A/N: I want to do this as fast as possible, but my mind won't go in overdrive as expected. Real life is not exactly catering to my tastes either as I have to apply for another job to sustain the internet, cable and water bills at least.

Still, I thank the Lord for letting me release a chapter again. I don't want to go to another hiatus just because my job's in the way of my creativity.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything and everything stated in this chapter, or the whole fanfiction for that matter. Credits go to Hiro Mashima for Fairy Tail and Kinoko Nasu and his associates for the TYPE MOON works of Fate/Stay Night, Tsukihime and Kagetsu Tohya.

Chapter 18: Of Lilies and Siblings

Day 3: Afternoon

It is an impossibility never meant to happen.

But Emiya Shirou tries to process who he is seeing as of now.

The child and the woman are one and the same, but he cannot comprehend how this happened to them. Seeing as the lad is understandably confused about her circumstances, the girl is the first to break the ice.

She failed in the subtlety department though, for her subtleness rivals a large ball slamming in a player's face.

"As expected from the one who saw my history through my Noble Phantasm." She genuinely applauded as the boy cannot believe his eyes. Yet here she is. An existence not meant to appear in this world has appeared again. She can only give a slightly puzzled look as he still processes his thoughts.

"No, it's wrong for me to say it that way. I can say that you are the only one capable of discerning my identity through my Noble Phantasm." She corrected herself without a care in the world, as if the war never existed in the first place. "I can teach you the whole nine yards if not for the fact that this is a Holy Grail War."

"B…but…" Shirou can only utter these words in disbelief as the maiden casually waves off her hand.

"Believe me, you're not the only one surprised at our encounter." She replied with the cheerfulness of a child. "I'm supposed to be dead, but someone summoned me into this world again."

He can only laugh miserably at their circumstances. He knows that she will still die, but a part of him is happy that he saw her again.

With concern in her voice, Caster now approached the boy. She now hugged him the way friends have not seen each other for a really long time.

"I'm afraid to tell you of my plans at first." Her voice is almost faltering like a glass piece about to be shattered. "But now, I can say with confidence of what I am about to do. You are the only person that I can trust my life with."

"Wait…" the boy is now afraid of what she is about to say. Even though she is a Servant not meant to be in this world in the first place, he admits that he now sees her as his friend. "You don't mean…"

"It's the only way." She now pleaded in earnest, still gazing directly at his eyes, to which the boy shakes his head in disapproval. "Please, you must do this for me."

The boy stood frozen for a few seconds, but to him, those seconds felt like hours for him. He cannot sacrifice a life again, not while he is still living in this world. As long as he sees someone needing help, he must not turn a blind eye away from that circumstance.

And so, he can only give one answer to the Servant who requested her own demise.

"N…no, I can't…" The boy still refused, to which the lady slowly frowned upon learning of his decision.

"You know as well as I that I am a Servant." She reiterated, to which the lad can only try to deny that bitter truth. He knows that she is a Servant, yet for her to die twice, and by his hands for the second time is just plain cruel in his view.

"But why, Caster?" He now asked in confusion. "I can still give you a chance for you to be saved!"

"You can't save me, boy." She now announced in a stern voice. "You cannot always live your life like that. You have a better future than me. You of all people do realize that."

That's it. She has nailed the final nail in the coffin. No matter what he does, the fact that she is right will remain there. His fundamental belief is about to be shaken by that circumstance alone. He tries to fight against that contradiction in his beliefs, but Caster only proved her point even more.

"I…I can't help it, Caster…" He chuckled bitterly. "You're right, I am a person who is senseless enough to neglect my well – being. But it doesn't mean that I don't have to fight that contradiction."

Caster's eyes went wide in disbelief. But then, she can only laugh hopelessly at the boy who firmly decided to spare her life before that great fight can even begin.

"Know well that I may have to kill you the next time we meet." Caster warned him as they crossed paths, to which the boy can only bitterly smile at that circumstance.

"And you know that it doesn't have to be this way." He retorted, to which Caster can only sigh at the naivety of the boy.

Their friendly meeting is stopped suddenly by the arrival of someone who stands by her post for a long time. Caster can only narrow their eyes on the newcomer, while the lad can only wonder why she is here. But for now, they can only mutter one word.

"Rider…"

"It's nice to see you here again, Caster…" She landed gracefully on the ground, her feet ever careful not to make a single heavy mark. "And I take it that you are out of harm's way as of now, Shiro."

"Rider, how nice to see you again." The lady began, although it comes off to the one who interrupted the moment as a sarcastic remark. "I sincerely hoped that we can be friends."

Under the visor that she has, she can only glare at that person. She only curled up her hands into fists the more that she hears her voice.

"Spill out your plans for the boy, infamous Witch of Colchis." She now warned the accused. "Depending on what you say right here and now, I may have an option to take your life right then and there."

"Look who's now talking as if they are here in the first place." The princess insinuated as she played with the ends of her scarf. "I'm just having a friendly talk with him. You really should loosen yourself up once in a while, Medusa."

The mentioned person is taken aback at that statement. But then, her visor should give away her identity almost immediately.

Meanwhile, the boy is also taken aback at what Medea has said about the true identity of Rider. What he hears of the description of the person of the legends is now a misconception.

The Gorgon can only sigh at her identity being revealed casually like this. She prepared her weapons for the fight of her life.

"Then I have no choice but to slay you right this instant." She sported a feral smile and a predatory stance as Caster smiled with the innocence of a child.

"Just in time to test my new body of my actual limits with that man in charge" She replied as she removed her scarf, releasing a massive gust in an explosive manner that can guarantee the weak of stead to be blown away by that sheer force alone.

All the while the lad can only look at the back of the one who talked to him.

"RUN, FOOL!" She shouted with a commanding voice, still facing her opponent, as the boy makes his way out. But it is before this moment that he can swear that he saw the fight escalated to levels that he has never seen before up close.

A fight between Servants.

It is an ominous foreboding, at the same time filling the boy with sheer amazement at what they can do to the point that he can just sit by the sidelines and eat popcorn while they are actually at it.

Except that the sight is not meant to be a spectacle in the first place as debris began to fly out of their ranges and into the boy's direction. To which he promptly followed the girl's almost overwhelming command unbecoming of a child's.

All the while the two ladies exchange blows, never minding the destruction that they wreak along their way.

Nails against staff. Chains against magic.

Fist against fist?

The moment that Rider broke her staff in three places with clever use of her nail and chain, Caster unleashed the potential of her spell by using an unthinkable method even to herself.

"Atlas…"

She chanted the spell for binding to link the broken pieces of her treasured staff together, distracting Rider with the sound of her staff binding itself, before Rider realized that something came off of her person as Caster punched her face with her thrice – reinforced fist with magic enhancements.

"This…could be bad…" Rider can only mutter as she closed her eyes.

With the visor now gone from Rider's face, Caster can only close her eyes. Caster knew what it meant, and so she can only serve as an echo to what Rider said earlier.

Rider opened one of her eyes, and that alone sent danger signals all over Caster's body. Good thing she has reinforced every part of her body as she held the newly – repaired staff.

Anyone who has heard of the legend of Medusa will find it appropriate to run away from her range of sight, before they will turn into stone. But Caster has a nasty trick up her sleeve, and Rider knew as well as her that that trick can send her helpless for the rest of the war.

If she can survive this war, that is.

For the trick to not happen on Caster's watch, she only opened one of her eyes. It should be enough to disable Caster just enough for her to deal the killing blow. And it almost succeeded, as Caster is now closing her eyes to avoid Rider's.

This is her chance. Her first kill. Her first victory. But she made one crucial mistake as she charged forward to Caster's place.

She did not count in on another Servant coming to Caster's aid.

Abandoning Presence Concealment, he now threw a Dirk in Rider's way just enough for her to be distracted. But then, one look at the supposed savior and she realized that the nameless masked and cloaked person is not actually saving Caster, as he brought out another knife going in for the kill on Caster.

She then shifted her stance and charged for the cloaked Servant instead, surprising the one who distracted her in the first place. Their weapons clashed in a violent manner, even more so for the cloaked Servant as he is supposed to be in the Assassin class.

"So the legend of the Old Man of the Mountain still stays true to its core…" She quipped in an emotionless manner. "But then, I never expected for this one to be this strong."

"ComPLIMeNT…AcCepTED!" He replied as he threw Rider off of her balance, but to his shame, she came back by slamming the tip of the nail on the ground to restore her balance, then using it as a pivot to deliver a roundhouse kick.

It proved to be successful, for his body is now slamming through the forest, clearing the place of all trees. Rider now faced Caster, who is adjusting her stance for another fight.

"It seems that we must work together to finish him." Rider suggested, still closing her eyes, to which Caster can only laugh. "After that, we can continue our fight".

"Distasteful as it may seem, but I'll be in your care, Rider". Caster replied nonchalantly as she prepared her disjointed staff and stared ahead, being wary of the newcomer. "Seems that this one's better too, although I disrespected my craft."

"If it makes you feel better, this one's not a Noble Phantasm." Rider quipped as she prepared her weapons.

"Your mount is one, though." Caster quipped, to which Rider let out a small laugh.

"Not the actual mount though." Rider replied in slight remorse. "I basically forced that one to obey with the actual Noble Phantasm."

Caster can only let out a sigh as she remembered the Gorgon's legend. "The Phantasmal Beast is still inside you, isn't it?"

"I'm trying to get an opportunity to use that against my Master, but I fear that my real Master would not like that thought to pass." She sighed at her own plight. "She's too good for this bloodbath."

"Ah, she must be a really good lady for you to earn her respect." She complimented, to which Rider can only heave another sigh. Caster then tilted her head as to what it meant, to which it is answered by Rider.

"She is basically forced to become a monster." She revealed, to Caster's astonishment. "She is never meant to be one, but the repeated abuse on her for them to achieve their so – called Root forced her to become one. She functions like a human, sure. But give her sufficient time to be ripe enough, and she will go on a rampage that even we Servants cannot stop."

"In other words, they doom themselves." Caster scoffed at the realization. "We are really foolish, that until now we human beings still play with the human body and psyche just to bring about 'satisfactory' results."

"You did not include me in that one." Rider quipped in disappointment, to which Caster teased her once more.

"You're a goddess." She replied as she tested the durability of her staff once again by tapping through the parts of her staff jointed by her Magecraft. "It's appropriate for us humans to huddle together and stay away from the business of the gods."

"Says the one with elfin ears." Rider quipped, to which Caster appropriately hid it with her other end of the scarf.

"Now that's just plain insulting." Caster deadpanned.

But then, their banter will have to wait, for they felt a strong gust of wind coming their way. Rider picked up her nails and chain while observing her environment with her hearing, smell and touch. Caster can only pout at that strategy.

"You can use your eyes." She suggested, to which it is promptly refused by Rider.

"I don't want my temporary ally to turn to stone just yet." Rider replied as she felt another gust of wind.

Caster can only wait like a sitting duck as she prepares for a suicide maneuver. But she is surprised by what Rider said next.

"On second thought, I will have to take that suggestion." Rider quipped as she throws the visor to Caster. She promptly catches it and she can only close her eyes and wear that visor as Rider opened hers.

And from there, the Servant of the Dagger began to feel the effects of the jewel – colored eyes of Rider. He is promptly brought to his knees as she approaches him. Only the wind can save him now, to which the Servant of Riding will not have any of that as opportunities.

She closed every option available to the ebony – cloaked man as she approaches him. But there is one thing that she did not expect.

Slamming his Dirk into the ground and putting himself in a kneeling position, he released the devil's arm in full view of them. He then created a replica of the heart of the one in front of him. Rider can only wait for her death as she recognized the heart as hers.

"NoW I…CaN eAT…YoU!" He boasted as he now crushed the ether heart.

…Or so he thought.

For Caster's words are faster than the Assassin can ever crush it. Before he knew it, the supposed heart that he crushed is not having any effect on Rider, who continued her charge as soon as she sees the opportunity to do so. With that event happening, she has successfully driven him away from them.

Knowing certain defeat, he once again retreated to the shadows, but not before a mighty gust of wind overtakes the both of them, leaving Caster unconscious and Rider nowhere to be found.

Day 3: Evening

Treating themselves to a simple feast is such a delight.

From the delicately grilled steaming hot fish marinated in mirin, light soy sauce and garlic overnight, to stir – fried vegetables containing red and green bell peppers cut into strips, shiitake mushrooms cut into strips, string beans, thinly sliced turnip and carrot strips lightly doused with leftover pork stock to add just the right amount of flavor, to the creamy sweet panacotta with a little syrup of salted caramel, this is a simple man's delight that he can manage on a simple budget that he has.

Adding the almost bitter and warm green tea to complement the cold weather and dessert and it serves as a paradise to the house that they have.

And this is what Mirajane, Assassin and one of the Tamamo Nine are eating right now.

"This simplicity is rather nostalgic." The familiar smiled softly as they eat the meal. "I'm looking forward to have you as my personal chef."

Mirajane can only laugh in a jittery manner knowing that the familiar may never joke on this line anymore. Assassin can only sip the tea in a calm manner as they let the peace settle in their household.

She saw someone.

Someone holding a sword.

A pitch black sword, unknown to her, but she has a feeling that she has seen this sword before.

That sword is about to go on her head. Strangely, she felt that she can only accept her fate. She is confident that she has done what no one has ever done, and she will leave this world with no regrets.

But miraculously, she deflected the sword.

But she asks herself…

With what, exactly?

To her horror, she saw that she is holding the exact same sword as the one who wields it. How she can wield it with one hand is out of her comprehension. She can swear that she saw the azure eyes glowing back at her. And the form is slowly appearing from the shadows.

And from there, she saw…

"Assassin…" Mirajane called her out in the brightness of the night. Assassin is startled as she saw Mirajane. Assassins are never meant to be startled at such a light rustle, but then again, this is her Master.

"W…what are you doing at this time of night?" Assassin almost trembled. "I might have killed you at the slight shuffling of your feet."

"The fact that you did not even hear me after calling out to you three times is proof that you have sublimated yourself to the teachings completely." Mirajane smiled as she pointed at what Assassin holds right now. "And I think I might need an explanation for that formless object over there…"

Assassin looked at her left hand, and she saw that she is holding something like a baseball bat. She flustered at the thought of playing games and made the form disappear from her hands.

"I think it is the result of my meditative phase." She replied off – handedly. "Sometimes we can form weapons using the shadows. Sometimes we make the weapons by hand. Others like my friend have gone to extremes to have a miracle that can show our faith and dedication to our religion."

She then played with the Dirk idly as she spun it around and making it disappear in the shadows after she has finished her explanation. Mirajane can only observe her body language as she ascertains for certain doubts. Fortunately enough, she saw some points of strength from her.

"Just remember that I am always here, sticking with you through thick and thin. You are my Servant after all." Mirajane said with a smile on her face as Assassin humbly bowed down.

"I look forward to the completion of our work, Mirajane Strauss." Assassin humbly replied.

With the circumstances that they are in, the threads are closing in to let them meet each other. Slowly, the gears are turning as they slowly discover the mystery of the war starting fifty years earlier than expected.

Or as one man would say, these circumstances are what he can call "contrived circumstances".

Day 3: Evening

The heiress of the Einzbern craft can't sleep.

Sure, she is conditioned by their weather and the training that she underwent to forgo sleep, but this is one of her rarest days where she can't sleep because of a puzzle that even she can't solve.

But then, the Holy Grail War requires a Master's wits not just in battle, but in constant misdirection of the enemy and the ability for his or her abilities to not be seen in public. She said herself that she is ready for the Holy Grail War to commence, but then she is not ready on what she saw and will see.

And she's definitely not ready to see how much the cluster of messes lying around like landmines.

The difference between the gaps of the former wars and today should give away the answer, but then she chose to blind herself from the truth gaping wide open for her to explore.

Until she saw a scribbled writing on the back of a page on one of the files of her father.

It looks like an incantation or a spell, but then the letters are all wrong, as if the letters are distorted in the first place. Sure, she can recognize the I's in the letters, but the rest look like nonsense for her.

The first line contains the letters written in what she figures as a mirror handwriting style. A popular misconception of this kind of handwriting is that the writings are used to guard mystical secrets.

But the real reason why the style of handwriting is being conceived is because the writer has to save space for his other sketches and that the writer particularly has hard time writing with his left hand whenever he writes on the right side of the page.

But then, in this case, it is a secret that only Illyasviel von Einzbern, the daughter of Emiya Kiritsugu, can only crack open with her mind.

The message that the mirrored scribble says as she took out a small reflective object and read the message is this:

IRIEICIAIVIOIRITIAICI.

"Sure, Kiritsugu, I'll play with your charade for now." Illyasviel chuckled in an innocent manner. "But I'll still kill your son. This one won't change everything. Not even Mirajane Strauss can change my mind on this."

She now began the cracking of the coded message.

IRIEICIAIVIOIRITIAICI.

It still doesn't make sense to her, unless she removes the excess letters. All the while, her maid Leysritt stood watch. Not a single word is spoken as her master uncovers the coded writing bit by bit.

After minutes of trying to figure out the letters, she slowly realized something that she should have realized a long time ago.

Magi keep their own research secret; therefore, the results of those achievements are called "mysteries". But then, if she takes the term for a more common human use, it means that she has to unravel it first to make it known to the world.

…Wait…

"Is this how Kiritsugu defeats all of his opponents?"

She became more curious as she continues to decipher the message and scribbling the possibilities on a paper sheet that she found under her drawer. It should have been clear to her, as she inherited the wits of her father, but her emotional instability tends to let her overlook some of the words.

And so, this is what she has decoded off based on the scribble.

AV, REVOIR, IRI, IRIA, VOCAR, REVOCATIR, TIER, TIRE, VOCE, TIERRA, IRE, CRAVE, RATE, AVARICE, TERRA...

The list can go on and on as long as she splits the words this way. It still doesn't make sense for her, as if she must remove a key letter.

And on that note, upon thinking further, she realized that the letter "I" is not a letter at all. It serves its purpose as a bar to separate the letters. If she removed each and every one of those letters, it would give her this result:

RECAVORTAC.

It still doesn't make sense, but if she wants to really unravel the secret, she must keep going with the scribble. Leysritt then handed her a book from the library, as if she is trying to help her. Illya then looked up to her maidservant, who only nodded without a word and left.

The snow haired princess now looked on the book that Leysritt gave her. It will make sense for her to give her a dictionary just in case she noticed that she is trying to decipher a code, but then the book that she gave her doesn't even make more sense.

"Divina Commedia, by Dante Alighieri."

A book with illustrations of Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven, divided into Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso, respectively. And for the record, the book's story is not an actual comedy. This is a story about the author who tries to find his ideal love of his life by traversing through these three levels.

The Catholic Church was inspired by Dante's work to the point that they even integrated it into their teachings, leading the masses to fear for their status on their religion.

Therefore, the word "comedy" translates in Dante's time to "literature for the masses".

Wait a minute, why is she thinking all of this? Could her maidservant be a fan of those works?

She can only shake her head as she imagines Leysritt wandering to a museum, those works in front of Leys' eyes, deciphering codes like she is some sort of semantics expert on her way to discover trails to the Holy Grail, realizing that all along she is not discovering the actual object, but rather discovers an ancient secret that can shock the whole world over.

Going back to the book, she noticed that the language of the contents is not in English, leading her to wonder how many languages her father really knows.

Or in this case, how many languages her father did not know.

She paused and heaved a sigh before going back to the code again.

RECAVORTAC.

Unless she is reading it wrong, the whole word may be on backwards. She then flipped the word over, then it gave her this result.

CATROVACER.

On instinct, she flipped the letters, leading her to this word:

CERCATROVA.

Wait, why is she solving all of this in the first place? She should be planning for the next days of the Holy Grail War, not solving puzzles at a time like…

…this?

She should have known all along. Breaking Bounded Fields of Magi is her father's specialty. That serves as fuel to the proverbial fire of the Magi in the first place. This is one of the reasons why the Einzbern patriarch, and consequently his homunculi, is too incensed with her father's methods.

Breaking the code is akin to breaking the Bounded Field of Magi. Her father uses some solutions that looks like modern to them, but are actually simple solutions to breaking the Fields. He of all people knows that Magi do not make mistakes in setting up the perfect Bounded Field for their workshops.

As a Magus, that is.

Going back to the code, she is now treating herself to the surprise of her life as she now splits up and looks up at the combinations one by one.

CER CATROVA, CERCA TROVA, CERCATRO VA.

Only three possibilities appear in her head, but only one of these has the correct split in words.

Seek, and you shall find…

Illya turned her head around, only to find that no one is there. She should really get a good night's sleep to ward off certain auditory hallucinations and get back to focus on the strategies that she must employ during the Holy Grail War.

At this point, there is no turning back. In this moment, in the fleeting seconds of elation, Illyasviel von Einzbern slowly discovers her father's methods, and his message at the same time. In this code, he shows actual concern for the welfare of the Einzbern family, as opposed to what her grandfather has said about him.

But then, at the same time, emotional and logical conflict sets in. So many questions left unanswered, yet if those are revealed, it may lead to even more questions than answers. Going back to what they have discovered so far…

And too bad she has forgotten about it, for her mind is too preoccupied with eliminating the last line of the Emiya, and at the same time eliminating the wildcard that dared to stand toe to toe with Berserker.

Even more so with this message that sends her decisions further into conflict and Matou Zouken now having two Servants, this is a giant cluster of bombs that she dares not to play with it, even touch it.

She can only close her eyes as Berserker looks on. His golden eyes are slightly mellowing on that single paper that his Master holds. It is a convoluted message from her father, but it is a message from her father nonetheless.

The bad thing about this message is that it is aimed as an informative document for the Einzbern clan to discover, not for his daughter to play with it.

And so, she can only laugh at this poor attempt.

"It is as Sella just said." She smiled in a fickle manner. "He cannot convince the Einzbern with this pathetic excuse of a document. And now that I have discovered this, it will be even more wrong for him to hope that it will be safe in the right hands."

Day 3: Evening

As Caster and Rider are talking, they noticed that they are approaching the same house that they are in – the house of the Matou.

Caster can only sigh at the predicament. She now asked Rider on what to do about it, but it seems that Rider is also at a loss. She can only close her eyes in deep stress, knowing only now that Rider acts as a youngest sibling at times whenever she looks up to someone.

It can be even more ironic since their ages are almost the same, but their heights are different, making Rider look more mature than her.

And that is not mentioning of Caster's own status as a mother.

"You go on ahead, and I'll follow." Caster now instructed Rider. "My Master is the old man that lives there, so I'll try to gather as much information as I can to know more of your circumstances, and hopefully let the lady be released from his clutches."

"Much appreciated, Caster, but what about you?" Rider asked with concern. "You might get eaten by that beast that we fought earlier."

"That is my Master's Servant too." She replied off – handedly, sending Rider in a surprise. "He can't do anything about me, since my Master only gauged on what I can really do in battle. I can trust you that you can keep secrets about this though."

Rider closed her mouth, nodding in agreement.

"Don't worry about the little things." Caster assured her. "I cut off my link to him for a short while, and from the moment that we are beginning to be allies, I already cut loose the Shared Perception, masking it as me getting unconscious. Familiars saw it too, so I assumed that they fell for the bait as soon as those animals left."

She then tapped on the invisible space, to which Rider noticed the water – like Bounded Field around them.

"Second layer of defense, in case familiars can detect my smell, hear me or see me." She boasted as she lets Rider be amazed at what she can do. "Maybe the inner child in me cannot resist playing with what humanity calls 'Magecraft'."

Rider smiled at her, to which Caster sees it in a weird light.

"Please don't tell me to become your older sibling." Caster berated, to which Rider showed a side of her never seen by Caster before. "You might miss your older sisters, but please don't let me be their replacement. I can only help you this far."

Rider sighed in disappointment, to which Caster can only pop a vein on her forehead in annoyance.

"I know that this is getting unnatural, but I can't help it." Rider replied in all honesty. "I just wish that we can get along together."

Caster can only laugh at Rider's childishness. Rider can't help but laugh together with her.

"And here I thought I'm the child here." Caster quipped as she is undoing the runes one by one to let only Rider released from the Bounded Field that she has made, masking Caster's own prana signature along with it. "But then again, this is a war. Anything can happen, from betrayal to friendship."

Caster noticed that she ended her sentence on a positive note instead of a negative note. She can only shake her head on realizing that thought as it is unfit for her to think of such things. Rider smiled warmly upon seeing the Princess of Colchis musing upon her own optimistic thoughts unlike of her older self that has become a witch.

But then again, this can only be the product of being summoned in a time farther than Caster's own legend. As a result, her healing powers are greatly enhanced, as evidenced by her Noble Phantasm of Golden Fleece.

To which it poses a theory for Rider.

If Matou Zouken can summon a being in her younger years, with a set of abilities that can aid the Master in recovering his youth, it is a frightening possibility that she can let Matou Zouken fight at his full power as one of the Founders of Heaven's Feel.

As Rider is approaching the front door of the Matou Manor, she saw Shinji impatiently waiting for her.

"Where on earth have you gone to, Servant?" He asked insinuatingly as he approached his Servant. Rider can only speak about what happened, glossing over the fact that she has made a temporary alliance to his grandfather's Servant.

"Just now, I met Caster." She replied, as Matou Shinji slapped her face with the back of his hand. He relished his dominance over his Servant before he replied.

"Don't give me that nonsense." Matou Shinji asserted as he holds the book with the three Command Seals. Rider thought that she is now found out.

Of all days that her Master has to be perceptive, it has to be today.

"You're just finding an excuse to see Emiya! You thought that you can ask for his help!" The lad ranted on as he stamped on the ground in anger. Rider held back her sigh of relief as her face only showed emptiness in emotion.

"I can assure you that with only a few nudges, we can control the boy in our hands." Rider assured her Master, but then the lad can't take much of those betrayals anymore.

"You have done enough Rider." He quipped with finality. "Now kneel with your head to the ground."

The Seals lighted up with an ominous light as Rider is forced to kneel in front of her Master, who then proceeded to kick her head. She can only bear the abuse that her Master gives her, as long as she sees Sakura being safe from his hands.

He then spits on the ground as he finished his job.

"From now on, I'll watch your every move." Matou Shinji warned her. "If I ever see your shadow lingering on Emiya, know that I will be there to drag you out of there and give you your deserved punishment."

He then went back to the manor, to which Rider can only stand watch for the night. Knowing that Assassin might still be in the midst of their manor, she can only wash her face on the muddy fountain to nurse her own wounds.

After all, Matou Zouken must not find out that Caster is helping her.

The lady residing in the manor saw all of those scenes, and she can only feel sorry for her. But then, she knows that she is a Servant, and Servants are summoned to fight for the Holy Grail War.

She can never participate in that bloodbath, but with Emiya Shirou having Saber in his house, she can only feel sadness that her senpai is included in such bloodbath.

She can only go to her bed, hug her pillow…

And nurse all those feelings for her senpai all by herself.

Counting minutes before coming in to the mansion, Caster then removed the Bounded Field. She walked as fast as she can to the mansion where the old man lived.

It is a good thing that his grandson is not there to meet her, but the prospect of seeing the old man made her cautious enough to make her place measures before she released the Bounded Field just in case.

As if her hunch is right, as she is about to enter the mansion, she saw Matou Zouken eagerly waiting for her arrival. The malevolence is already making her sick to the bone even though he still appears as an old man.

It is a given that she has that feeling due to her aptitude in Magecraft, but then what makes her sick even more is the fact that even his moral standing is still questionable even with him not being a Magus. Meeting the lady and the lad that Rider mentioned earlier is proof in itself of his regard with his grandchildren.

Or as described by the Matou ancestor, apprentices to the Matou Magecraft.

"And here I thought you have betrayed me, Medea." Zouken replied in an uncharacteristically cheerful manner. "Assassin is eager to eat you for your reserves, but it seems that my greatest fear is unfounded after all."

"Of course." Caster replied in a deadpan tone as she passed by him. "I must at least give my gratitude to the one who let me live a second time."

"Your skills are pretty good for a Caster class." The old man observed in a cold tone. "Though I might say that some of your skills are unheard of in a Caster Class."

"Like infusing prana in physical attacks?" Caster replied as they now went inside the manor. "Please don't assume that infusing prana in physical attacks are only limited in Knight Classes. I also can learn new tricks as I try to fight. Besides…"

She showed her healing abilities by putting a hand on her bruised areas and healing those same areas within seconds. Matou Zouken can only observe her skills with cold eyes.

"A person that can heal himself during a battle where others fail to do so, let alone cope up, is the same as saying that victory is in our hands now." Caster concluded, her cold eyes meeting his as they crossed paths and go down the basement.

As she changed her focus on the basement, she noticed that the floor is already cleared off of the vile creatures, presumably to prepare for something.

Zouken can only ponder and nod his head in agreement. The old man of the manor then proceeded to make his way ahead of Caster and walked to get himself a chair. He then prepared it in the middle of the basement floor. Caster can only narrow her eyes as she understood the plan of her Master.

"You know of my regenerative abilities, correct?" Zouken asked her as Caster approaches him. Caster replied without mincing any of her words.

"How to describe this one?" Caster began as she draws a Greek Thaumaturgical Circle around her Master with her staff. "I can only describe your methods as a perversion to the original purpose of the King of Magic for creating Magecraft."

"A perversion for his methods, indeed." He replied honestly, seeing that Caster showed no mercy in describing his Craft as Caster is in the middle of drawing the circle. "But you have to admit that it is nonetheless effective."

"And that is why I am rectifying your way bit by bit." Caster deadpanned as she wrote the Greek letters along the circle. "If you want to live longer, you might as well go for the whole package. I'll do it in a way that not even your grandson notices it until it is time for you to enact your so – called grand plan."

"Time – sustained healing process. Not even the Nuada clan had come this far in their craft." Zouken deduced as he observed her methods of healing. "Only other one I ever knew who is working on a topic of sustaining process is Emiya Norikata, and even then, his time sustaining Magecraft can only let him go that far."

This is where he realizes how extensive Caster's knowledge is when it comes to his plans.

"And now you have known of my diversion." Zouken acknowledged as he savors the prana around him. "Good thing I have kept you on a really short leash."

Zouken laughed heartily as she began the gradual healing process.

If both of you are really meant to be together in that paradise, both of you will make a way to overcome every obstacle that will come your way. Caster mused as her mind still selectively blocks the Shared Perception of her Master using her own Bounded Field being set up in her mind while putting Zouken in a state of rest – a time where Shared Perception is at its strongest. This trial is on a level that I believe that Heracles can easily overcome with his bare hands. Defeating this obstacle is the same as saying that both of you already know what lies ahead.

A/N: Whew, what a chapter!

As I release this, I am now starting on the chapters of both series. Here's to hoping my sore eyes won't get in the way of my writing.

Thanking the Lord for being with me and everybody as I write this.

Please rate and review.