Who are you calling a stable boy?!

Looking at his daughter, who seemed to be swallowed up by the sofa, with her little brown-red leather boots dangling in mid-air and unable to touch the ground, Shichen remained silent for a moment before sitting down on the single sofa to Zheng Jing's right.

That is, sitting opposite Rin.

With this sitting, the father and daughter seemed to be on opposite ends of a scale.

Looking at Zheng Jing and then at Lin, Tokiomi admitted that the current situation had exceeded all his expectations.

He originally thought that Zheng Jing simply cherished Lin as a child.

But now it seems that Zheng Jing truly respects Rin as his Master.

"Father..."

Rin was the first to speak.

Her small hands gripped her dress tightly as she gazed at Shi Chen, her eyes filled with earnestness.

"Please abandon this Holy Grail War!"

Upon hearing this, Tokiomi did not respond immediately.

He only spoke slowly after Kirei brought over the coffee, black tea, and black tea with milk for the three of them.

"......cold."

"Yes!"

“You have always been a smart and studious child, so you must remember that I once told you that reaching the ‘Root’ is the wish of me, the Tohsaka family, and almost every magician.”

"..."

"Now, the opportunity to reach the [Root] is right in front of me. I need to think about whether this will be the only opportunity I have in my life."

Tokiomi's tone was gentle and calm, without the slightest hint of coercion.

The more Rin listened to him speak, the more he seemed to back down.

"Rin, what you're asking me to give up now is precisely this kind of opportunity."

"Father..."

"What makes you think you can convince me to give up?"

"Father, the Holy Grail has now been corrupted!"

Do you have any evidence to prove this?

"The previous session—"

“I mean, something more practical, more accurate, and ideally, something that presents me with an undeniable and definitive result. Do you have such evidence, Rin?”

"I...but, but Father, that thing! The Holy Grail...it has become an evil object that can harm even the most remote areas!"

Rin jumped off the sofa and shouted loudly.

"so what?"

Tokiomi remained expressionless and responded calmly.

"The Holy Grail's ability to reach the Root is not necessarily impaired as a result."

Rin looked at Tokiomi in disbelief.

She couldn't imagine that her father, who had always guided her on the right path, who was always perfect and meticulous, who seemed to have abandoned all distortion and evil and practiced the way of integrity and balance, would say such things.

She trembled slightly and slowly lowered her head.

"..."

"Can't you do it, Rin?"

After a moment, Tokiomi asked again, "Should we give up?"

"...I really can't produce the kind of evidence you want, Father."

Rin's hands clenched into fists.

"But I will not give up!"

She suddenly raised her head and stared at Shi Chen.

"If words don't work, then let strength do the talking! The mistakes Father may have made—should be corrected by me, Rin Tohsaka, the next head of the Tohsaka family!"

"......hehe."

Tokiomi suddenly closed his eyes.

"That's right, Rin."

As he clapped, a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

"Passing down traditions is essential, whether it's magic itself or the family spirit of magicians; both need to be passed down from generation to generation. However, valuing tradition doesn't mean sticking to the old ways. Reform, innovation, and even the courage to correct the mistakes of our ancestors—that's the true meaning of tradition..."

Tokiomi stood up, walked to Rin who was still in a daze, knelt down on one knee, and patted Rin's shoulder.

"You have inherited the spirit of the Tohsaka family very well, Rin."

"Father..."

Seeing the slight tears in Rin's eyes, Tokiomi nodded.

Magicians are a group that is both complex and simple.

Therefore, in many cases, rather than words, only by relying on sufficient power—whether spiritual or magical—can one maintain absolute self-identity in the path of magic.

He hadn't expected to do this kind of education with Rin so early.

Is it the Holy Grail War that accelerated this process, or...?

Tokiomi looked at Jeong Kyung, who was still lying on the sofa.

"Based on the master's hint last night, I did find information about the Einzbern family's illegal summoning of the abnormal Servant Avenger during the last Holy Grail War. If it is that Angra Mainyu, there is indeed a possibility that he could corrupt the Greater Grail. Even if it is only a possibility, as the administrator of Fuyuki City, I, Tokiomi Tohsaka, cannot turn a blind eye to it."

Standing up straight, Tokiomi Tohsaka spoke with a serious expression.

"I will have Li Zheng assist me from the sidelines, and intervene in this Holy Grail War that has already been corrupted, in the name of the Holy Church as the overseer."

"Oh?"

Zheng Jing raised an eyebrow and sat up.

"You agreed so readily, but can you really provide that Jinhua ham?"

"I have my own arrangements for Archer."

"Hey, for Rin's sake, if three Command Seals aren't enough for you, I, Old Zheng, will save you this time and send him back to the Throne of Heroes!"

"Thank you, Master!"

Tokiomi bowed and gave a salute.

Although he had three Command Seals in hand and with the assistance of Risei, he did not think he would fail. However, with Jeong-kyung's words, Tokiomi felt even more at ease.

"It's nothing, it's nothing."

Zheng Jing waved his hand.

Seeing that Zheng Jing seemed to be in a better mood, Shichen pondered for a moment and decided to take this opportunity to ask a question that had been weighing on his mind.

"Master, I dare to ask you a question and hope you can enlighten me."

"Hmm? You go ahead."

"I wonder why you attacked the Matou family that day, Master?"

—Immediately afterward, Tokiomi, whose clothes were being forcefully pulled by Rin, saw Zheng Jing's face darken instantly.

Chapter 115: I, Old Zheng, only need a few words

"what......"

Rin let out a long sigh.

"Hey, Rin, why are you sighing like that?"

Beside her, Zheng Jing looked at her with a grin.

"Isn't it a good thing to be able to convince your unfortunate father?"

Rin didn't respond, but just slumped her shoulders, raised her head, and glared at Zheng Jing.

It would be a good thing to be able to persuade one's father to give up this Holy Grail War.

At that moment, she made the biggest and most ruthless decision of her life. If she couldn't persuade her father, she would really work with Zheng Jing to drive her father's servants out of the game and force him to lose his qualification to participate in the war as a Master.

Fortunately, her father did not disappoint her.

...But that last question was really asking the wrong question.

Rin originally intended to wait until everything settled down and Zheng Jingye was sent away before talking to Tokiomi about Sakura.

Who would have thought that Shishin would deliver himself to Zheng Jing at this time?

"Ugh."

Thinking of how Tokiomi had been scolded by Seijin just now, Rin couldn't help but sigh again.

This was the first time in her life she had ever seen her father like that.

It's just like those boys in class who always get dragged to the teacher's office and scolded for misbehaving...

However, Rin also learned from her father that he was unaware that Matou was such a den of iniquity.

That makes sense; among magicians, concealing one's moves is the most basic skill.

Despite the fact that the three starter families seem to be allies who have cooperated for hundreds of years, they will actually become enemies as soon as the Holy Grail War begins.

In this situation, concealing one's moves becomes an even more crucial aspect of the game.

Even after searching through all the Tohsaka family documents, Tokiomi only knew that the Matou family was a magic family that was extremely skilled at creating and controlling familiars. How could he possibly know about the Matou's secret techniques or Zouken's secrets?

Of course, this is not a reason to erase his mistakes.

Tokiomi truly had no intention of shirking his responsibilities.

That's why he only got a good scolding from Zheng Jing.

As for how he should make amends for his mistakes and how he should face Sakura...

"Ugh."

"No, Rin, don't act like Tokiomi died. I, Old Zheng, did have the thought of letting him be stubborn and seeing if he was stubborn or if I was stubborn, but he didn't be stubborn."

Zheng Jing stopped and squatted down to look at Lin.

"Considering he knows he's wrong and can correct it, I've spared him the beating. What's there for you to complain about?"

"...I'm thinking about the future."

Rin muttered something.

"Oh? Later?"

"I don't know how to help my father and Sakura with their relationship..."

Zheng Jing scratched his cheek, his eyes darted around, and he remained silent.

Rin glanced at him furtively, and seeing that Zheng Jingzhen had no intention of offering advice, she lowered her head and continued walking forward.

"How about we go rest for a while up ahead?"

With one hand pressing down on Rin's shoulder, Zheng Jing pointed with his other finger to a small restaurant not far ahead.

“If you go back now, you probably won’t make it in time for Mrs. Kui’s lunch.”

Logically, since they were already there, Tokiomi should have invited Zheng Jing and Rin to stay for a meal and try his cooking skills.

Well, you know what, when it comes to cooking, despite Tokiomi Tohsaka's reputation, he's actually quite skilled.

Before the Holy Grail War began, he dismissed the servants in his mansion and sent away his wife and daughters. Naturally, he had to take care of all the food and drink that came from the world.

We can't exactly have Qili come to the house to make Mapo Tofu, can we?

Unfortunately, fearing that Gilgamesh might suddenly return and run into Zheng Jing, Tokiomi still sent Zheng Jing and Rin out of the Tohsaka residence before lunchtime.

The two adults and the child didn't get to eat at the Tohsaka family's meal.

Rin touched her stomach.