Did the Heroic Spirit I conquered become a reality?

That's more like... an overly perfect excuse deliberately fabricated to cover something up.

...What exactly are they hiding?

Thinking about this filled Rin Tohsaka with an indescribable sense of unease.

Just then, an extremely faint black shadow suddenly flashed past her room window!

The string of "vigilance" in Rin Tohsaka's heart instantly tightened to its limit!

"Who?!"

She questioned him in a cold voice, and almost at the same time, she quickly rolled off the bed.

The girl was wearing a pink silk nightgown. The smooth fabric clung to her shapely figure, which was perfect from years of exercise and full of youthful vitality, outlining just the right amount of girlish innocence and alluring curves.

Without the slightest hesitation, she followed the extremely faint aura and instantly located the intruder's position.

Several gems, shimmering with magical light, had already appeared at her fingertips, ready to be flicked out at any moment.

But at that moment, the dark figure moved even faster than her!

Before Rin Tohsaka could throw the gem in her hand, a figure appeared silently in front of her like a ghost.

A warm and strong hand stepped forward and covered her small mouth, which was about to cry out in surprise.

"Well……"

Rin Tohsaka's pupils suddenly contracted, her eyes widening in disbelief as she struggled desperately.

However, when he saw the handsome face that looked so familiar even in the dim light, he was completely stunned.

"elder brother……?"

Book 1: Chapter 91 The First Night of the Holy Grail War, Scáthach's Temptation

The atmosphere inside was somewhat quiet. Rin Tohsaka stared wide-eyed at the boy before her, incredulous.

"Please keep your voice down, okay?" Yu Tohsaka asked in a low voice.

Rin Tohsaka immediately realized what was happening and nodded emphatically.

Then, she lowered her voice and asked, "Brother? Is something the matter so late?"

For some reason, even though it was just a casual chat, she felt a strange, inexplicable tension.

It was as if they were afraid of being discovered by something.

Yu Tohsaka looked at her, his dark eyes, which always held a gentle smile, were now filled with a solemnity and seriousness that was completely different from those during the day.

Instead of answering directly, he got straight to the point: "I want to talk to you about... Sakura."

"Sakura?" Rin Tohsaka frowned slightly.

"Hmm." Yu Tohsaka nodded. "What I really want to know is, what has Sakura been like all these years?"

Rin Tohsaka looked at the boy with some confusion, wondering why her brother would suddenly ask this.

But she still thought about it seriously for a moment and slowly said, "Sakura... is the same as before, very introverted, very weak, and... very dependent on me."

She paused, and a deep confusion and worry, which she herself was unaware of, flashed in her sapphire-like eyes.

"But... I don't know why, I always feel that Sakura... seems to have become a little strange since you came back, brother."

"strangeness?"

“Hmm,” Rin Tohsaka nodded, “I can’t quite put my finger on what’s strange, but it just feels like… she’s hiding something from us. Especially when she’s with you… that attachment is a bit… excessive.”

Upon hearing this, Tohsaka Yu fell into a long silence.

He knew that Rin's feeling was not wrong.

After a moment of silence, he slowly raised his head, his dark eyes fixed intently on his sister: "One last question."

"Do you intend to participate in this Holy Grail War?"

This unexpected question startled Rin Tohsaka for a moment.

Her eyes, which were always as bright as sapphires, were filled with utter and immense confusion and bewilderment.

She quickly shook her head slightly and said, "I don't actually intend to participate in something as dangerous as the Holy Grail War..."

She paused slightly, as if thinking of her father who had put himself and his family in danger for years in pursuit of the "roots," and her tone involuntarily carried a complex emotion.

"Do you really think I would do what my father did, risking my own and Sakura's safety for that vague 'wish'?"

Yu Tohsaka looked at her quietly, her eyes filled with pure, unadulterated worry and sincerity.

He knew that Rin was not lying.

Unlike Sakura... she hasn't been drawn into this Holy Grail War yet.

Thinking of this, the heaviest boulder that had been hanging in Tohsaka Yu's heart finally... settled down a little.

"I'm sorry, Rin." The serious expression on his face softened, replaced by a gentle smile full of apology from the bottom of his heart. "I was overthinking it."

He looked at his sister's eyes, which still held a hint of confusion and annoyance, and explained softly, "I'm just a little worried. Fuyuki City has been too turbulent lately, and I'm afraid you might get involved in something dangerous."

"Of course I know it's dangerous." Rin Tohsaka's emotions had calmed down a bit. She snorted softly, turned her head away, and said in her unique, slightly arrogant tone, "That's why I have to stay here even more to protect this family and protect Sakura."

She paused, then, as if remembering something, turned her head and looked her brother up and down with her bright eyes, a hint of scrutiny and suspicion in them.

"Speaking of which, you're the one who worries me the most, right, brother? You suddenly came back without saying a word and keep asking strange questions... Are you hiding something from me?"

Faced with her sister's scrutinizing and suspicious gaze, Tohsaka Yu's heart skipped a beat.

He knew that his flawed explanation might temporarily fool Rin, who was still a little groggy from just waking up, but it was clearly impossible to completely dispel her doubts.

A somewhat helpless yet indulgent smile appeared on his face. He reached out and gently ruffled Rin's soft hair again, saying in a half-joking tone, "What could I possibly be hiding from you? It's just that spending too much time in a place like the Clock Tower makes one a little suspicious."

"Hmph, that's for the best." Rin Tohsaka snorted lightly. Although she didn't press the matter further, a hint of suspicion still lingered in her sapphire-like eyes.

But in the end, she didn't say anything more. She just yawned slightly and waved her hand, saying, "Okay, it's late. I really need to go to sleep. Brother, you should rest early too."

Yu Tohsaka nodded gently, then turned and left the room.

My mind was still in a state of chaos.

He knew that although Rin didn't say it, she must have already begun to doubt him.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Sakura's "confession," filled with paranoia and possessiveness, and the faint magical fluctuations emanating from her that were remarkably similar to the ominous aura she had sensed at school the previous night...

All of this was like an invisible net, trapping him firmly within it.

Whether it's the Holy Grail War or Sakura...

Yu Tohsaka took a deep breath, and his usually gentle, dark eyes flashed with an unprecedented, icy determination.

It all has to be me... to end all of this.

Just as she was about to return to her room, she bumped into Sakura Tohsaka, who was just coming out of her room, at the corner of the corridor.

"Sakura...?"

For some reason, when Yu Tohsaka saw his younger sister's delicate and pretty face, he suddenly felt a little guilty.

"How did you get here...?" he asked instinctively.

"Ah... I..." Sakura Tohsaka seemed surprised to run into him here. She quickly realized what was happening and gently shook her head. "It's nothing, I just can't sleep."

Perhaps because of the ambiguous and dangerous conversation that took place in the living room not long ago, the atmosphere between the brother and sister seemed somewhat delicate at this moment.

"...I'm going back to my room now."

Soon, Sakura Tohsaka lowered her head, walked quickly past him, and returned to her room.

Yuya Tohsaka returned to his room.

In the deep darkness next door, a pair of bewitching red eyes, filled with fighting spirit, gazed thoughtfully through the wall towards the room where Tohsaka Yu was.

Because of Sakura Tohsaka's recent words, Scáthach has developed an extremely strong interest in this "older brother" of her Master, whom she has never met.

"Can you beat me...?"

Recalling the words her little Master had spoken with such certainty not long ago, Scáthach's lips curled into a smile filled with pleasure and fighting spirit, and she chuckled softly.

"When the Holy Grail War officially begins tomorrow, let me... see for myself."

……

The next day, early morning.

The atmosphere at the dining table was subtly, perfectly calm.

As usual, Yu Tohsaka prepared a sumptuous breakfast for his two younger sisters. Neither he, nor Rin and Sakura mentioned anything about what happened last night, as if the confrontation that was full of ambiguity, probing and danger was just an unreal dream.

After watching her two younger sisters go to school together, Tohsaka Yu turned around and called out to the empty air, "Saber, dinner's ready!"

With a gentle breeze, Artoria, dressed in a silver-blue knight's armor, quietly appeared in the living room.

She frowned slightly, looking at the steaming breakfast on the table that was clearly prepared for her, and said in her clear voice with a hint of helplessness, "Master, you don't need to prepare breakfast for me every time. I don't need to eat."

"Since you've already made it, why not eat some?" Tohsaka Yu smiled gently. "Otherwise, it would be a waste to throw it away."

Upon hearing this, Artoria remained silent for a moment, but ultimately succumbed to the tempting aroma of fried eggs and toasted bread, nodding slightly in agreement.

The two finished their breakfast quietly.

Artoria ate with her usual elegance and speed, as if she had undergone the most rigorous court etiquette training, but Yu Tohsaka could still see from her slightly bright emerald green eyes that she was genuinely satisfied with the breakfast.

“Saber,” Yu Tohsaka said, looking at her after clearing away the dishes, taking the initiative to steer the conversation back on track, “What did you discover about last night?”

Upon hearing this, Artoria's expression turned serious. She nodded slightly: "Following your instructions, I have been monitoring the magical activity in the city. After you left the school, that strange barrier that drained the life force of ordinary people appeared in the new district."

She paused, her clear voice carrying a hint of a warrior's candor: "However, the enemy's methods are very covert, and I cannot pinpoint their location."

"Is that so..." Tohsaka Yu nodded thoughtfully.

He knew that Artoria was a Saber-class character, and her ability in direct combat was beyond doubt, but tracking and reconnaissance were not her strengths.

But then again... Sakura appeared in the new district last night, could it be related to this matter?

As she thought of this, another person came to mind.

— Sesshouin Kiara.

A terrifying entity, full of unknowns and dangers, that should never have appeared in this era.

Why did she appear in Fuyuki? What is her purpose?

Compared to that "third-rate magician" who only secretly absorbs magic power, this woman's existence is the truly devastating and most unstable factor, capable of overturning the entire Holy Grail War.

It seems we can no longer wait passively.

Yu Tohsaka took a deep breath, and his usually gentle, dark eyes flashed with unprecedented sharpness and determination at this moment.

He looked at Artoria beside him and spoke slowly in a calm tone befitting a Master:

"Saber, get ready. The Holy Grail War is about to begin tonight."

"We... need to take the initiative."

Artoria looked at the unwavering determination in the boy's eyes, and for the first time, a genuine expression of approval appeared in those usually serious emerald green eyes.

“Very good, Master.” Her clear voice carried a hint of regal, triumphant fighting spirit. “That’s more like what a Master should be. Tell me, who is our first target?”

“The first target…” Tohsaka Yu’s gaze involuntarily turned to the window, to the city that was both familiar and strange, shrouded in rain. His voice was calm, yet carried a hint of cold sharpness.

"...It's all those wicked guys."

He knew that whether it was the mysterious magician who secretly drew magic power, or the unknown and dangerous Sesshouin Kiara, or... all the other Masters and Servants who were prepared to pay any price for the "Holy Grail," they were all potential threats to this war.

Instead of passively waiting for them to come knocking on our door one by one, we should take the initiative and nip all threats in the bud.

“Tonight,” Yu Tohsaka turned to look at Artoria, her dark eyes shining brightly in the morning light, “we’ll go somewhere. A place… that might attract other Servants.”

"Where?" Artoria asked instinctively.

“Fuyuki Port,” Tohsaka said slowly.

……

The daytime hours slipped away quietly amidst a subtle calm and an undercurrent of anticipation.

As the sun set, the torrential rain that had lasted all day finally began to subside.

Having washed away the dust, Fuyuki City appeared exceptionally tranquil and... eerie under the evening glow and the city's neon lights.