They traveled through time at the same time, but the villainous scientist

Chapter 229 The Lesser Holy Grail and Zouken Matou
Meanwhile, in the magic workshop beneath Einzbern Castle, the air seemed to have solidified into cold crystals, leaving only a high-frequency, subtle humming sound.

Kenneth kept his eyes closed, his entire mind focused on the exquisite control of the [Moon Spirit Essence Liquid].

The silver liquid metal was no longer a simple defensive weapon; it had transformed into billions of imperceptible nanoprobes and scalpels, seeping into Irisviel's skin and gradually invading the complex, star-map-like magic circuits within her body.

Standing to the side, Aozaki Touko pushed up her glasses, her eyes behind the lenses sparkling with undisguised admiration and amazement.

She couldn't help but let out a heartfelt exclamation of admiration.

As the world's most skilled puppeteer, she knew better than anyone how ingenious the construction of this "artificial human" was.

The alchemy of the Einzbern family is essentially the ultimate technique of materializing the soul and morphing concepts.

The girl named Irisviel exists solely as a vessel to hold the Lesser Grail.

Her magic circuits, her body tissues, and even every single strand of her hair are the ultimate product meticulously constructed to achieve this goal.

This also means that as the Holy Grail War progresses, when the number of Servant souls contained within the "Minor Grail" reaches a certain threshold, her functions as a "human" will completely cease, turning her into a pure terminal.

To separate the part of the "Little Grail" that is deeply coupled with her flesh and soul without harming her vital functions is a task that is far more difficult and precise than any complex surgical operation that even the most advanced surgical robot in the surface world can perform.

However, Kenneth did it.

He actually used the [Moon Spirit Essence Fluid] as a massive parallel computing array, completing the scanning and modeling of Irisviel's entire magic circuits the instant he invaded, and then simultaneously carrying out cutting and peeling operations on billions of nodes.

All I can say is that this is truly the supreme formal attire of the El-Melloi family, a monarchical family that has been passed down for nine generations.

Aozaki Touko even had a thought that made her want one herself, since with the help of this thing, the time it would take her to create precision dolls would definitely be greatly shortened.

But she immediately dismissed the idea as soon as it surfaced.

It goes without saying that even if Kenneth were to commission one for her out of consideration for the contract, the cost would be astronomical.

Ever since she got into a fight with her unreasonable younger sister a few years ago, she has been on the verge of bankruptcy and penniless.

Just as she was lost in thought, the surgery was coming to an end.

A polymer of magical radiance and crimson tissue was carefully pulled out of Irisviel's abdomen by countless slender silver tentacles, hovering in mid-air and exuding a sacred aura.

After doing all this, Kenneth slowly opened his eyes, fine beads of sweat appearing on his forehead.

He looked at Artoria, who had been standing silently guarding him.

Saber immediately understood, stepped forward, and tightly grasped Irisviel's cold hand.

A surge of pure and powerful magic flowed into Irisviel's body like a warm tide.

Guided by this magic, the conceptual weapon dormant deep within her body—[Avalon]—was awakened.

Golden light particles overflowed from their clasped hands, and the hideous wound on Irisviel's abdomen began to heal and regenerate rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye, eventually leaving not a single scar.

"Alright, now it's my turn, the 'troublemaker'!"

Aozaki Touko stretched, then picked up her toolbox and took out a series of precision tools that shimmered with runic light. She began to make final adjustments and repairs to Irisviel's body to ensure that her life functions and magic circuits were as perfect as before.

Seeing this, Kenneth manipulated the [Moon Spirit Essence Liquid] to envelop the core of the "Little Holy Grail" and turned to leave the workshop.

……

Outside the workshop, Kiritsugu Emiya paced back and forth like a trapped beast.

He couldn't hear any sounds from inside, but he could feel waves of magical energy, each wave striking his heart like a heavy hammer.

He looked up at his brand-new arm. The color of his skin and the texture of his muscles were exactly the same as his original arm, and even more flexible and free.

The puppeteer's skills were divine, and with the monarch and the legendary King Arthur, the lineup was truly dreamlike.

But... when it came to his beloved wife, no amount of reason or evidence could quell his inner tension and fear.

He was afraid, afraid that once the door opened, an irreversible outcome awaited him...

Hearing the door open, he rushed forward and asked in a hoarse voice:
"How...is she?"

"The surgery was a success. With Saber's Noble Phantasm, her physical functions are recovering better than expected."

Kenneth glanced at Kiritsugu Emiya's eyes, which were practically brimming with anxiety, and added,

"As for the subsequent adjustments, if even 'Grand Puppeteer' Aozaki Touko can't handle it, then I'm afraid no one in this world can." Emiya Kiritsugu's tense body finally relaxed a little, but just as he was about to ask for details.

The castle's heavy gates were suddenly pushed open, and a series of hurried footsteps approached from afar.

"Kenneth! Come quick! Help this child!"

Fujimaru Ritsuka rushed in, carrying a small, thin figure in her arms, her voice trembling with worry.

It was a little girl with black hair, her eyes closed, her face pale and bloodless, like a fragile porcelain doll.

……

Meanwhile, on the other side.

Deep within the Tohsaka family mansion, Tokiomi Tohsaka, watching the images transmitted back by his familiar, abruptly stopped his elegant act of sipping red wine, causing the red liquid in his crystal glass to swirl violently.

For the first time, his handsome face showed emotions of "astonishment" and "rage".

The scene depicts the Matou mansion, now completely reduced to charred ruins...

……

Inside the hall of Eindzbern Castle,
"You mean, when you were severing the spiritual vein nodes, you encountered Matou Kariya, and then made a deal with this dying Master to help him rescue a child named 'Matou Sakura'?"

"Then, at the last moment, that old monster named Matou Zouken seized Matou Kariya's body and escaped?"

After listening to Fujimaru Ritsuka and El-Melloi II's fragmented account, Kenneth roughly understood the situation.

"Yes...we had already killed that old man..."

Then... the old man's voice came from inside Mr. Kariya's body again.

He...he was right in front of us, tearing open Mr. Kariya's flesh and blood...like clothes, and then...then he crawled out...and escaped..."

Fujimaru Ritsuka's body still trembled slightly as she recalled that scene.

"What's even more troublesome is that the Command Seals on the back of Matou Kariya's hand have also disappeared."

El-Melloi II took a deep breath and added, "That's the most troublesome part."

As the creator of the Holy Grail War Command Seal system, it is not difficult for him to strip Command Seals from those who have been parasitized.

This means that Zouken Matou has been confirmed to participate in the war...

……

On the other side, in a remote ley line node in Fuyuki City.

A hunched-over "person" wearing a hood was standing in the center of the spell set up by El-Melloi II and his accomplices.

It was Matou Zouken who ate Matou Kariya's body.

His cloudy eyes gleamed with resentment and knowing light.

"I see... What a bold idea. So they want to extract magic power from the Greater Grail in reverse?"

Zouken Matou saw through the principle behind this technique at a glance.

The principle behind this magic trick is not complicated.

The flow of spiritual veins is like a rushing river. When the three starter families placed the Greater Grail underground at Ryudouji Temple, it was like placing a huge container downstream of the river to collect magical energy year after year.

The formation before us acts like a giant water pump forcibly installed upstream of a container, trying to extract the magic power that has accumulated over decades from the "reservoir" of the Greater Grail.

Heh heh... If I'm not mistaken, the ultimate goal of this group should be to completely dismantle the Greater Grail after eliminating all the magic.

As one of the three founding families, Zouken Matou would naturally not allow such a thing to happen.

He slowly raised his head, and a sinister smile appeared on his face, which had been ravaged by insects and was no longer recognizable as human.

If that's the case, then in this Holy Grail War, there's only one person left who can cooperate with him...

The current head of the Tohsaka family, Tokiomi Tohsaka.

(End of this chapter)