Type-Moon: Root Seiko

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The sun rose as usual the next day.

Tokiomi Tohsaka did not sleep all night.

Even though he had finished dealing with the Matou family's affairs, confirmed that every trace in that filthy den of demons had been completely burned away, and made preparations for contacting and covering up the situation in all aspects.

But his heart remained incredibly heavy.

This was not only because the Matou family, whom he thought was a trustworthy ally, turned out to be such a dark and sinister entity, making him very insecure about his own judgment.

More importantly, he knew perfectly well that this was just the beginning.

That elusive Grand Doll Maker, Aozaki Touko, and the mysterious cat (?) who claims to be her agent, will definitely come again.

And it will definitely happen very soon, today.

"Hey Father, where's Silver? Have you seen it?" the eldest daughter, Rin Tohsaka, asked softly.

This clever and bright daughter was Tokiomi Tohsaka's precious treasure, which made him relax a little despite his tension.

"It's back with its owner, don't worry."

Tokiomi struggled to come up with an excuse: "Its owner came to pick it up last night. If there's a chance in the future, I'll ask it to come again..."

"Tokiomi, a guest is looking for you." Tohsaka Aoi gently knocked on the door to remind her husband.

Tokiomi Tohsaka twitched his brow slightly and nodded.

He entrusted his daughter to his wife and went to the gate alone to greet her.

Outside the protective barrier set up by the Tohsaka family, at the entrance to the slope I walked down last night, stood a person.

A boy who looked to be under 20, the age of a college student, possessed a presence that made Tokiomi Tohsaka's heart race, and calmly looked at himself.

He held a lazy, dozing silver cat in his arms and nodded to Tokiomi Tohsaka:

"Hello, Mr. Tokiomi Tohsaka. My name is Rozen, it's an honor to meet you."

"...I am also very honored, from the bottom of my heart."

Tokiomi Tohsaka, with one hand behind his back and the other in front of him, bowed to Ryouma.

Without needing many words, Tokiomi Tohsaka immediately led the boy named Rozen into the mansion.

Upon seeing the beautiful silver cat in Luo Zhen's arms, Tokiomi's two daughters immediately became restless.

Rin Tohsaka: "Wow, Gin! Sakura, Gin's back!"

Sakura Tohsaka: "Um, um! Big brother, are you Gin's owner?"

"Yes, that's right." Luo Zhen smiled happily, his eyes crinkling.

The memory of being tormented by these two little girls yesterday is still fresh in my mind. Their careless kneading and rubbing techniques are really torturous; no wonder an ordinary cat couldn't stand it.

But there's no problem today.

Luo Zhen had specifically begged Orange to specially improve the cat's pain tolerance, and for that he hadn't suffered any eye-rolling attacks from her.

He handed the silver cat to the two girls, and amidst their delighted laughter, he instructed them:

"Little Silver likes you all very much. But be gentle, and be careful not to hurt it."

Chapter 7 Target: Winter Saintess

"Thank you, handsome big brother! (€€€€€€€€€€€)"

The polite children bowed to Luo Zhen in greeting.

Then, she happily hugged the kitten and ran back to her mother.

Tokiomi Tohsaka was quite pleased to see his daughters' smiles, but he still couldn't help asking:

"That cat, now..."

"It's a self-governing magic organization created by Aozaki Touko. Its inner soul is an ordinary cat that she found when she first came to Fuyuki City," Luo Zhen said casually.

Grand Puppeteers are not only capable of creating bodies that are exactly like humans, but they are also very skilled at transferring souls—at least far more skilled than Zouken Matou, who has degenerated into a monster.

Luo Zhen looked at the kitten lazily nestled in the arms of the two girls, then turned to Tokiomi: "It's winter after all. It's common for a family of kittens to crawl into a car engine that still has some residual heat to keep warm."

"When the car started moving, the kitten was caught in the engine and was on the verge of death, something even a mage couldn't do. But Aozaki Touko was able to save her. Hopefully, this will alleviate some of her fear as a designated wanted criminal, Mr. Tokiomi."

"...Yes, I will remember that."

Tokiomi Tohsaka, who vividly remembered what happened last night, nodded deeply.

He led Luo Zhen into his study, where they began their first formal negotiation regarding their respective positions and needs.

Luo Zhen didn't beat around the bush.

He spoke in the most direct, incisive, and human-like way: "We want the spiritual vein of Fuyuki City."

"As you know, Mr. Tokiomi, Orange has been placed under a seal by the Clock Tower. It's quite tiring to keep hiding, so Orange wants to find a place with a good enough spiritual vein and a safe place to settle down for a while so that she can continue her research."

"……I see."

Tokiomi Tohsaka was not surprised; on the contrary, he felt like he had hit the bullseye.

Magicians are, after all, non-human beings driven by self-interest, concerned only with their own research.

Although Zouken Matou's actions crossed Tokiomi Tohsaka's bottom line.

However, it's unlikely that a top-tier Grand Magus like Aozaki Touko would send an agent to contact him out of mere indignation.

Furthermore, Tokiomi clearly recognized the disparity between the two sides: if Aozaki Touko really wanted to use violence, then breaking through the Tohsaka family would not be much more difficult than her remotely directing the puppets to break through the Matou family last night.

So if all she really wants is the Fuyuki City spiritual vein managed by the Tohsaka family, then that would be too cheap and too polite.

That's why Tokiomi asked, "Is a spiritual vein really enough?"

"Lord Luo Zhen, you are well aware of the Holy Grail War. I know that with the Clock Tower's intelligence network, you should know about the existence of this ritual to some extent. But the mainstream of the European magic world has always looked down on the Far East, and I originally thought that not many arrogant magic families would take it seriously."

"But your understanding of the Holy Grail War is clearly more than that. So, do you and the Grand Puppeteer behind you really only need the Spirit Veins? Don't you need the Holy Grail?"

"The original core objective of the Holy Grail War was to use the Holy Grail, which has gathered the spirit origins of seven Servants, to open a passage to the Root, right?" Ryou suddenly said.

As Tokiomi nodded stiffly, he continued, "But you can rest assured that Orange has no interest in the roots."

"As you know, the Aozaki family has a tradition of using the Fifth Magic. Touko's sister is the current Fifth Magic user, and Touko doesn't intend to humiliate herself by going to the Root to obtain a Sixth Magic or something."

"As for the Holy Grail's other uses, if it's just a wish like 'Give me money,' Orange can earn it herself. But if it's a wish like 'World Peace,' the adjustments and plans required are too complicated. In the end, it can't be achieved with just a few words. It's really not worth the effort and energy to gamble on a ritual."

“…As expected of a Grand Magus.” Tokiomi Tohsaka wearily looked away.

The Tohsaka family has been pursuing this path for over two hundred years, through generations.

In the eyes of contemporary geniuses, is it just something so easily discarded like trash?

But Tokiomi Tohsaka knew that what the boy in front of him said was true, and that was indeed the case given Aozaki Touko's abilities.

If the Holy Grail War is to summon those historical heroes whose names are engraved on the Throne of Heroes, it is to have a mythical duel.

Aozaki Touko herself possessed abilities no less than any hero... she just didn't intend to do anything like that to make history.

Humans living in the present are not necessarily inferior to the heroes who left their names in history.

Luo Zhen continued, "However, Orange did indeed value the spiritual vein in Fuyuki City that could give birth to the Holy Grail, as well as the magic circuits that form the basis of the Holy Grail ritual."

"So Mr. Tokiomi, you're right. Touko doesn't just want the spiritual veins. She wants the very foundation of the Holy Grail War as her research material."

"...I see, so the target is the Winter Saintess?" Tokiomi Tohsaka's eyes lit up.

More than two hundred years ago, the three families that jointly founded the Holy Grail War system were collectively known as the Starter Families.

The Tohsaka family provided the land in Fuyuki City.

The Matou family, also known as the Machiri Zorgen, created a magical energy transmission channel that allows human mages to control Heroic Spirits, and the Command Seals system.

Finally, there is the Einzbern family, the family of artificial humans from Europe.

This family was originally servants of the Third Mage, whose mission was to reproduce the truly perfect Third Magic, which was called "Soul Materialization".

Magic represents life; endless magic represents endless life; and endless life represents immortality.

Life that has materialized from the soul can freely transform into any form, shape, or concept, becoming a truly immortal being.

Despite this concept of magic, the third magician in history disappeared for unknown reasons, and no one knows his ultimate fate.

The Einzbern family are genetically engineered androids created by magic, and therefore possess almost limitless patience and stubbornness. It is said that their attempts to replicate the Third Law have been ongoing for over a thousand years.

And they actually succeeded... or rather, they did succeed.

The Einzbern family's most perfect creation, known as the Winter Saintess, is a doll that recreates the Third Law.

However, the reappearance of the Winter Saintess was not perfect.

Her magic is limited to this one time, for this generation only.

She herself is an innocent doll trapped in an endless loop of the same day, unable to carry over her memories to the next day; every day she is brand new and pure white.

This unfinished product cannot be called a reproduction of the Third Law, which is why the Holy Grail War is necessary.

Tokiomi thought quickly and came to a convincing answer:

"The magical foundation that constitutes the Holy Grail is the dismantled Winter Saintess."