Hey, it's been a while.

Things have been really hectic for me. I passed my finals and got a full time job, and I am doing a Masters at the same time. Basically I'm working full time, studying to get my license as a health professional, and in addition doing research.

I haven't even started two of those three, and I'm already tired and burnt out to the point I barely have energy to even go out.

Updates will probably be really slow, but unless I post an update saying I have abandoned the story, which is very very very unlikely, assume the story is still going on.

I'll try to make a monthly update at least, as a weekly update as I did before is pretty much impossble for me at this point.

TheEmeraldMage, yep, Shinji is gone. Mordred and Artorias spending time together will be something I am gonna enjoy writing tbh.

codywhite162, Medea won't snatch any of them. I can assure you of that. I was thinking of the Ishtar parts of the Omake, and it'll turn into something other than the Saber omake I was planning for, but who the fuck cares anyway.

csjoel74, Ryu wolf, NovaSudanaPutra, Dalthale1642, pietrodeglie, hope you like this one as well.

AccelBreaker, Toa Solaric, he hates their existences but he is rational in what he wants I reckon.

Kanon, glad you liked both Emiyas fighting together. Given Shirou has Innate Time Control and his Projection magecraft, I'd say it is possible. UBW Shirou was shown to hold his own against Souichirou with just Kanshou and Bakuya, I would say this version of Shirou is much stronger than UBW Shirou at that point.

Blanchimont, there will be more fights between them. Just not yet.

sUbSoNiCSoundwave, technically Gil isn't the final boss, per say.

Luckenhaft, I can see that happening.

Ksatria Pradana, I honestly don't feel I have enough knowledge about Honkai to do a fanfic as of now. Perhaps when the game finishes its story, I will consider doing one.

keybladelight, glad you liked this story. Tsumukari Muramasa is something I'm still thinking about. The sword's origin is different from what this Shirou is heading towards. He's not the same as Muramasa, but leaning more towards Emiya Alter. And no, I will not be doing any lemons. I have found if I do lemons, it ruins my stories, at least at that time.

Pixie Duck, lets agree to disagree. But yes, this is a premise for Shirou/Saberharem, as you put it.

God of crossovers, I get why you'd be a bit annoyed, but in a way my point is to show that this Shirou is different from UBW Shirou and EMIYA.

Marco martinez, I don't understand Spanish, assuming that is what is being used, but this Shirou would be pretty strong if he had any more than he has now.

So yeah, here is the newest chapter, enjoy (hopefully).

XXX

Shirou stared in surprise and shock as the gears hanging above them fell apart, the skies shattering and slowly falling to pieces.

He looked at Archer, "W-what is going on?"

The white haired man scowled, "Ea... He's using Ea, an anti-world Noble Phantasm."

Gilgamesh seethed, "Do not think highly of yourself, faker. But I will admit, your efforts do have some weight to them. But it all ends here."

Ea simply spun with power, its mere existence removing the representation of Archer's inner soul.

Archer thinned his lips, "Emiya Shirou, when I say so, run."

The redhead blinked, "Huh? Wait, what are you saying?"

The Counter Guardian summoned Kanshou and Bakuya in his hands, "I'm literally a dead man, but you can... No, you have escaped my curse and fate. It'll be up to you to defeat him."

Shirou furrowed his brows, "What?"

Gilgamesh scoffed, "You think you can save him, Faker?"

Archer smirked, "Heh, quite unfortunately, I tend to love saving people. Besides, you won't know if you don't try."

The king snorted without humor, "Then perish in your attempt."

Hundreds of portals appeared around Gilgamesh, as Archer dashed towards him, a similar amount of swords appearing around him.

As the two Archers neared each other, Shirou's mind raced.

Archer obviously couldn't win against Gilgamesh now that the King had brought out Ea, and attempting to even glance at the sword gave him a massive migraine.

No, he needed to do something.

Then, an ambitious, a ridiculous idea formed in his head.

Taking a deep breath, he spoke up, "I am the Bone of my Sword..."

A pulse of prana shot out of his body, gaining the attention of the two Servants, but he paid them no heed.

"Steel is my body, and fire is my blood."

Archer snapped his gaze at the redhead, "What are you doing?!"

Gilgamesh, on the other hand, gained an amused smirk, "Oh, now just what is he trying to do?"

"I have created over a thousand blades."

"Unknown to hate, nor known to love."

Shirou placed a palm over his heart and continued the chant, "Have withstood nothing but emptiness."

His prana skyrocketed, "Yet, these hands will always push forward."

The redhead honed his gaze on Gilgamesh, "So hear my roar... Unlimited... BLADE WORKS!"

A ring of flames surged out of Shirou, filling in the gaps and taking over Archer's crumbling Reality Marble.

Similarly, an infinite amount of swords could be seen stabbed across the area, but unlike Archer's, there weren't any giant gears hanging in the air, nor was the sky clouded by clouds and smoke.

Instead, the sky was that people would see in a sunrise, a patch of the dark night followed by a patch of the bright day.

And furthermore, the previous wasteland now had patches of green grass on them, with guns and firearms of various kinds scattered amongst the blades.

Gilgamesh scoffed, "And what exactly will this do?"

But Shirou wasn't done.

Just as Archer had given him access to the many swords in his Reality Marble, the Counter Guardian had also given the young man access to some of his abilities.

Alteration was one of them.

Sweat glistened on his forehead, as Shirou reached out over the world that now formed over the previous one, "Trace... On."

The Reality Marble responded, and the redhead grunted, "I...am the bone of my sword..."

The world around them started to retreat towards the redhead, much to Archer's shock and Gilgamesh's twisted curiosity.

The space around them all drained into a single point, right at Shirou's palm, revealing the Fuyuki Bridge to them once more, but none of them paid that any heed.

They were all focused on the item in Shirou's hands.

A single bullet.

A copy of Kiritsugu's Thompson Contender appeared in his hands, and Shirou quickly loaded the bullet, albeit with a lot of effort.

The King of Heroes snorted, "Interesting, you seem to have condensed a Reality Marble into a single bullet..."

He narrowed his eyes at the obvious effort Shirou was giving out to maintain it, "But it seems to take a lot to manage..."

A portal appeared above him, "I tire of this. I'll quickly kill the older Faker, and perhaps I'll punish you for daring to raise your blade against a king."

More portals appeared around them, right as Shirou took aim, and Archer moved.

"I am the Bone of my Sword."

The white haired man appeared in front of his younger self, arms outstretched, "Rho... AIAS!"

Seven petals bloomed, as the shield of Aias the Great formed itself once more, blocking the rain of weapons.

The rain of death eventually ended, and Archer allowed the will of Gaia to remove the copy of the shield, also moving out of Shirou's line of fire.

Clouded by the screen of smoke and dust, Gilgamesh failed to noticed Shirou holding the gun with two hands, hammer cocked back.

No, the king noticed that fact a moment too late, for the redhead pulled the trigger, and the bullet shot out towards the King of Heroes.

For the first time in years, Sha Naqba Imuru screamed at him to avoid the oncoming attack, and he complied.

But it was too late, for even as he leaped to a side, the bullet was already upon him, and it pierced through his left arm.

The bullet immediately took effect, as Gilgamesh felt an enormous amount of pain welling up in his left arm, then the swords started bursting out.

The King of Heroes howled in pain as multiple swords burst out of the bullet wound.

Then around his arm, reaching up to his shoulder.

Gilgamesh growled as he summoned another portal, as a nameless blade shot down from above, slicing off the arm right before the bullet could extend its effect any further.

Archer and Shirou could only watch as swords burst out of the arm, forming a bizarre sight.

The King of Heroes seethed, "Unforgiveable... UNFORGIVEABLE! FAKER!"

Ea appeared in his hands once more, energy beginning to swirl around it, but before he could continue, nine Servants appeared around them.

Archer sighed in relief, "Finally..."

Mordred whistled when she saw the state of the King of Heroes and the severed arm. It didn't take a genius to put two and two together.

Saber Artoria narrowed her eyes, "King of Heroes... That blade."

Gilgamesh narrowed his eyes when he realized he was surrounded, "... As it is now, even I know when I'm disadvantaged, especially in this sorry state."

He glared at Shirou and Archer, "Consider this your victory, Fakers. Enjoy it while you can, for you won't be that lucky the next time we meet."

A flash of gold from above caught their attention, before Gilgamesh leaped up onto his Vimana.

Then, before any of them could act, the King of Heroes vanished into the clouds.

Lancer Artoria sighed, "He got away..."

She turned to Shirou and Archer, noting the former's healing wounds and tired expression, along with the latter's own wounds and exhaustion.

Heroine X, Archer Artoria and Rider Artoria were quickly by their Master's side, the two swimsuit Servants helping him stay on his feet.

The Assassin asked, "Shirou, you okay?"

The redhead nodded as the two Servants helped him stand, "Y-yeah... Just, tired."

Archer had a dry smile on his face, "I would imagine so, you pulled off something I didn't think would be possible for... most of us."

Lancer Artoria glanced at the Counter Guardian, "What do you mean, Archer?"

The Heroic Spirit EMIYA chuckled, "Your dear Master summoned a Reality Marble, and he compressed it into a single bullet. That's why Goldie cut his own arm off."

Caster Artoria's eyes blinked, "He what?"

Shirou smiled, "Well, it was worth a try."

His older alternate self snorted, "Yes... Indeed it was."

But before they could continue, the fairy was already checking him over, "You don't feel anything weird, do you?"

Shirou blinked, "N-no, not really..."

Saber Artoria blinked, "I'm sorry, but why are you so worried?"

The Caster furrowed her brows, "I'm not too knowledgeable about Reality Marbles, but they are extensions of one's soul. So if Master compressed it into a bullet..."

Medusa hummed, "I see, you're worried it might affect in some way."

Caster Artoria nodded, "Yes."

Shirou smiled, "I appreciate that, but perhaps we can do this at a later date? I'm exhausted."

Archer Artoria giggled, "Of course."

They all left, and all the while, Mordred watched that interaction with a complicated and confused face.

(Linebreak)

A short while later, Shirou stood in his kitchen, preparing a large amount of food.

Rin and Sakura both sat at the table, both having equally complicated expressions on their faces.

The reason?

The relatively small living room was rather packed, with Shirou's seven Servants all sitting around the tatami table, along with Mordred and Medusa at the table.

Of course, the redhead had added an extra tatami table to better fit all of them, but that had resulted in less space in the living room.

Mordred grumbled without her armor, seated on the floor with one knee up, "Why do I have to sit here?"

Lancer Artoria closed her eyes, "Shirou offered to make dinner, it would be an insult to not accept."

Heroine X scoffed, "Of course, you're free to leave, more food for me."

The other five counterparts nodded in unison, while Saber Artoria too nodded after a brief pause.

The boastful knight scoffed, "Is it that good?"

Archer, who was the only one not seated and leaning on the door, smirked, "Might as well try it, Sir Mordred."

The blonde tomboy glared at him, "Shut up."

Sakura and Rin met each other's gaze, before quickly looking away from each other.

Both sisters wanted to speak up, but neither had the bravery to begin, especially after years of not doing so. Rin took a deep breath, but before she could speak, a rather mouthwatering smell filled her senses, before a rather loud growl reached everyone's ears.

Everyone turned to the source of the sound, and Saber Artoria's face flushed, "... I apologize..."

As if on cue, Shirou walked over with plates of food, setting them on the table. The moment he did, he looked at his Servants, "No eating until I get everything on the table, okay?"

The seven almost pouted, almost, as their shared Master quickly placed the rest of the food on the table, forming a rather large pile of food.

Shirou sighed as he sat down, "Caster, is the Bounded Field up and running?"

Caster Artoria nodded, "Yes, we should be fine."

The redhead nodded, "Good, thank you."

He looked at Rin and Sakura, "Tohsaka, Sakura, I have something I want to ask the two of you."

That caught the two sisters' attention, and Rin asked, "What is it?"

Shirou stared at them, "What do you two want to do now?"

Sakura blinked, "What do we want to do?"

The redhead nodded, "Shinji is dead, and you told me you don't want to fight in the war."

The purple haired girl looked down, "Y-yes, that's true... but my grandfather..."

"Can't hear or bother with you here."

Everyone turned to look at Archer, who'd just spoken those words.

Sakura blinked, "What do you mean?"

Caster Artoria smiled, "The Bounded Field I have on is meant to cut off all forms of communication and transmissions, both technologically and magically. We should be safe."

The twin tailed magus looked at her Master, "And to add on, Matou Zouken is someone we need to eliminate."

Rin furrowed her brows, "Hold up, what are you talking about?"

Archer sighed, "Rin, Matou Zouken has always been keeping tabs on Sakura. I assume you are not aware of the Matou family's actual form of magecraft, are you?"

The twin tailed girl frowned, "What do you mean? They specialize in summoning magecraft, specifically familiars."

Sakura shrunk as Archer continued, "And what exactly do you think happens in that line of magecraft?"

Rin scowled, "Get to the point."

"Crest worms."

They all turned to Shirou, and he looked at Sakura, "But you don't use them, do you?"

Sakura's eyes fell, and she slowly shook her head, "...No, my grandfather uses them on me..."

Archer nodded, "And any form of resistance results in pain. He is using you to fight the war for him."

Silence was his only answer, but it was also confirmation.

Rin saw red, "What?! How can he-!"

Mordred stared at her master, "So you've been tortured, haven't you, Master?"

Again, her silence confirmed it, and the knight of treachery growled, "I should've killed him when he summoned me."

Shirou looked at Sakura, "Sakura, what do you want to do? We can end everything here, or we can fight back against Zouken."

Sakura's eyes widened at his words, and Rin glared at him, "What are you saying?! Do you plan on killing her?!"

The redhead nodded, "Only if she wants to, but if she's willing, I can also back her up against Zouken. Seven Servants against a single magus shouldn't be too much of a fight."

Sakura shook her head, "N-no, it's fine... My grandfather is... It'd be better if you all stayed away from him..."

Rin scowled, "But we can't just leave you as it is!"

Shirou nodded, "Sakura, you can leave him. We will help you."

The purple haired girl looked away, "I... I can't..."

Her older sister scowled, "Why not? If he's been torturing you, then you shouldn't stay with him!"

Sakura gripped the edges of her dress, "... Why do you even care?"

Rin froze, "W-what?"

The purple haired didn't meet their gazes, "... You never bothered to even check on me before..."

The twin tailed girl fell speechless, "I..."

Sakura stood up, "I'm sorry... I'm going to head back... I... I still don't want to fight either of you... But my grandfather won't allow me..."

She turned, only for Mordred to grab her arm, "Hold it, Sakura."

The purple haired girl tried to shake her off, "Please let go, Saber..."

The brutish knight scowled and glared at her, "No, you listen. You're underestimating me, and you're underestimating my father. Your shitty excuse of a grandfather can't compare to even half of me, and definitely not even a quarter of any of my fathers!"

Mordred held onto Sakura's shoulders, a smirk on her face, "Believe in us, we'll kick his ass to the next century!"

Medusa nodded in agreement, "While not in such an inappropriate manner, I agree with her."

Sakura looked down, not daring to meet the gazes of her Servants, "..."

Shirou stood up and walked to stand behind Mordred, "Sakura, as long as you say the word, we will stand with you."

The purple haired girl met his gaze, and the moment she did, she relented. Sakura sighed, "... Okay, we can try."

Mordred released her grip, "Great! Now all we need is a plan of attack!"

The moment she said that, the Knight of Treachery felt seven gazes on her.

Mordred turned to see her seven fathers staring at her, and she faltered, "W-what?"

Archer Artoria chuckled as she shook her head, "No, just that I never expected to hear that from you."

Archer chuckled, "Then its settled, we'll deal with Matou Zouken."

He glanced at Shirou, before adding, "As well as Medea and Heracles."

The redhead met his gaze, before nodding, "Yeah, but that can come later."

Caster Artoria stood up, "Yep, that can come later, for now we need to figure out a way to stop his connection to the Crest Worms in Sakura's body, then we kill him."

Saber Artoria spoke up, "I am unfamiliar with this form of magecraft, but if the worms are inside her body, can't we just remove them?"

The twin tailed magus king shook her head, "It's not that simple. I can, of course cleanse her body with my Noble Phantasm and suppress them, but it won't kill the worms."

Heroine X snorted, "Better than nothing, I say do it."

Sakura blinked, "E-eh?"

Caster Artoria stood up, "We can do it while you're standing, but I'd rather you sit down in case anything happens."

Chasteifol appeared in her hands, and the magus king looked at Mordred, "Mordred, prepare to catch her, this might hurt a little."

The brutish knight blinked at her request, before nodding and standing behind her Master.

"This is the star of prophecy, the land of hope."

The prana from Caster Artoria skyrocketed, as the living room was filled with power, the very same prana flowing out of the Caster.

"All that remains of a paradise."

The blonde king held out the staff horizontally before Sakura, "Even if no one calls, you alone shall hold the star aloft."

Caster Artoria flipped Chastiefol such that it now stood vertically, "For whom this fate shall be... Around Caliburn."

The Caster's mind unveiled itself, focusing solely on Sakura, the Noble Phantasm granting the girl the blessings of a world that had yet to and will never be.

The damage and curses filled inside the purple haired girl's body immediately started to lift, but the Crest Worms, while immensely weakened, weren't killed.

However, evidently, the Noble Phantasm had a positive effect, as Sakura quickly felt the strain on her body lighten.

The purple haired girl blinked as the pain subsided a lot, "H-how?"

Caster Artoria smiled, "The damage on your body can all be considered a curse, my Noble Phantasm can remove curses, but unfortunately I couldn't physically remove the worms."

Shirou nodded, "Then all that's left is to deal with Zouken."

Archer snorted, "Well, you still need to deal with Caster and Berserker... Not to mention goldie."

He glanced around the room, before he chuckled, "Well, not that there's anything to worry here."

Lancer Artoria smiled, "Then it's settled. For now, let us rest."

She looked at Shirou, "And Shirou, would you be kind to give us seconds?"

The three Masters blinked, until they realized, whilst they had been talking, with the exception of Caster Artoria for using her Noble Phantasm, none of Shirou's other Servants had stopped eating.

That brief moment of just activating her Noble Phantasm had forced Caster Artoria to get off her seat, and her counterparts showed her no mercy.

The twin tailed king's face dropped, "Everything's... gone?"

The despair in her voice was very evident, and Archer couldn't help but chuckle at that.

Shirou sighed, "Fine fine, I'll make more food."

He walked towards the kitchen, before glancing at the six of his Servants, "Please show some restraint, Tohsaka and Sakura need to eat too."

(Linebreak)

The next morning, Sakura sat on the bed of her guest room.

After dinner, Shirou and Rin had both insisted she stay at Shirou's house for the time being, at least until Zouken was dealt with.

The purple haired girl had, of course, initially declined, not wanting to trouble them any further.

But the two, along with Mordred and Medusa, had insisted, and thus she ended up staying for the night.

"Sakura."

The girl turned to see Medusa materializing before her, "Rider..."

The blindfolded woman asked, "You seem troubled, why?"

Sakura pursed her lips, "...I'm worried..."

Medusa raised an unseen eyebrow, "Of what? You are with friends, allies. As... unfortunate as it is, your brother is gone, and with the power of not just the two of us, but seven, if not eight additional Servants, you are safe."

The youngest of the Gorgon sisters was not blind, far from it, and she could obviously see just how much Shirou and Rin cared for her Master, and vice versa.

The purple haired girl gripped the edges of her dress, "You of all people should know why... My grandfather is not easy to deal with."

"You underestimate my father, Master."

Mordred revealed herself in the room, her helmet unfolded.

Sakura glanced at the brutish blonde, "Saber..."

The Knight of Treachery smirked, "Well, just trust me, your shitty grandfather doesn't stand a chance against all of them."

The girl didn't look convinced at all, and Mordred sighed, "Look, I get it, he's been hurting you forever, but you can't let this go on! If anything, you should kill him!"

Sakura looked down, "I can't... I don't..."

The knight grumbled before grabbing Sakura's wrist, earning a yelp from the girl, "Look at this, you know what this is, yeah?"

Sakura looked at the back of her palm, where the six Command Spells rested, "..."

Mordred stared at her Master in the eye, "Command Spells, we are tied to you, Master. Our power is your own, not your shitty grandfather. If you even have the slightest thought of destroying him, we will do it, very very willingly."

The knight jerked her thumb at Medusa, "This tall bitch can turn anyone to stone, and I am confident I can take down this whole town in less than a minute with my Noble Phantasm. You are not weak, Sakura."

The purple haired girl let out a breath, "... I really appreciate the thought, Saber... But-"

"No buts! We are mauling that waste of space, got it?"

Mordred cut her off, a confident smirk on her face, and Sakura sighed, "...Fine..."

The knight let her hand go, a satisfied smirk on her face, "Good, now you need to get to school, right?"

Sakura nodded, "Yes, of course."

Mordred nodded, "Let us know when you're ready then."

With that said, the knight vanished into her astral form, and Medusa sighed, "That brutish knight..."

The Greek Servant regarded her Master, "Just don't be too hard on yourself, Sakura."

With that said, the taller Servant too disappeared into her astral form, leaving Sakura to change into her uniform.

Later, Shirou placed a few plates of English breakfast on the table, and he noticed the door slide open to reveal Sakura, "Good morning, Sakura."

The purple haired girl smiled, "Morning, Senpai."

Sakura looked at the seven kings at the table and smiled, "Morning."

The seven blondes returned the greeting, and Shirou sat down after placing a few more plates on the table, "Alright, breakfast's ready."

Sakura sighed, "You could've woken me up to help with breakfast."

Shirou chuckled sheepishly, "... I forgot."

The purple haired girl snorted, "You just wanted the kitchen to yourself."

Archer Artoria nodded, "Umu umu, I can totally see that."

The Lancer, Assassin and Berserker counterparts all nodded in agreement as they inhaled their food.

Mordred grumbled, "I get that he's a good chef, but why must I sit here too?"

Medusa hummed in satisfaction as she devoured the food at a considerably slower, but still fast pace, "Hmm... You didn't eat last night with what happened, so you won't understand."

The brutish knight scowled, "... Fine! I'll give it a fucking try!"

She scooped a spoonful of rice, shoving it into her mouth, before moving on to the fish and soup.

In less than a 5 minutes, the food before her was totally gone.

The knight of treachery gaped, before she snapped her head at Shirou, "You! You wanna be my head chef?!"

The redhead blinked, before he smiled awkwardly, "Ummm-"

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!"

Heroine X exploded, glaring at her 'son', "Shirou is MY- I mean OUR head chef!"

A brief not-so-subtle glare from X Alter got her to correct her sentence, to which the Berserker, along with all their counterparts, nodded in agreement.

Mordred blinked, "O-oh..."

She folded her arms, "W-well, if Father says so..."

The redhead chuckled forcefully, "Well, I can still cook for everyone, anyway..."

The red knight hummed, "I guess that's fine too..."

Sakura smiled in exasperation, "Thank you, Senpai, and sorry for having to trouble you more."

Shirou chuckled, "It's fine, I'm just happy everyone's enjoying the food."

Caster Artoria hummed as she devoured the mountain of food, or what remained of it, "Hmm."

The two Masters just smiled in amusement as they watched the nine Servants enjoy themselves.

Shirou then looked at the girl, "Speaking of which, Sakura, I think you should avoid leaving this compound for the time being."

Sakura blinked, "Eh?"

The redhead realized his wording came out a bit different, and he quickly waved his chopsticks in a frantic manner, "I didn't mean it in a bad way! But right now Caster's Bounded Field and Noble Phantasm is keeping Zouken's influence at bay. If you leave the house..."

The purple haired girl blinked again, before she smiled, "I see, so that's what you meant..."

Shirou nodded, "Yeah, I'll send Assassin to scout out Zouken, and once we're ready, we'll raid the Matou residence."

Sakura looked down at her plate, "I see... I'll stay here for the time being then."

She looked at the redhead, "But what about Fujimura-sensei? She'll get suspicious."

The redhead chuckled, "Ah, you won't need to worry about Fuji-nee. We can just make up an excuse."

Unknown to the purple haired girl, the yakuza/teacher had been pushing for Shirou to let Sakura stay over indefinitely ever since forever. He was pretty sure she wouldn't think of objecting regardless the reason.

Sakura hummed, "Okay, if you say so."

Shirou nodded, and the group quickly finished up their breakfast, before Shirou left for school.

As the redhead left the home, Sakura let out a sigh, before she put on a small smile as she turned towards Shirou's kitchen.

The girl knew the young man meant well, but that also gave her free reign over the kitchen, something that she was definitely going to take advantage of.

Meanwhile, as Heroine X, Archer Artoria, Rider Artoria and X Alter followed Shirou to school, the remaining of the seven Kings sat in the Emiya compound watching the garden area.

They had managed to find a small tatami table to sit on the wooden floor that led right to the garden.

In addition to the three kings, there was also another Servant with them.

Mordred sat there without her armor, a difficult expression on her face, "So, what did you want to talk about, Father?"

Lancer Artoria had called for the treachous knight, and thus the four found themselves seated around a small table on the wooden floor.

Caster Artoria smiled, "Considering we'll be fighting alongside each other for the time being, we thought it'd be beneficial if we talked things out."

Saber Artoria stayed silent, before sighing, "It is as my Caster self says, Mordred. I understand you have your fair amount of questions, now would be a good time to sort things out."

Mordred gaped, before she looked away, "I-I, I mean, it's not like its a big deal or anything! I can fight just fine!"

Lancer Artoria and Caster Artoria shared a knowing look, before the older king spoke up, "Then let us do the talking, I cannot speak for my younger self, but I do find merit in resolving our past issues, Mordred."

That caught the 'son' off guard, and she spluttered, "A-Alright..."

The busty king nodded, "Then first and foremost, we never acknowledged you as our child, simply because we didn't believe we deserved it."

That again caught her off guard, and Mordred blew up, "What do you mean you didn't deserve it?! YOU'RE MY FATHER! THAT IS THE TRUTH!"

Saber Artoria had a difficult expression on her face, while Caster Artoria pretty much saw that coming.

Lancer Artoria, however, simply took that in stride, "Ask yourself this, Mordred, when have I ever been a father to you? I did not raise you, Morgan did. I did not teach you the ways of a knight, nor did I have a hand in you becoming a Knight of the Round Table."

Mordred opened her mouth to speak, only to find no words coming out. She shook her head, before asking, "Then why didn't you just tell me?"

This time, Saber Artoria spoke up, "The circumstances did not allow it, and you assumed the worst, you assumed I hated you because of Morgan. I had my issues with my sister, but you are in no way involved in them."

The brutish blonde fell silent, "... I guess you do have a point..."

Lancer Artoria nodded, "And to reiterate, I did not give you the throne because I believed you wouldn't be fit to be king. You are a knight first and foremost, Mordred. Your code as a knight is admirable, but would not allow you to be king."

Mordred didn't know how to react to that, and Caster Artoria decided to elaborate, "Mordred, you always prioritized the innocents when defending, and prioritized mauling the enemy when attacking. You focused on many important details, but always failed to consider the larger picture. You followed your code everywhere, every time, regardless of the task."

Mordred frowned, "And why is that a bad thing? As long as we win, it's fine!"

Saber Artoria shook her head, "And that is why we didn't deem you fit to be king. The ends does not justify the means, Mordred. Everything matters."

The boastful blonde frowned, "... I see..."

Lancer Artoria nodded, "That is the case, we never hated you, Mordred. We simply didn't believe we were deserving of a son, or a parent-child relationship we did not earn."

The older king decided to add, "But well, I suppose I did at some point consider you an heir in terms of knighthood."

Mordred's eyes widened, "Wait... Are you serious?!"

Saber Artoria hummed, "I suppose that is true, in a way..."

Caster Artoria smiled, "Well, I suppose Assassin would have her own opinion of this."

The two counterparts nodded in agreement.

Lancer Artoria then felt the need to add, "And Mordred."

The boastful blonde blinked, "Yeah?"

The oldest version of the King of Knights narrowed her eyes, "Never ask Shirou to be your head chef ever again."

Mordred blinked in confusion, "O-okay?"

Lancer Artoria nodded, "Treat him as you would have Guinevere, I need not remind me what would happen if you did otherwise."

Their son's eyes widened, so much that Saber Artoria and Caster Artoria didn't know how to react at their older self's words.

Mordred's face blanked, before she closed her eyes, and spoke up, "I understand."

Lancer Artoria nodded, "Good, when this is over, before we leave this era, we will have a rematch. I suppose you deserve that much."

The son's face morphed into a smirk, "Bring it."

A short moment later, Mordred left to check on Sakura, and Saber Artoria glanced at her older counterpart, "Are you sure it is wise to have told Mordred to treat Shirou like..."

She trailed off, and Lancer Artoria raised an eyebrow, "Hmm, I don't follow."

The younger King of Knights did her best to put on a poker face, but her older self easily saw through it, "Mordred might misunderstand."

The busty king snorted, "What is there to misunderstand? I care a great deal for Shirou. He may not be the one I remember, but that matters not. I can assure you the same is for the rest of us."

She paused, before adding, "Though I cannot say the same for yourself and Caster."

Caster Artoria nodded, "Shirou is an important existence to all of us, that is a fact, but I personally do not have the same experiences as most of you. So I cannot say at this point."

Saber Artoria sighed, "Is that so?"

She shook her head, "Regardless, my wish for the Grail holds precedence. I will.. no, I must save Britain."

Lancer Artoria nodded, "Fair enough, but perhaps bring that up with our Master. I'm sure you would find that to be... enlightening."

The younger king didn't respond for a moment, before she looked over the garden, "I will consider it."

(Linebreak)

Meanwhile, inside the Matou residence, at the basement, Zouken smiled creepily, "So the son of the Magus Killer seeks to purge me."

Crest worms started to crawl out from his feet, all of them squeaking in response.

The squeaking grew louder, and louder.

Louder.

Until the entire basement was filled to the brim with Crest Worms.

But that didn't end there, as the squeaking too came from the sides of the basement where a few dozen cells were placed.

More Crest Worms emerged from those cells.

First came the small ones, the same ones that crawled out of Zouken's feet.

Then came the larger ones. Crest Worms as huge as a rhinoceros emerged from the cells, filling the basement to the brim.

Zouken chuckled darkly, "Come as you will, heir... no, the Second Magus Killer. Your Servants and my worms, which of us will come out the victor, I wonder."

XXX

DONE.

Omake- What if another Saber was summoned?

Arthur Pendragon (Prototype) Part 2

Arthur sat in the Emiya residence, opposite of seven very familiar blondes.

Rin sat beside him, while Archer preferred standing near the door.

As for Shirou, he was busy preparing dinner.

Arthur asked, "So, all of you are... me?"

Caster Artoria nodded, "Yes, King of Knights of another world. We are all the same existences."

The male Saber nodded, putting on his master poker face, "I see."

He closed his eyes, doing his best not to let his biases cloud his judgement. He honestly had half a mind to accuse them of being Merlin in disguise.

But he also knew Merlin couldn't traverse through the barriers of his own universe now that she had sent him over.

Of course, his gut told him otherwise, but after going through the logic of such magecraft, he decided to push that thought away.

Little did he know, that all seven of his counterparts had similar thoughts, except with the part of travelling through different dimensions.

Lancer Artoria looked at her male counterpart, "Speaking of which, I wonder, you have your own Merlin, do you not?"

Arthur made a complicated face, "Yes... You would be correct."

The busty blonde nodded, "How is he? Is he the same troublesome magus for you?"

The otherworldly king blinked, "Him? You mean her?"

The seven female kings blinked, "Eh?"

Arthur blinked again, "Eh?"

XXX

That's done.

I honestly have no idea how long it'll be till the next chapter, but I'll do my best.

The next ones will focus on dealing with Zouken, then we'll move on to Caster and Berserker.

So yeah, read and review please.

Until then.