As fun as dinner was, it was only the first stage of their sleepover, and Illya was just as excited about what was about to come. Of course, there would be an appropriately named "sleep" part, but before that, she and Sakura would have an opportunity to give in to their silly side. Illya had a pillow fight in mind, as well as a story hour where the two of them could share something funny or amusing that they could remember. With Issei going back to the temple and Taiga falling asleep very quickly, no one would disturb the two girls. They both went to Illya's room; there was a place for both of them to sleep. As expected, Illya ended up being more talkative while Sakura listened attentively, sometimes expressing her surprise.

"Really? There's such a large following for anime in Europe?" She said that after hearing Illya tell some stories,

"Yep! It's incredible! Some people are skeptical and say it's just cartoons, but a lot of them are getting into it."

"Do you have cosplayers, too?"

"A whole ton! People love to imagine themselves as all those characters with supernatural powers. It's really amusing. I did that a couple of times, too, only in my head, of course."

"Really?" Sakura raised her eyes.

"Why so surprised?"

"Well, it's just that you don't need to imagine yourself as anyone to be extraordinary, right? You're from a magus family already, so…We should be like those characters the people want to imagine themselves as." Sakura said with doubt in her voice, and Illya sighed. They both knew that no ordinary person would ever want to be like them if they knew a fraction of what they went through.

"It's just not the same. We're not powerful on our own; there are only a few actual magi like that left…All we can do is supply mana and perform some basic spells, hardly ideal." Illya said.

"Yeah…I sometimes imagined myself as a powerful mage. You know, the kind that can create and destroy anything they want? The one that controls all the elements and makes others respect them and their power…I was hoping I could become one with proper training, but I never did."

"Surely your grandfather could teach you a lot. He's one of those powerful magi that others fear, isn't he?"

"My grandfather is…He's very busy most of the time, and he doesn't have time or energy to teach me." Illya sensed unease in Sakura's voice the moment she talked about Zouken, something that she should've expected. Illya didn't have much time to think and decided to press further.

"He gave me the creeps when I met him, not someone I'd call friendly and caring…Does he treat you well, at least?" She asked a casual question, but those words were enough to incur an immediate emotional reaction in Sakura.

"Of course he does! My grandfather took care of me when no one else would; he raised me and taught me everything I know! I would never have had a family nor proper training without him!" She was quick to idealize him and protect him from criticism, even though it was obvious that Zouken was a monster who she was deathly afraid of. Illya felt an urge to respond, but she had to restrain herself. Zouken must have inflicted a lot of pain on Sakura to make her so subservient; it wasn't surprising at all.

"He still probably hides secrets from you…When we talked, he wasn't very happy about us being friends. Did he tell you that?"

"He…He is just very concerned for me; he doesn't have any other family members left, and he doesn't trust people easily…You can't blame him for keeping secrets when you do it yourself!" Sakura let out, making Illya pause and hesitate. She was right; Illya was never completely honest with her, and even if she rationalized it, it must have stung Sakura. "You didn't tell me that you were the vessel for the grail or that you knew about the Matou family…"

"I'm sorry, I just didn't think it was necessary. Not when we've put the Holy Grail War behind us." Illya responded though she couldn't help but switch her tone to a meeker one.

"It's not just that," Sakura said with some reluctance in her voice. "I think…I think you're still not telling me everything."

"What…What do you mean?" Illya did not sound convincing; she should have known that Sakura had realized the truth in some capacity, even if she had avoided talking about it.

"If you were there on your family's behalf, surely they wouldn't just use you as a vessel…You also would have to be a master." Sakura concluded. "Von Einzberns would want to make their bid in the Holy Grail War, and ever since I met you, I couldn't get rid of this feeling that unless there are more of their servants lurking in this town, that means it had to be you…Right?" She asked, forcing Illya to stay silent as she stared at Sakura, completely dumbfounded and uncertain of what to say. Moments later, the purple-haired girl looked away. "I'm sorry, I…I shouldn't have been so quick to judge and…"

"No, no…You're right." Illya admitted, once again focusing Sakura's attention on herself. "You're absolutely right, and I should've mentioned it earlier. I was in the war, and von Einzberns sent me to win it for them." She explained.

"So it's true…You were a part of it since the beginning."

"I was Berserker's master. The strongest servant is also the hardest one to control. My mentors trained me for years so I could be ready for this battle." Illya looked down somberly, feeling the echoing pain of additional magic circuits that they infused her body with, shortening the girl's lifespan and making her into a weapon.

"I see…That must have been very difficult."

"It was a very long and painful process, but von Einzberns would do anything for it to pay off."

"And what about you? Did they care at all?"

"Oh, you're funny…I was born and raised among the magi and learned early on that they never care. Not for people unlucky enough to become their pawns." Illya sighed and looked up at Sakura. "Those people were my masters, and Zouken seems very similar to them."

"He's…It's different." Sakura shook her head. "Please, I know why you're concerned, but there's genuinely…There's nothing to worry about!" She spoke out in what could be seen as desperation and even a plea for Illya to stop inquiring about this, and the white-haired girl didn't have it in her persist. "Were they angry with you? For losing the war?"

"I never talked to them since then, and they never tried to contact me…Guess they simply don't care. I'm useless to them now. Though I can't blame them for being angry. I might have shifted my priorities from theirs…Just a little bit." Illya giggled.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't mind telling you, but...Promise me you won't punch me." Illya said with a slightly guilty tone.

"Why would you ask for that? Of course, I won't; I'd never hit anyone."

"Alright, so...I might have been a little too focused on hunting down one single participant." Illya took a deep breath. "Shirou, I mean."

"What!?" Sakura gasped and recoiled in horror.

"You know Shirou was in the war, right? I'm sure you've seen Saber."

"Yes, of course I know, but...Why would you try to kill him? He wanted nothing to do with this war. It wasn't his fault that the grail dragged him into it!"

"Hey, I didn't say I wanted to kill him!" Illya pouted. "I just wanted to play with him a little...Maybe poke and prod him here and there."

"But why?"

"For the same reasons I'm saying to everyone else, he's a very interesting guy. He was so naive and idealistic, and he really cared for my safety and spent time with me in the park even when he knew I was his enemy. I guess a part of me wanted to see how far he would take it."

"That's why I hate this war...You all treat it like some kind of game or contest, but it wasn't like that for Shirou. It was a matter of saving people!" That and his growing love for Saber thought it would be rude and stupid to talk about it in front of Sakura, considering her own feelings.

"And he did a great job with it!" Illya said with pride in her voice. "Yes, I admit that this got a little unpleasant sometimes, and I wasn't very responsible, like that time near the church or when I nearly caught him at that skyscraper in the center…We made peace with each other and now share nothing but respect! Isn't that great?"

"Wait…" Sakura spoke with a shivering voice and looked at Illya with immediate suspicion. "Did you say skyscraper?"

"Ugh…Yeah?" Illya was puzzled, why would Sakura choose to suddenly focus on this? "Surely you saw it, it really stands out."

"Yeah, I know which one you mean…Just wasn't sure."

"What I meant is, there's no bad blood left between me and Shirou. He extended a hand to me even after we fought a few times; I can't just want to hurt him after all that; I'm not that much of a monster!" Illya said with confidence, noticing that Sakura's expression finally became that of ease. "If anything, we're much more likely to come to each other's defense if anything bad happens."

"I believe you, it's just…I tried not to think about how much Shirou didn't tell me."

"I'm sure he just wanted to protect you. Those days were crazy for all of us."

"You're right…" Sakura sighed and looked down, but her sadness didn't persist for very long. Eventually, Illya jumped towards her and gave Sakura a warm embrace.

"Don't worry, it's all going to be alright. I'll make up to both you and Shirou, I promise." At first, Sakura was slightly puzzled, but she gave in and relaxed, returning Illya's hug.

"You don't have to make up for it. If Shirou forgave you, I do, too."

"I have a couple of ideas in mind already, so don't worry about it too much…Heh." Illya gave a nervous chuckle as her tone of confidence eroded. She still wondered about the skyscraper and why Sakura singled this detail out, but soon it hit her, and Illya silently cursed herself for not thinking before uttering words. After all, Sakura's brother was also there.

This was where Illya left his corpse.