I am the protagonist

In the hotel, Kiritsugu Emiya sat quietly on the bed, contemplating the current situation.

Suddenly, he caught sight of a figure out of the corner of his eye, which made him instinctively draw his gun, but he stopped the next moment.

"How did you come?"

"What else could it be? Of course, it's because your foster mother was worried that you were eating too much junk food and not getting enough nutrition, so your sister prepared some things for me to take over, and even said something like, 'Make Kiritsugu eat these.'"

"……Why."

With a sigh, Kiritsugu Emiya tossed the hamburger on the table into the trash can and moved all the irritating things aside.

Shirou laid out everything: ice-cold beer, some side dishes to go with the rice, and lots of hamburger patties.

Seeing these hamburger patties made Kiritsugu Emiya's eyes sting, as if something was about to pop out of them.

The hamburger patties his daughter prepared for him.

This was the first time he had ever tasted something prepared by Ilya herself.

I picked up my chopsticks, took a piece of hamburger patty, and put it in my mouth.

"It's too salty."

"Is this Ilya's first time doing this? This is really bad."

That's what he said, but this silly dad ate all the hamburger meat.

Chapter 142 The Next Goal

Kiritsugu Emiya took a bottle of beer, opened it, and took a swig.

He usually controls his alcohol intake to a certain extent, as excessive alcohol consumption can affect his judgment on certain matters. However, this time the situation is different, and he can accept consuming more alcohol than usual.

"The bodies of my adoptive mother and younger sister have entered the final stage, and should be completed by tomorrow night."

"Because I will finish all my work tomorrow night, I will focus more on that, and I will try to minimize my activities for the rest of the day."

"Foster father, you'd better not target Ryunosuke Uryu directly. Caster is probably not an easy guy to deal with."

"Ah, I already know."

After obtaining the relevant information, Kiritsugu Emiya focused on having Maiya investigate Ryunosuke Amuro.

After investigation, it was learned that Ryunosuke Uryu was a very shrewd person. He covered up everything from the very beginning of the crime, and all the crimes led the police into a maze. In fact, many of the people who had been killed were only listed as missing persons by the police.

Although he already had a good understanding of how incompetent the island nation's police were, upon seeing those investigations, Kiritsugu Emiya still couldn't help but curse, "Useless!"

"Ryunosuke Uryu is indeed an extraordinary guy. He is completely ignorant about magic, but his talent as a serial killer is outstanding."

“Since he began his operation, he has killed 42 people, many of whom have not yet been discovered by the police.”

"The police in island nations are truly incompetent."

"Putting all that aside, the key issue is Ryunosuke Uryu's motive for murder."

“Maimi has investigated the murdered people. Their money was not stolen. In other words, the perpetrator did not kill for money, but simply for the sake of killing.”

"It was this motive that drove Ryunosuke Uryu to commit crimes repeatedly, and he was also searching for what he wanted through constant killing."

"I think it's better not to delve too deeply into what the other party is trying to find in the killing. After all, he's a serial killer, and his kind of mental constructs are beyond the comprehension of normal people."

Kiritsugu Emiya also deeply understands this point. Normal people's thinking can be guessed, but those with special ways of thinking cannot be guessed unless your thinking is assimilated by those groups.

"I've come here to tell you some special information."

"After Saber and I got home, we asked Artoria about what she knew, and we found that the golden Heroic Spirit was completely different from what she knew. My judgment is that the time when that Heroic Spirit was summoned was relatively late."

"However, this is not something we need to worry about. In any case, that golden Heroic Spirit is the most difficult to deal with. The key now is to address this issue first."

"...Something has changed, and that's the problem!"

"Yes."

"Just as I imagined, coming from the future to the past will definitely cause some special changes. However, the current situation is still within our control. The change is just that one of the Heroic Spirits has a problem with time."

"However, even this small change will lead to a lot of changes."

"Uncle Tohsaka's death was actually closely related to that Heroic Spirit. Based on what we learned later, we speculate that Kirei Kotomine had some kind of relationship with that Heroic Spirit, which led to Uncle Tohsaka's death."

"But now that Heroic Spirit's personality has changed. He's not as tyrannical as he used to be. In other words, Kirei Kotomine will definitely not succeed this time. But this has completely changed the future."

"I can't predict what will happen next."

This was a situation that Kiritsugu Emiya had not anticipated, but he had guessed that such a thing might happen, and he already understood that what he was about to face was the normal Holy Grail War.

"Next, we'll proceed according to the normal procedures of the Holy Grail War. Archer and Rider are troublesome characters of the same level, so we'll deal with them later."

"Berserker, Caster, and Lancer are the ones that are easier to deal with right now, so we need to keep an eye on them first."

“I think Berserker will be watched by a lot of people, but Berserker’s Master is a bit stupid. He summoned Berserker to collide with Archer under those circumstances today. No one would do such a stupid thing without a reason.”

"Yes, Matou Kariya and Tohsaka Tokiomi... there must be some unknown grudges between them."

Kariya Matou had voluntarily given up his right to inherit the Matou family, but a year before the Holy Grail War began, he returned to the Matou family and even took the initiative to become one of the Masters of the Holy Grail War.

Such seemingly inexplicable actions must have some underlying reason, but Kiritsugu Emiya is currently unable to clearly investigate the cause.

However, it is certain that Matou Kariya and Tohsaka Tokiomi have some grudges, and these grudges are irreconcilable. Could this relationship be exploited? Emiya Kiritsugu needs time to think about this.

“Foster father, there is another piece of information about Caster.”

"According to Artoria, that Caster's real name is Gilles de Rais, and he was once a marshal of the Kingdom of Fa. It seems that this person thinks Artoria is Joan of Arc."

"In other words, Caster will come to you on his own initiative, but dealing with Caster now will expose too much of your potential."

Shirou nodded slightly in agreement. He could handle Caster, but doing so would expose his abilities.

"Then we should refrain from taking action against Caster for the time being. Right now, you need to conceal your abilities and avoid revealing yourself unless absolutely necessary."

"Berserker's Master will actively seek out Tokiomi Tohsaka. As it stands, Berserker is far from being a match for that Heroic Spirit. It would be great if he could just go and die willingly."

"If Caster sees Saber as Joan of Arc, Caster will definitely start looking for your place soon."

“I’m not worried about that. Medea and I have turned our home into another world, which also prevents outsiders from finding us. Caster can’t find us with magic unless he sees us come out of there with his own eyes.”

The Emiya residence has been decorated for so long; it is the result of Shirou and Medea's joint efforts, and those decorations have turned the Emiya residence into a temple.

Caster's idea of ​​exploring the interior of Emiya's residence is simply a pipe dream.

Therefore, Shirou can confidently state here that it is unrealistic for Caster to find them before they are exposed.

Chapter 143 A Trial Ring Given to Foster Father

"Lord El-Melloi was an excellent magician, but it was also because of that talent that he became arrogant and full of confidence in many things. However, his confidence often became the reason for his downfall."

"Having witnessed the power of the Heroic Spirits, his most desired target is definitely not Archer, whose strength is far inferior to his. Instead, Saber is his target."

"Moreover, he should be able to deduce that I am the representative of Einzbern, and given the magical abilities I have demonstrated, there is a very high possibility that he will regard me as an opponent."

"Yes, the possibility is indeed very high."

"According to my intelligence, Lord El-Melloi is in a very bad situation at the Clock Tower, partly due to his poor reputation in recent times. It is possible that he and his generation of monarchs will not be able to keep their positions, which is why he participated in the Holy Grail War to make his family's name known."

Seeking fame and fortune—that's the desire of magicians, or rather, the desire of everyone.

Magicians may not want fame or fortune, but they definitely have a sense of honor.

Just like many college graduates take various professional certification exams, what are those certifications? They're just things to increase one's value and enrich one's resume.

Don't magicians need these things? Wrong, they need them just the same.

"It's inevitable. Magician families all have their own honor, an honor they learn from childhood. Naturally, every member of a magician family hopes to make this honor known to more people."

The saying "He who has no desires is invincible" is not just a saying. People without desires are the most steadfast, and such people have almost no blind spots in their hearts.

But as long as there is desire, even if it is not a desire but a hope, it is the same.

"However, the best way for him to make a name for himself is naturally to defeat one of the Einzbern, Tohsaka, or Matou families."

"Although most Masters can imagine how fragile Matou's Master is after I guide them, if Lord El-Melloi wants to make a name for himself, he certainly wouldn't choose Matou, who is about to leave the stage."

"Tohsaka and Einzbern are undoubtedly the best choices."

"The Heroic Spirits of the Tohsaka family are exceptionally powerful, and they have almost no chance of winning in a one-on-one fight. Therefore, the difference in strength between the Heroic Spirits of the Einzbern family and Lancer is not that great. In addition, Saber is very famous, so challenging the Einzbern family would be the most beneficial for him."

For a magician who wants to make a name for himself through the Holy Grail War, challenging a famous family in the magician's world is the best way.

Kiritsugu Emiya thought the same thing, so he was also considering the possibility of initially dealing with Lancer.

"Dealing with Lord El-Melloi isn't a huge problem, but the real issue is how to let Lord El-Melloi know where Saber and I are?"

"If Caster finds out Saber's location now, he will definitely be drawn to her as well."

"Hmm... I'll deal with Kenneth, Saber will deal with Lancer."

"Is the intention to have Masters fight Masters and Servants fight Servants, completely separating the battle situations... This way, Saber won't have any soft spots and can focus wholeheartedly on fighting Lancer?"

"Then I'll have to deal with Caster."

"Is this alright? The other party is a Heroic Spirit."

"It's fine for me to deal with Heroic Spirits. Even if I don't reveal too much of my abilities, dealing with a Caster shouldn't be a problem."

"If that's the case, then so be it."

Tactical decisions don't need to be complicated; determining a direction is enough.

However, Shirou was somewhat uneasy about his adoptive father going after Lord El-Melloi.

He shook his head but still took out a prototype ring he had made earlier from the prop box.

"Lord El-Melloi is not an easy magician to deal with; it's not entirely unreasonable for him to be called a genius."

"This is my previous prototype. Although it cannot be reused an unlimited number of times, it can be used up to three times."

He took the jeweled ring from Shirou's hand. At first glance, it seemed to be a magic tool, but Kiritsugu Emiya didn't know what type it was.

"This ring has a very simple function: to completely stop time in the world for three seconds."

"!?"

Stop time in the world?

With just this explanation, Kiritsugu Emiya already knew the value of the ring. If it could stop time in the world, even for just three seconds, this ring would definitely be a legendary magical artifact.

"This is my initial prototype. It turns out that ordinary materials can hardly withstand this kind of power. If the materials were better, I might be able to make multiple energy storage rings, but the materials I have now are only at this level."

"This level..."

This is already quite a terrifying thing, okay?

A three-second pause is a considerable amount of time; if the opportunity is seized, three seconds can be fatal.

Now he can reload in three seconds, which means that if he uses this ring properly, he can easily kill a magician if he finds an opportunity.

"Indeed, this is the best we can do. It could have been made much better, but the material limitations are really significant."

"But I've already tried my best. I really don't have any good solutions for the material problem. After all, materials are something that goes beyond technology. Getting those materials is much more difficult than making them."

There aren't many materials that can contain the power of time. If it's just about acceleration and deceleration, some ordinary gemstones can be used as materials.

However, the stopping of time is a completely different matter.

That truly means the entire world stops time for three seconds, an effect even greater than acceleration or deceleration.

Because of its powerful functionality, the materials required for its manufacture are extremely demanding.

Now, if Shirou wants to create that kind of magical item, he needs to obtain materials like the stone in the Vongola Rings; otherwise, he can hardly hope to make that kind of time-limited item.

"This ring is a failure, but it can still be used as a consumable item."

"Time stops three times, each time for three seconds. And this ring cannot be used continuously; the interval between each use must be at least three minutes."

"So it can be used as a one-hit kill move, but the user cannot kill directly during the time stop. As for the projectile, it is best to make sure that it can hit the target at the very moment it ends, otherwise it will follow the restriction I mentioned before, and you cannot kill within the stopped world."

Chapter 144 This is like adopting a divine son!

Shirou himself is not subject to the restriction of not being able to kill during the time stop, but the ring that Shirou made that can stop time does have this restriction.

Having control over something yourself and using tools are two different things.

The ring has many limitations, but Kiritsugu Emiya sees great potential in them.

"It can be used simply by infusing magic into the ring."

"Because it is a prototype, there is a limit to the number of times it can be used, and the magic power required to pause the time is not very large."

"Although the ring has many limitations, such as the number of times it can be used and the prohibition against killing while using it, it is still a legendary magic item."