"Of course, we won't back down. We didn't seventy years ago, and we certainly won't now. The Edelfelt family isn't like the Tohsaka family, relying on deceitful methods and hiding behind others."
"What did you say? Say that again!"
Hearing Luvia's words, an obvious look of anger appeared on Rin Tohsaka's face. From childhood, she had taken pride in being the daughter of the Tohsaka family. The honor of the Tohsaka family was her honor, and she would not allow anyone to tarnish it.
"I can say it as many times as you like. The Tohsaka family only knows how to use deceitful methods and hide behind others."
Luvia snorted coldly, her tone full of undisguised mockery.
"You're trying to anger me, to provoke me into making a mistake, aren't you? I'm not falling for it."
Rin narrowed her eyes, her fleeting expression strikingly similar to Gilgamesh's when he was angered.
"Only the Tohsaka family would think like that. I'm not that petty; I'm simply stating the facts," Luvia's tone dripped with even more sarcasm.
"If it's a fact, then show me the evidence. Otherwise, it's slander—and your insults to the Tohsaka family are insults to both yourself and the Edelfelt family."
"I've already laid out the evidence clearly in the challenge letter. Seventy years ago, during the Third Holy Grail War, the Edelfelt family head at the time sent twin sisters to Fuyuki to participate as Masters."
Due to the mystical significance of twins and the Edelfelt family's unique twin Magic Crests, the Servant summoned by the twin sisters was quite special. On the surface, it appeared to be two Servants, both in the Saber class, but in reality, they were two aspects of the same Heroic Spirit—light and dark.
Two Sabers, two Masters, and twin sisters—or perhaps even the same person—meant that their combined power was far greater than merely one plus one. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that, at the time, they were an unbeatable team destined for victory.
And indeed, that was the case. The twin sisters crushed all their enemies along the way, including the Matou family, secretly controlled by Zouken, and the Einzberns, who had conducted an illegal summoning.
In the final stages of the war, the twin sisters faced the Tohsaka family head at the time—Rin's grandfather, the father of Tokiomi Tohsaka. The result? The older sister left Japan alone, vowing never to set foot on Japanese soil again. Since then, the Edelfelt family has harbored a grudge against the Tohsaka family.
Rumor had it that the sisters turned against each other for unknown reasons, leading to the Edelfelt family's defeat, with the older sister killing the younger one. In reality, the younger sister did not die but became the wife of the Tohsaka family head—Rin's grandmother.
At this point, the truth was clear: the reason for the twins' falling out was a man, and that broke their invincible bond. The Edelfelt family's grudge against the Tohsaka family stemmed from the same cause—
"If it weren't for the Tohsaka family head seducing my great aunt, how could the Edelfelt family have lost? Isn't that despicable enough? That's the best evidence there is!"
"Oh, so something so interesting happened."
After hearing Luvia's story, Gilgamesh automatically switched into his mode of delighted spectator, while Rin stood stunned for several seconds before exclaiming:
"Wait, why didn't I know about this?"
"Normal people wouldn't tell their descendants about such disgraceful things. Great aunt passed away early, so you never had the chance to meet her."
Luvia's words were logical and well-founded, leaving even Rin, who was skilled in debate, with little to refute. She could only weakly argue.
"Uh... how do I know you're not making this up?"
"That little girl isn't lying."
"My Master isn't lying."
Gilgamesh and Karna spoke simultaneously, then glanced at each other thoughtfully.
Luvia smiled. "Heh, see? Even your Servant can't stand it anymore."
Rin, on the other hand, grew even more exasperated.
"Never mind the other side's Servant, but whose side are you on?"
"I'm just stating the facts."
Gilgamesh shrugged nonchalantly. "Besides, different perspectives yield different conclusions. From this king's point of view, this is nothing more than a farce among mongrels."
"They're still my grandparents. Could you at least show them some respect?"
"The fact that this king is even listening to this farce is the greatest respect they could hope for. The reason your grandfather and the Edelfelt twins ended up in such a state is simple: they weren't strong enough. Their Servants were just ordinary mongrels, not true heroes. If they were true heroes, whether it was one mongrel, two mongrels, or even more, they would all be wiped out."
As always, Gilgamesh delivered his unreasonable proclamations.
Rin was too tired to argue with him. How would you know they were mongrels when you don't even know who was summoned? And weren't you slain by a mongrel—no, a mad dog who wasn't even worthy of being called a mongrel in the last war?
Meanwhile, Luvia once again marveled at her luck. Like Bazett, she hadn't specifically prepared a relic to summon any particular Servant. The catalyst she used was a solar stone passed down from the Age of Gods. Her thinking at the time had been simple: most heroes associated with the sun were strong, so as long as her luck wasn't terrible, she wouldn't summon a weakling.
Not only was her luck not terrible, but it was off the charts—she had drawn the grand prize. Compared to the troublesome guy on the other side, Karna was a victory in every way, especially in terms of personality.
As she reflected, Luvia didn't forget to maintain her dignity.
"So, this other Archer over here considers himself a true hero, does he?"
"You can't even make that distinction? It seems you're just as immature as Rin."
Hearing Gilgamesh's comment, Luvia's smile froze on her face. She repeatedly reminded herself to stay elegant and composed, suppressing her near-explosive emotions before managing to awkwardly reply.
"Who would've thought even true heroes could misjudge people."
"Misjudged? This king doesn't think so."
Gilgamesh's snake-like eyes roamed freely over Luvia's face, his smile growing even more amused.
"Your current expression, trying to suppress your anger yet barely managing it, looks just like Rin's. Speaking of which, weren't the twin sisters from seventy years ago your grandmothers? That makes you two distant cousins, doesn't it? No wonder your personalities are so similar, even down to your tsundere tendencies."
"I'm not a tsundere!"
"I'm not a tsundere!"
"And don't say my personality is like hers!"
"And don't say my personality is like hers!"
The two girls, connected by shared blood, spoke in unison—twice!
"Stop saying the same thing as me!"
"Stop saying the same thing as me!"
No, make that three times!
Even the ever-stoic Karna couldn't help but stifle a laugh.
Gilgamesh, on the other hand, burst out into boisterous laughter. "Hahahaha, delightful, this is truly delightful. Though your behavior reminds this king of a pair of troublesome twin goddesses, you're far better by nature—and much cuter, too!"