I, Wang Ha, the Three Red Unparalleled Assassin

Thinking of this, Kirei Kotomine broke out in a cold sweat, and his respect for his master, Tokiomi Tohsaka, deepened even further.

"Those who have made contributions will be rewarded, and those who have made mistakes will be punished. Since you have performed the ceremony of welcoming me to the king quite well, then you must have made a contribution."

As Gilgamesh spoke, a ripple spread through the space beside him, and golden light illuminated half of the basement. A small pile of high-quality gems fell from the Gate of Babylon.

“Take it with gratitude, you bastard! This is your well-deserved reward.”

In the basement of the Matou residence, located in the opposite direction from the Tohsaka family's residence in Fuyuki City.

A thin, frail figure hugged her knees, trying her best to curl up her trembling body in a dark corner. Her cute little face was full of fear as she looked around at the swarm of insects that were constantly approaching her.

Although the Matou residence appears to be a very beautiful building on the surface, its underground has been transformed into a den of monsters.

It was even more terrifying than a typical man-eating demon cave, because it was filled with countless Marked Insects, numbering in the tens of thousands.

This is a terrifying insect that can be used to expand magic circuits, modify magic attributes, and directly absorb life force to create magic in a short period of time.

These insects are also considered a type of familiar, so anyone implanted with a Crest Insect will become the caster's puppet.

If the recipient is female, she will even need to receive hereditary ribonucleotides from a male magician regularly, otherwise she will experience extreme fever and go crazy.

You can't live, you can't die.

The scene before us is precisely the evil sorcerer driving the Mark Worms to modify the two little girls to fulfill his twisted and perverse desires.

Well, firearms are really just a side effect.

On a distant high platform, a hunched old man with a cane looked at the two helpless little girls with a wicked smile.

"Give up, Sakura. You've already been adopted from the Tohsaka family into my Matou family. No one will come to save you."

"So, you'd better just obediently accept my insect magic modification! Miracles? Those things don't happen."

Under Zouken Matou's verbal attacks, Sakura Matou gradually gave up struggling, and the sea of ​​insects had already reached her feet, wriggling and starting to climb up.

Sakura Matou tried to swat and sweep with her hands, but to no avail. She tried her best to protect herself, but her weak strength was just a drop in the ocean.

The waves of insects had already washed over Matou Sakura's bare, smooth insteps, and the wet, slippery sensation, like being licked, made the girl feel extremely nauseous.

"W-what should I do? Sakura, Sakura doesn't want to be eaten by bugs! Waaaaaah~~~"

Sakura Matou cried out, the young girl having no idea how to escape this endless nightmare.

Amidst Matou Sakura's desperate cries, the Crest Insects scrambled to climb onto her tender body.

The rampaging swarm of insects instantly swallowed the petite girl's legs, and a chilling hissing sound echoed in the basement.

Those who missed out on the delicious treat swarmed towards Matou Sakura, their crawling insects making a rustling sound that intensified the innate fear in people.

"No, anyone will do! I'll pay any price! Please, please save me!!"

Chapter Five: The Old Man of the Mountain Descends!

In the secluded valley on the outer edge of the world, Alaya, who had just reached an agreement with King Hassan, was troubled again.

This time, the problem she's troubled about is who should be the Master of the Mountain Elder.

Since the Holy Grail is already in trouble, we can't find someone who has a strong desire to obtain it.

Moreover, since the old man of the mountain is there to solve problems, he must have a great deal of freedom of action, and it would be best if the master could refrain from any interference.

Also, because the entire Holy Grail War must be fought before the one hiding in the cup can be dealt with, the Master has to bear the magical power of the Old Man of the Mountain in the early stages.

Although King Hassan doesn't seem to consume much mana as long as he doesn't use his serious moves, since he's just swinging his sword and attacking normally, Alaya knows that it wouldn't be a problem in a normal Holy Grail War, but the Servants who responded to the Holy Grail's summons this time are all extraordinary individuals.

Most importantly, the Master must be someone the old man of the mountain himself finds pleasing and is willing to acknowledge; otherwise, if the capricious old man were to ring the bell and behead him upon meeting, it would be a huge problem.

"Ugh, this is so troublesome! But I have no choice but to deal with it."

Alaya wanted to make a "goo goo goo" sound, but because it concerned its own life and death, it held it back and silently used its power of restraint as a human to cover the entire Fuyuki City.

"If it's not someone from the mystical side, then it's not someone whose soul isn't brilliant either. Doesn't that eliminate 99.9% of humanity at once?"

The dejected little girl squatted on the ground, drawing circles, her delicate, pretty face filled with distress.

"With so many conditions combined, how could such a perfect Master possibly exist in the world!?"

Just as Alaya was methodically conducting a census to select a suitable Master for Fuyuki City, a strong surge of desire caught her attention.

Then, a cute, childlike voice reached Alaya's ears because of her attention. Although the voice trembled, one could feel its determination.

"No, anyone will do! I'll pay any price! Please, please save me!!"

"Oh?"

Alaya raised her delicate eyebrows. The moment she released her senses, she understood the current situation and found that the little girl who was asking for help met all her requirements except for her lack of magic power.

Moreover, insufficient magic power is not a big problem. This little girl has quite a few magic circuits, and her aptitude is excellent.

"Fine. Considering your incredible luck in encountering me today, which is practically EX level, I'll perform a miracle."

As Matou Sakura prayed, the army of Crest Insects had already covered her legs, allowing the little girl to clearly see the ferocious appearance of the insects.

If someone who is particularly afraid of insects or has trypophobia were here, they would probably be scared to death at first.

Crystalline tears streamed from Matou Sakura's eyes like a spring. Just as her heart sank to the bottom and she was about to accept this inescapable dark fate, a mysterious and majestic voice suddenly rang in the girl's mind.

"Is it you who are praying to me for help?"

Sakura Matou was stunned for a moment, thinking she was hallucinating, but she rallied as if she had grasped at a last straw.

"No, that's right, it's me. You, who are you? Are you a deity?"

"You don't need to know who I am, nor are you qualified to know. If you want my help, that's fine, but are you prepared to pay the price?"

Inside the Valley of Darkness, Alaya stood atop the mountain with her hands on her hips, her face tense and unusually serious, exuding an air of majesty.

"Yes, any price is acceptable! Whether it's a part of your body, your soul, or your life, Your Majesty, you can take it at will!"

"Hmph! I am not some demon, and I do not require your sacrifice of life and soul. But I will take your destiny, and your future will be under my control. Are you willing?"

“Fate?” Matou Sakura thought for a moment and then gave a helpless smile. “Anyway, it can’t get any worse than it is now, right? God, take it if you want it.”

After hearing Matou Sakura's answer, Alaya nodded her little head in satisfaction. A wisp of purple light gathered at her slender white fingertips, and she opened a spatial rift in front of her before throwing it in.

A spatial rift appeared behind Matou Sakura, and a purple light flashed like lightning before disappearing into the little girl's body. Even Matou Zouken did not notice anything unusual.

"Hehehehe, it seems Sakura has also come to terms with reality and given up struggling. Within the Matou residence's territory, who can break through to save you? It's all just unrealistic wishful thinking."

Zouken Matou felt pleased as he listened to Sakura Matou's occasional crying and shouting.

It's alright to give up on this Holy Grail War. Although it's really embarrassing for the Matou family, one of the three great families, not even having anyone participate, it's all because that unfilial son couldn't take the pressure.

He said he would accept the Crest Worm modification to participate in the Holy Grail War and win back victory, but he died before he could even summon a Heroic Spirit.

Although Zouken Matou never believed that Kariya Matou, this good-for-nothing, would achieve anything, the fact that his creation, which he had spent nearly a year modifying, was gone without any benefit still upset him.

"Forget it, let's focus on preparing for the next Holy Grail War. With Sakura by my side, I'm sure I'll be able to bring back the Holy Grail and gain immortality."

"Eeya—!!!"

Just as Zouken Matou was dreaming about the future, Sakura Matou let out a high-pitched scream, and the old man quickly turned his gaze back.

"Has the transformation already begun?"

But the next moment, a bright purple light, bright enough to illuminate the entire basement, shone from Matou Sakura, who was curled up, and the magic circuits that had been activated and opened up appeared on the girl's snow-white skin.

This sudden change caught Zouken Matou off guard, but what happened next truly shocked him.

When all forty main magic circuits and thirty auxiliary magic circuits that Matou Sakura possessed appeared, the magic circuits seemed to come alive and expanded outwards, creating new magic circuits out of thin air on Sakura's body.

At the same time, the girl's originally black hair began to turn purple from the ends, and even her eye color changed.

Mysterious magical runes covered the girl's entire body. The magic circuits had assimilated Matou Sakura's entire being, and her body could be said to be the crystallization of the magic circuits, reaching a level of perfection even greater than that of the Einzbern family's homunculus.

"This...how is this possible!? Magic circuits, magic circuits whose number is predetermined from the start, actually..."

Zouken Matou stared at Sakura Matou with eyes full of fervor and curiosity, eager to find out what had happened to the girl and her secrets.

This is simply a great discovery that could ignite a revolution in the mystical world!

As the radiance faded, Matou Sakura, radiating immense and pure magical power, completely unleashed the ferocity of the Crest Insects, which swarmed toward the girl in a frenzy.

Just then, a six-pointed star-shaped magic circle quietly formed beneath the sea of ​​insects in front of Matou Sakura, and a ghostly blue flame rose and spread out, burning all the Crest Insects within a three-foot radius to ashes.

The dense aura of death emanating from the magic circle seemed capable of crushing any rebellious enemy, plunging them into an eternal despair akin to falling into an abyss.

Sakura Matou, kneeling on the ground, lost her luster in her eyes. Her body, like a marionette, reached out and touched the edge of the magic circle, mechanically chanting.

"Be full, be full, be full, be full, be full!"

“The cycle repeats itself, and then there are five.”

"But the moment of fullness is the moment of abandonment—"

"Its foundation is silver and iron, and its base is stone upon which the great covenant of the contract stands."

“When the wind blows from the sky, it is blocked by walls; when the doors are open on all four sides, they are all closed.”

“From the crown, it travels back and forth along the three-way road to the kingdom.”

"I declare: You shall obey my commands, and my life shall be with your sword."

"Respond to the call of the Holy Grail; if you are willing to follow its will and its principles, then respond!"

"I hereby swear: I will accomplish all good deeds in the world, and I will eradicate all evil deeds in the world."

"You are the guardian of the Seven Heavens, bound by the three great incantations, from the Wheel of Restraint and the Scales!"

As the summoning ended, a figure clad in heavy, jet-black armor slowly emerged from the summoning circle and appeared before Matou Sakura and Matou Zouken.

He held a bloodstained greatsword and a massive shield, his body wreathed in billowing ghostly flames, and looked down at Matou Sakura, who was kneeling on the ground, looking bewildered.

"Rushing forth from the depths of the abyss, from the darkness of death. Fear not, contractor! The old man of the mountain has been summoned. I have no name; you may address me by any name you may use."

Sakura Matou felt a strange connection forming between herself and the unknown entity that had suddenly appeared before her. The girl looked up at the pale white skull mask of the Mountain Elder, but she did not feel fear or terror. Instead, she felt a long-lost kindness and gentleness in his eyes.

Driven by instinct, Matou Sakura opened her arms and hugged the old man's legs, bursting into tears as if to release her stress and emotions.

Despite being in the insect cave and surrounded by a vast number of Crest Insects, Matou Sakura felt inexplicably at ease, as if no danger could harm her as long as the person in front of her was there.

"Grandpa, may I call you Grandpa?"

Sakura Matou looked up at the towering giant standing before her, her eyes brimming with tears, and called out the name as her heart spurred on.