"Ding dong..."
In the middle of the night, the doorbell suddenly rang outside the quiet Emiya Residence. Shirou Emiya hurried to the entrance to open the door, letting out a sigh of relief and revealing a joyful smile when he saw the familiar figure.
"Akatsuki, Illya, welcome back. Come in quickly. We've already heard the details from Archer and Rider."
Shirou Emiya wasn't surprised by Illya's arrival; Archer had likely guessed that Akatsuki went to pick up Illya and told them in advance.
"I'm back."
"Excuse the intrusion," Illya said softly, then followed Akatsuki toward the living room.
Shirou Emiya smiled and then closed the door.
As soon as Akatsuki and Illya entered the living room, a voice rang out immediately.
"Too slow! Even if you went to pick up Illya, it shouldn't have taken this long with your abilities!"
Tohsaka Rin, holding a cup of hot tea, looked at Akatsuki with some dissatisfaction. "And don't ever make such a reckless decision again! Taking the full force of Saber's Noble Phantasm with your own body..."
Archer wore a helpless expression on the side, picking up a nearby kettle and shrugging at Akatsuki. It seemed this wasn't the first pot of tea that had been finished.
"Heh~ Could it be, Rin, that you're worried about me?"
Akatsuki narrowed her eyes, the corners of her mouth curling up slightly as if she had seen something amusing.
"Who—who's worried about you!"
"Tsundere."
Tohsaka Rin clutched her teacup, a trace of panic showing in her eyes: "Who—who's a tsundere!"
Akatsuki was already used to Tohsaka Rin's textbook tsundere behavior, but she couldn't help teasing her every time she saw her like this.
"I shouldn't need to introduce this one. Illyasviel von Einzbern, the Master of the Einzbern Family—one of the Three Founding Families of the Holy Grail War—and also the Master of Berserker."
Tohsaka Rin nodded, putting back on her honor student mask as she looked at Illya with a smile. "I know. You provided information on her before. But wasn't Berserker defeated by that Gilgamesh Servant?"
Just as Akatsuki was about to explain, Illya suddenly looked up and said to Tohsaka Rin, "Berserker didn't lose. He was swallowed by the black shadow."
"The black shadow..."
At the mention of the black shadow, Tohsaka Rin's expression became solemn. She glanced at Akatsuki and Illya, then sighed. "You two should get some good rest tonight. After all, you've been through so many battles... By the way, Akatsuki, do you need to supplement your blood?"
"No need. Frequent blood-sucking increases the Bloodlust Impulse, eventually causing me to fall into a blood-crazed Demon King. I certainly don't want to face the True Ancestor killer, Arcueid."
"So I have to be moderate lately. If I were to go berserk, the entire Fuyuki City would likely turn into a blood hell."
Akatsuki was a pseudo-earth uo while Arcueid was the juvenile form of the earth uo. They were bound to meet in the near future, and Akatsuki didn't know what would happen then.
Falling into a Demon King state was likely the worst possible ending for Akatsuki. After all, her body didn't have a 'gate' left for Crimson Moon's rebirth. So, if she fell into an endless Bloodlust Impulse, unless Arcueid welcomed Crimson Moon to become the complete King of the Moon, this era would likely appear in the future as a Singularity or a Lostbelt.
Akatsuki wasn't good at controlling her desires, but she was very good at weighing pros and cons. Compared to short-term suppression, she never wanted to experience the pain of killing someone she loved with her own hands again.
"Is that so? Then go to sleep early."
Having said that, Tohsaka Rin left the living room without looking back. Akatsuki looked at Shirou Emiya in confusion, seemingly not understanding why Tohsaka Rin was so cold to her, when they were so close just a few days ago (or so she thought).
Shirou Emiya shrugged.
"She's probably blaming herself."
Archer walked over with the kettle at this point. He brewed a cup of black tea for Akatsuki and Illya and placed them on the table. He skillfully put the kettle back in its place and packed away the tea leaves.
"Blaming herself?"
Akatsuki tilted her head. She couldn't figure out why Tohsaka Rin would be blaming herself. So far, she hadn't done anything wrong. If it were because of Matou Sakura, she shouldn't be acting so cold toward Akatsuki.
"Who knows."
Archer crossed his arms over his chest as usual. He gave Akatsuki a deep look before spiritizing and leaving. Akatsuki looked at Shirou Emiya, completely bewildered, but Shirou wasn't sure either.
"By the way, why did you show up at the Great Cavern? Logically speaking, shouldn't you be receiving treatment in the hospital?"
Seeing Shirou Emiya looking perfectly fine, Akatsuki asked suspiciously. Akatsuki wouldn't believe it even if she were beaten to death that Shirou Emiya had become an Ultimate Being after absorbing the mana from the red stone of aja, because things like Stone Masks didn't exist in this world!
"That... actually, I'm not sure myself. When I woke up, I found myself lying in a Church in Fuyuki City. It must have been that priest named Kirei Kotomine who applied some kind of healing to me."
Upon hearing Kirei Kotomine's name, Akatsuki immediately stood up from her stool. She looked at Shirou Emiya with a serious face and spoke solemnly.
"You don't feel uncomfortable anywhere, do you?"
Why would Kirei Kotomine help Shirou Emiya? He wasn't the kind of kind-hearted person who would help others for free. This wasn't Akatsuki judging a noble heart with a petty mind, but rather that most of what Kirei Kotomine did was in pursuit of so-called 'pleasure' to satisfy his personality defects.
"No... after the fight with Caster, my magic circuits went out of control once, but Archer fixed them later."
"I see..."
To this day, Akatsuki had never personally met the man named Kirei Kotomine. However, anyone who had watched Fate or played Fate knew that whether it was the Fate route, UBW, or HF, Kirei Kotomine was a man who could not be trusted too much.
"By the way, how is Fujimura doing?"
"Sister Fujimura has regained consciousness now. The doctor suggested she stay in the hospital for a few more days for fear of any lingering effects. The school is checking facilities related to the gas leak, so we might not have to go to school for the next few days."
Akatsuki nodded. "It's getting late. Arrange a room for Illya and then you should go rest too. Thank you for your hard work."
After everyone else had gone to rest, Akatsuki stood in the yard of the Emiya Residence, looking up at the bright moon in the sky.
"Kirei Kotomine..."
Akatsuki felt that she needed to prepare some means to deal with this former agent of the Church.
---------------------------------
Hope you enjoy this fanfiction if you do and would like to read the next 30 chapters in advance, pls do check out my Patreon.
patreon.com/TLScarlet
Also don't forget to give me a Power Stone if you do like this fiction. Your support really motivates me to continue doing my best in translating, Thanks!!