"Big sister, thank you."
As she spoke, the girl before them bowed deeply to the two women.
She was as delicate and beautiful as any girl her age, as though all the affection in the world had been poured upon her.
Her black hair hung down her back, and the gaze she cast at Satsuki and the 'amnesiac' Angra Mainyu was filled with the purest of emotions—confusion.
Because she did not know the two beauties before her at all, nor did she understand why she should thank them. But—since her uncle told her to do so, she followed.
Sakura Matou, this girl's original life path was twisted and tragic, but now she had been completely freed from that hell.
"Thank you… thank you both." Standing beside Sakura, Kariya Matou spoke with sincere gratitude toward Angra Mainyu: "I know true grace cannot be repaid with mere words. Once I settle Sakura and finish that matter, my life will belong to you both."
"There's no need. The best thing you can do is live well. After enduring so much pain and torment, haven't you realized what's truly most important in your life?"
Angra Mainyu had already spoken with him and naturally understood that the little girl was not originally of the Matou family, but the second daughter of the Tohsaka family adopted there.
"It's no longer possible for her to return to her original home. This child still needs your care."
Hearing this, Kariya's expression turned conflicted. He could not let go of this child, nor could he let go of his resentment toward Tokiomi Tohsaka: that man stole away the woman he loved most, and then cast her aside like trash for the sake of the Holy Grail War. In Kariya's eyes, such actions mocked his life, treating it as worthless garbage.
Of course, Kariya did not care how he himself was treated, but once it involved Aoi and her daughters, his feelings as a man—responsibility, anger, jealousy, resentment, and inferiority—all surged together into a powerful obsession.
—It was all Tokiomi's fault!
To oppose such an obsession, only Aoi and her daughters could serve as the key. To change Kariya's heart, one had to begin with Sakura Matou.
"Iphis, take Sakura out to play for a while. I need to speak with him."
"Eh?" Angra Mainyu froze for a moment before realizing she was being addressed, then nodded. "Alright, I'll wait outside with Sakura."
She picked up Sakura, gently caressed her cheek, and happily walked out.
Once the room was left with only the two of them, Satsuki spoke directly: "Without activating the crest worms and your magical circuits, you might live for another year or two. During that time, stay with Sakura. Also, wait for Aoi's other daughter."
"What?!"
Kariya looked at Satsuki in shock. "What do you mean by that?"
"It's simple. My eyes can partially see through the past and future—you already know this." The golden Tenseigan in Satsuki's eyes rotated slowly. "You won't need to act. Tokiomi Tohsaka will die in this Holy Grail War. At that time, Aoi, Rin, and Sakura will all need a man to support them. Otherwise, the Tohsaka family, as a magus family of Fuyuki, will lose its standing."
Seeing the wavering emotions on Kariya's face, Satsuki continued: "You should understand—the Tohsaka family specializes in jewel magecraft. To sustain that enormous consumption, they have many industries outside. Those businesses need someone to manage them. A household with only women will surely attract wolves, surrounded and attacked."
"Of course, perhaps you look forward to another scene: them begging you for help before your eyes, regretting their choices. Only after your vengeful heart is satisfied would you lend a hand—or perhaps strike them down further?"
"And the reason for all of this, is merely because their surname is—Tohsaka."
At these words, the man before her turned pale, his inner mask shattered by Satsuki's merciless words.
"Aoi, I… just… don't want to see her like this."
"Like this? What kind of 'like this'?" Satsuki looked at the man irritably. "Haven't you noticed? The way Sakura looks at you hasn't changed at all."
"Eh?!"
Kariya Matou froze. Yes, why was it that when Sakura looked at his face, she still showed no reaction, not even a trace of fear?
"Though you don't have much life left, restoring your appearance is nothing more than a flick of the wrist for me—consider it a bonus gift from our last transaction."
Seeing his dazed expression, Satsuki impatiently gave her dismissal: "Leave here, take Sakura with you, and wait for the Holy Grail War to end. Complete what you must, and do not leave regrets in your life."
The last sound in the room was the man's choked reply.
"…Yes, I promise you."
...
Meanwhile, within the Einzbern Castle after the great battle—
The disappearance of Kirei Kotomine meant the Church's pursuit of Kiritsugu Emiya had temporarily ceased, and the grievous wounds of Kayneth dealt a severe blow to a powerful enemy faction in the Holy Grail War.
These should have been two good things.
But why had it turned out like this? For the first time, she fought against the Church's Executor for Kiritsugu's sake; for the first time, she and Maiya Hisau opened their hearts to one another. These joyful moments overlapped, weaving together. And these joys should have brought Irisviel happiness like a dream. She should have been basking in such bliss. Yet—why had it become like this…
The people gathered before her bore expressions of unprecedented gravity. This castle, long empty, had not hosted so many guests in a long time.
Ritsuka Fujimaru, Mash, Lord El-Melloi II (in secrecy), Saber, her husband with his arm restored, and Maiya Hisau in black.
Seeing all this, Irisviel missed her faraway daughter dearly. Yet now it was impossible. Upon learning that one of the Servants was of the [Saver] class, she had even changed her stance, betraying her fate as the Little Grail by urging her husband to abandon the war.
"Kiritsugu, let's go back. Let's stay with Illya and forget these things."
Kiritsugu carried a heavy scent of tobacco—a smell she had not encountered in nine years.
"It's too late, my lady. This timeline has already veered toward abnormality. If left unchecked, humanity will eventually be destroyed."
"But… but…"
Ritsuka Fujimaru turned in confusion to Lord El-Melloi: "From the beginning, Lord, you were the first to show goodwill to Lady Satsuki. Why has your attitude changed so quickly now?"
"Ahh…"
As one from the future who had once crossed paths with Satsuki in another worldline, Lord El-Melloi sighed.
"Ritsuka, do you remember what I once said? I vaguely recalled fighting alongside Lady Satsuki, though in truth I contributed nothing—perhaps I only glimpsed it from afar. And at that time, the opponent was one who called herself Māra."
From Chaldea, El-Melloi's eyes grew solemn: "At first, I thought Lady Satsuki was our ally. But later, within that space, I realized—her form was no different from that of Māra in the past. The only difference was that Māra's hair was white."
At the end, his words carried extraordinary fear and heaviness.
"And that Māra is one of the Seven Evils of Humanity, the Beast's half-body who bears the Principle of [**]. Absolutely not an enemy any single Servant could face alone."
At this, everyone fell into the same silence they had experienced yesterday when confronted with Satsuki. Only one person stepped forward now—the King of Knights, Saber.
"If such a foe cannot be defeated alone, then we must rally more allies." The resolute girl shone like a light in darkness. "Besides me, there are other Servants in this war. We must find a way to gather them, to unite against Māra."
Yet Irisviel, as Master, worriedly said: "Lancer's Master was saved by her, so they're unlikely to ally with us. Caster has already been destroyed. As for Assassin and Berserker, they are difficult to work with. That leaves only Rider and Archer as potential allies."
"Iskandar, King of Conquerors, and the King of Heroes Gilgamesh?"
Even for the King of Knights, facing those two was daunting. By what authority could they be summoned together?
Just then, a sudden roar thundered in their ears. More than that, the sound that tore through the night imposed a massive burden on the magic circuits of the castle's mistress. A wave of dizziness nearly caused Irisviel to collapse in the corridor.
The massive roar was like thunder bursting beside their ears. The surge of magical energy that followed meant that the bounded field in the forest outside had been attacked. Normally, the barriers a magus laid down were not so easily destroyed, but under the assault of a Servant, the foundation of the spellwork had already been shattered.
"What's going on? Someone else has come?"
Amid the brief chaos, Kiritsugu Emiya stood up and steadied Irisviel by her shoulders.
"Kiritsugu?"
Irisviel turned her eyes toward her husband. Though she was technically Saber's Master now, no one could compare to the weight Kiritsugu held in her heart.
"I'm sorry, Iri, I…"
After learning what had happened yesterday, Kiritsugu once again regretted transferring Saber to Irisviel. His original intent had been for Saber to protect her, but he had not expected the kind of enemy they would have to face.
The silver-haired princess gave her husband a gentle smile. "Don't worry. I was only startled. These past two days have been a little too much to take in."
The King of Knights spoke as a Servant: "I'll go out to meet them. You and Kiritsugu should stay by my side."
"No. Iri, stay with Saber. I'll remain inside the castle."
Kiritsugu arranged things this way.
"Then I'll stay here as well," said the long-haired El-Melloi, quite self-aware. "I can also help repair the castle's magic wards."
"If it's alright," Ritsuka Fujimaru volunteered, "Mash and I will accompany you as well."
"Fou~ Fou~"
At those words, Irisviel nodded.
"Then let's move together."
Staying by Saber's side to confront the enemy meant Irisviel had to face danger herself. Yet for her, the battlefield was the safest place—because the strongest Servant would be right beside her.
The group passed through the devastated castle, heading straight for the main hall on the first floor. Since the enemy was attacking from the front, they would surely meet there.
"That thunder just now, and such reckless tactics—it should be Rider."
"I think so too."
"Rider… is that the red-haired, bearded man we saw that day?"
Irisviel recalled the terrifying power of the Noble Phantasm she had seen after the inn attack a few days earlier—"Gordius Wheel," the divine ox-drawn chariot wreathed in lightning. Such an [Anti-Army] Noble Phantasm, when fully unleashed, could easily destroy the magical arrays set within the forest.
"Mooo~"
"Yahhh~ yahhh~ yahhh~"
The sound of oxen lowing was accompanied by a man's booming voice echoing from the hall. It seemed the intruder had already stepped through the main gates. Without a doubt, the enemy was Iskandar, the King of Conquerors. Yet from his tone, he hardly sounded like a warrior ready for battle.
But Saber dared not let her guard down. As she ran, she manifested her armor.
The group finally passed through the corridors and reached the balcony. Under the moonlight pouring through the skylight, they caught sight of the Servant standing proudly in the hall below—and were left momentarily speechless.
"Rider…?"
"Yo, Saber. When I heard of this castle, I just had to come take a look—seems lively tonight, doesn't it? Looks like I came at just the right time." Rider grinned broadly, baring his teeth as he rolled his neck with exaggerated ease. "Even the lot who didn't get along too well with my little Master are here, eh? What a coincidence."
Saber's brow furrowed. This man always gave her an inexplicable sense of unease, and she did not know how to respond. Yet his appearance was not that of someone seeking battle.
"Hey, King of Knights, don't you ever change into modern clothes? Stop always wearing that stiff armor."
If Saber's armored form was "stiff," then Rider's jeans and T-shirt could only be described as street casual. After all, there were tales that King Iskandar had once taken interest in the cultures of conquered lands, and was even the first to don exotic Asian attire, so much so that his own retainers avoided him.
As Rider's Master, Waver was half-hiding behind the massive shield of the Gordius Wheel. His expression showed both hostility and fear. It was plain to see—his face was screaming "I want to go home" and "hurry up."
All this time, Waver had followed his Servant through countless battles, yet right now his heart was trembling with fear: "Rider, you idiot, this is the lair of the man known as the 'Magus Killer,' and you just dragged me here without a care… and after I even bought you a proper outfit."
What puzzled everyone even more, however, was that Rider was not carrying a weapon or anything fit for battle.
But a barrel.
No matter how one looked at it, it was a wooden wine cask. Tucked casually under his arm, Rider looked less like a Servant of war and more like a wine merchant delivering stock.
"You…"
At a loss for words again, Saber took a deep breath and steadied herself. "Rider, what are you here for?"
"Isn't it obvious? To drink with you! Hey, don't just stand there. Lead the way. Got a courtyard fit for a feast? The inside of this castle is all dust—not good enough."
"…"
As Saber's Master, Irisviel was thoroughly confused.
She had been furious moments earlier when the forest's barrier was destroyed, but seeing Rider's broad grin now, she found it impossible to stay angry.
Instead, it was Saber who, after thinking for a while, understood his intent. "This isn't necessarily a bad thing. I believe the Conqueror King's purpose here is the same as ours. It would be just right to discuss the matter of [Saver] with him."
Beside them, Ritsuka Fujimaru scratched his head, looking eager. "Ah, Mash, I also—"
Mash immediately stopped her Master. "Senpai, you can't. You're still underage. Drinking is forbidden."
"How could you…"
"Hahahahaha! As expected of the King of Knights, sharp and clear-minded. Though I left the battlefield first last time, even from dozens of miles away, the golden sword unleashed by that mysterious Servant could be felt. Its power was immense." As he spoke, Iskandar's tone turned grave.
"I thought for sure that under that strike, neither you nor your Master could have survived. But later, in the Holy Church, through Waver's familiars I saw your familiars again, and was surprised at how you had lived."
"In our current position, I cannot disclose that."
"Well, fair enough." The King of Conquerors hefted the barrel and pointed outside. "Then let us reveal our stances over wine—and at the same time, see who among us is most worthy of the Holy Grail."