Luviagelita was genuinely delighted to see Sapphire return to her side. After her argument with Rin Tohsaka, both Jewels had left their sides. Sapphire's return while Ruby remained absent meant she had clearly surpassed Rin Tohsaka!
Overwhelmed with smug satisfaction, Luviagelita couldn't help but hum a tune. Finding that insufficient, she burst into her signature three-stage ojou laugh.
"Ohhohoho!~"
"As expected, the Edelfelt family is the most superior! Tomorrow, I'll thoroughly mock that twin-tailed girl!"
"Actually... there just wasn't anyone suitable here," Sapphire said, watching Luviagelita's unrestrained laughter with mild exasperation. "I can't just act recklessly in the city. If I violate the principle of maintaining the Mystery, even Kaleidoscope's student, an Edelfelt, would face repercussions."
"What suitable candidates could you possibly find in this remote corner of the Far East?" Luviagelita scoffed. She doubted Sapphire would find any girls with decent magical aptitude. Eventually, Sapphire would have to return to her side obediently. As long as she could outshine Rin Tohsaka, that would be a victory worth celebrating.
"The Wizard Marshal's mission needs someone to carry it out. Delaying it further won't do any good."
"..."
Luviagelita spoke the truth. Sapphire was also conflicted about whether to retract her earlier statement and allow Luviagelita to become a Magical Girl again.
Just then, the main gate of the Edelfelt family's mansion in Fuyuki was kicked open. The defensive magic proved utterly useless against the intruders—a tall figure and a shorter one strode directly to Luviagelita's side.
"Hey, Luviagelita! Your playtime with Rin Tohsaka is over. Hand over Sapphire!"
The conversation took a decidedly unhinged turn—entirely intentional on Jiang You's part. He even heard inexplicable drumbeats, which, well, was quite bizarre.
"Wait, Mr. Jiang You!"
Illya frantically tugged at Jiang You's arm. She had assumed he was here for a proper discussion with Miss Luviagelita, but instead, he was resorting to outright force. The sudden turn of events terrified her. How did this suddenly become a home invasion? I never agreed to be an accomplice to robbery! "This behavior is wrong!"
However, with the strength of an elementary school student, Illya 's attacks were utterly ineffective against a Servant's defenses. He completely ignored the "accessory" clinging to his waist and dragged Illya forward.
"Here to steal a Magical Artifact?" Luviagelita scrutinized Jiang You. The magical power emanating from him wasn't particularly strong, but it was present nonetheless, marking him as a Magus or someone connected to the magical world.
"I don't know where you got your information, but I must admit, you have a keen eye. A Magical Artifact crafted by the Wizard Marshal is indeed a rare treasure beyond compare. But you've chosen the wrong opponent. You're facing Luviagelita Edelfelt—the next head of the renowned Finnish Magus family, the Edelfelts; heir to Jewel Magic; and Finland's rising star!"
"Not enough room for many people here... Oh, is that all? What about your titles? 'Arena's Hunting Hound'? 'Crane Among Ladies'? Why don't you just pick the ones that sound good?"
The Golden Drill's most enduring impression was as the "Crane Among Ladies," a title that even influenced her servant Astraea's Noble Phantasm.
"Enough with the pointless chatter!"
How could a refined lady be associated with a crane? Luviagelita had never liked that nickname. Moreover, the fact that this young man knew so much about her meant he must have come prepared.
"As the Master of Sapphire, I shall punish you for your insolence!"
"No, to be precise, you're no longer my Master, are you?"
Sapphire offered Luviagelita no quarter.
"Such a precious treasure belongs to the virtuous!"
"Don't suddenly switch genres to xianxia cultivation!"
Illya had picked up some scattered knowledge herself—otherwise, she wouldn't be able to play the role of the straight man.
"Ruby, try persuading him too!"
"I'm afraid I can't reason with him."
Ruby understood how absurd this chain-summoning method was, let alone the rule-rewriting implications. Jiang You's existence clearly surpassed that of a Magician, and there was even a slim chance he might surpass the Old Man of the Jewels himself. Otherwise, the Old Man would have already sought him out for his ability to connect to Parallel Worlds. "How should I put it? As long as he's happy, that's all that matters. We should be grateful he's at least on the side of order."
"I don't understand any of that!"
Even if we're messing around, we can't go this far!
"Sister?"
Sapphire noticed Ruby as well. It detached itself from Luviagelita's side and floated over to Illya.
"So, this is your new contract partner... I see. He certainly possesses decent aptitude for magic and seems like a well-behaved child. But why are you with this man? He... he gives off a strange aura, as if he doesn't belong to this world."
"Because he doesn't belong to this world."
Jiang You's otherworldly aura was far too conspicuous for Kaleidoscope's creations to ignore. Though they couldn't pinpoint the exact reason—"he's from another Parallel World"—Ruby suspected he had some inexplicable connection to the Old Man of the Jewels. "The old geezer isn't dead yet," she mused, "and this young man is a servant. How could someone else wield power similar to the Second Magic? There's definitely something fishy going on."
Ruby's words weren't meant to be private, and Luviagelita heard every syllable. Under normal circumstances, she would have scoffed at such claims. But hearing them from Ruby, Kaleidoscope's masterpiece, she couldn't help but believe at least seventy percent of it. After all, the Second Magic—the ability to traverse Parallel Worlds—was supposed to be exclusive to Kaleidoscope, and magic could only be wielded by one person at a time. Even if a second person completely replicated the original's methods, following the exact same path, they could never attain the same spell.
In Luviagelita's eyes, there were only two ways Jiang You could have achieved parallel world travel. First, he could have sought assistance from Kaleidoscope to achieve this effect. Second, considering Jiang You's current status as a Heroic Spirit—transcending the constraints of time and thus bypassing the rule that only one Magician can possess a particular spell—he might have cast the parallel world jump spell himself, making him the future Successor to the Second Magic.
Regardless of the explanation, Jiang You clearly had a deep connection with Kaleidoscope, making his pursuit of the Sapphire perfectly logical. Luviagelita even suspected that Kaleidoscope was dissatisfied with her results and, constrained by the Magician's honor and the Edelfelt family's legacy, had sent Jiang You to reclaim the Autonomous Mystic Code himself.
Panic surged through Luviagelita. This was tantamount to a death sentence for the Edelfelt family.
"Mr. Jiang You... please, let's move to the living room. We can discuss this matter properly."
Luviagelita's attitude underwent a complete 180-degree shift.