latter so much thought. Gray was... Well, it all depended on how the gravedigger decided to behave, if she continued to act as she had been, then she was the least of her worries; but, if she decided to take that step forward, despite her warning, then she would be a rival to consider.

For a moment, she sketched a slightly bitter and ironic smile, the world was dying, they were at the corner of extinction, and what filled her mind the most was none other than a stubborn human who had caught her attention and her possible rivals on her way to conquer him. If she told Fina about this, she was sure she would not hear the end of her taunts, she was absolutely certain she would say that she was being no different from a girl who had discovered first love... And if she was honest, she wouldn't be entirely wrong.

She sighed again, hopefully her inexperience wouldn't play against her. The ancestor watched the carriage window, she would need a couple of days to get back to London, then, she smiled, things would get interesting from then on...