If there were no living creatures inside, but only a pile of corpses, what would Rin do if she truly saw that scene?
"Never..."
In fact, Tohsaka Rin has extremely high qualifications as a magus.
She had never seen a demon, and she had never touched one, but by instinct, she knew she was in danger.
To learn magecraft, you must first learn to accept and recognize death – this is the first lesson for every magus.
The touch of "death" that cannot be escaped, cannot be reasoned with, but is simply desperate.
At that time, the young Rin realized the essence of the Magus Path through this experience.
She couldn't move; she couldn't even scream. The horror, unbearable for ordinary people, was enough to crush such a young girl.
A strange tinnitus began to ring in her ears. Rin thought it was caused by the cold despair pressing down on her heart, and that her fear was beginning to destroy her five senses.
There was a buzzing sound, monotonous but frenzied, as if a swarm of huge flies were attacking her.
And then, a sound louder than the tinnitus approached.
At this moment, Rin's small, white hand was grasped.
The first time a boy held her hand, Rin felt like she was wrapped in a warm towel, and a sense of peace enveloped her.
Rin lifted her face and looked at the boy holding her hand.
"If you're afraid, grab my hand."
In an instant, Rin's cheeks turned red.
Her heartbeat gradually accelerated, her brain began to feel sluggish, and even her breathing became rapid.
"Aren't you trying to save your classmate?"
"Why are you so sure?"
Rin's small body trembled slightly, and she asked with some confusion.
With a faint smile on the corner of his mouth, Shirou didn't answer Rin's question. He walked ahead, taking Rin's little hand and leading her down the stairs towards the deep darkness.
Evidence hiding, inducement words, demonic documents, magic array drawing...
These were all things Shirou obtained from Uryuu Ryunosuke. It could be said that Shirou now knows more about Ryunosuke's methods than anyone else in the world.
"The abductor should still be on the street and hasn't come back yet, so we still have time to save people."
Shirou said reassuring words to Rin as he opened the door to the basement that appeared in front of them.
Originally, a person could pretend to be calm, but now that someone was with her, Rin's timidity as a little girl was unreservedly revealed.
Rin's small right hand tightly grasped Shirou's hand, not daring to let go easily.
Maybe it was because Uryuu Ryunosuke was so conceited that he didn't even lock the door.
Click————
With the turn of the doorknob, the door to the basement opened.
A pungent smell of decay and rot suddenly hit their faces.
The room was small, dusty, and the corners were covered with cobwebs. It hadn't been cleaned much, serving only as a temporary base for Ryunosuke's victims.
Rin looked around the room and finally stopped at a corner where a small figure huddled.
Not only were the girl's hands and feet tied, but her mouth was also sealed with duct tape, eliminating any possibility of escape.
"Kotone!"
The moment she saw the girl, Rin's pupils contracted suddenly. She hurriedly trotted forward, gently tore the tape from the girl's mouth, and untied the rope that bound her.
"Hey, answer me..."
However, no matter how Rin called, even pushing Kotone's shoulder with her hand, the other party did not respond at all.
Even though she was still breathing, her eyes were open and her face was expressionless.
Rin hurriedly took out her magic pointer. Seeing the needle point at Kotone while emitting a red light, she immediately guessed the cause.
"Could it be some kind of magic?"
While Rin was muttering, Shirou had already picked up two of the other children.
"Let's get them outside first."
Hearing this, Rin was stunned for a moment and then immediately reacted.
"Ah... Well, I see!"
Then, Rin picked Kotone up and struggled to follow Shirou as they took the children out one by one.
"Kotone... Wake up...!"
Rin shook Kotone in front of her, trying to bring her back to consciousness.
They were squatting in a dim alleyway at the moment. It was quite safe here; all the street lights nearby had been smashed by Shirou, so they would not be easily discovered in the dark.
"Can't you use magic?"
"Ah..."
Rin, who was in a panic because she was worried about her friend, finally remembered that she could perform magecraft.
Then, Rin froze for a few seconds with the magic pointer in her hand, and then released her magic as an attempt.
A magical light appeared on her body that could not be seen by ordinary people, spreading and swaying like ripples.
"This kind of thing... Talent... talent won't fail me...!"
Rin gritted her teeth, and the magical brilliance emanating from her body immediately bloomed!
The next moment, a layer of magic prohibition that had been forced onto Kotone's body was broken by Rin's magic power.
The girl's blank pupils regained their color, and her eyelashes fluttered slightly.
"Ah... Rin-chan, where is this...?"
After seeing her good friend Rin, a look of joy appeared on Kotone's face.
"It's great that you're okay!"
Tears welled up in Rin's reddened eyes, and she hugged Kotone with excitement.
Infected by Rin's emotions, Kotone couldn't help crying. The two girls hugged each other and began to sob.
"..." Shirou, standing to the side, looked at them somewhat speechlessly.
Then, he looked at the other seven children who had been awakened together.
"Look over here."
A pair of eyes were fixed on Shirou.
Then, a pale blue magical light flashed, and the children's eyes became glazed.
"You escaped on your own today, you know?"
"Yes." ×7
Shirou nodded in satisfaction and then said:
"Alright, you all go home."
Hearing Shirou's command, the children stood up and walked briskly out of the alleyway.
Rin, who was hugging and crying with Kotone, didn't see Shirou's movements.
"Are you done crying?"
Shirou said helplessly.
The next second, Shirou suddenly frowned and turned his head to look at the alley on the other side of the basement.
From the top of the alleyway, black octopus-like monsters fell and began to dance their tentacles towards Shirou.
"It's scary!"
Seeing this scene, Kotone was frightened, her little face turning pale.
At the same time, her pupils reflected a pale blue magical light.
"Trace... on!"