A biting wind swept through the courtyard, rolling up the snow piled on the withered branches.
Illya wore an innocent, radiant smile, while Tohsaka Rin's fingers unconsciously rubbed at the folds of her skirt.
Her knuckles turned pale from the pressure, and there was still warmth lingering there from where Alvin had touched her earlier.
The atmosphere was faintly quiet.
Aside from the occasional sound of wind and snow, the backyard remained silent.
"Ha… huh?!!"
After who knew how long,
Tohsaka Rin's eyes widened in disbelief, her expression filled with shock.
Almost immediately, two intoxicating blushes surfaced on her cheeks as she screamed, "Miss Illya, what on earth are you suddenly talking about?!"
"A Master's purpose in participating in the Holy Grail War is only one thing, to obtain the Greater Holy Grail, right?
How could a qualified Master possibly harbor feelings toward their own Servant that go beyond a master and servant relationship?"
Her rapid stream of words clearly revealed the current state of mind of the Tohsaka family's young lady.
Obviously, she was flustered.
Illya tilted her head slightly, putting on an innocent look. "So was I mistaken?"
"Of course you were!
To begin with, you have never even interacted with me and Assassin, so how could you possibly reach such a strange conclusion?!"
Tohsaka Rin crossed her arms over her chest.
As if trying to hide the panic in her heart, her fingertips unconsciously tapped against her arm as she continued, "My reason for summoning Assassin was for the Holy Grail War. Even though the Holy Grail War seems to have developed some problems now, my thoughts have never wavered."
"...This is also for the honor of the Tohsaka family!"
When she reached the last part, her voice rose unconsciously, as if trying to cover up her own lack of confidence.
Hearing her words, a cunning light flowed through Illya's red eyes as her bare feet crushed fine ice crystals in the snow. "You always use the honor of the Tohsaka family as your shield, Rin."
"Still, hearing you say that puts my mind at ease. At first, I thought you participated in this Holy Grail War simply because you wanted to see big brother."
Tohsaka Rin snorted at her words.
"A Master summons a Servant for the sake of the Holy Grail War. Participating in the Holy Grail War just to see a Servant would be putting the cart before the horse, wouldn't it?"
Illya lightly tapped her lips with a finger, raised her head, and thought for a moment before continuing.
"That does make sense."
Hearing her own viewpoint acknowledged, a faint smile appeared on Tohsaka Rin's face. "Right?"
The latter tilted her head and said,
"But I joined this Holy Grail War purely because I wanted to see him. Not only me, but mom too...If that's the case, then it seems we could become friends."
However, hearing her words, the smile on Tohsaka Rin's face gradually faded. "Why are you suddenly saying something like that?"
"Because that means you are not my love rival."
Illya said with a cheerful smile.
"Since you are not my rival, then I don't need to consider your feelings."
After saying that, the girl lightly walked toward the house.
"Let's go back inside first. Right now, there are these special magical barriers all over Fuyuki. I don't know whether they have discussed any countermeasures yet."
...
...
At the Hall.
After waiting nearly ten minutes, Alvin and Merlin finally saw the two girls walk into the hall one after the other.
"Rin, what kind of secret talk were you two having?"
Alvin looked at the girl in front of him with confusion.
There were still two charming blushes lingering on her face, and even her snow-white skin seemed to carry a faint rosy glow, her eyes shimmering as if filled with moisture.
Noticing his gaze, Tohsaka Rin glanced at Illya beside her with a hint of guilt, then her red lips parted as she spoke in her usual Tsundere tone.
"It was just a bit of conversation between girls. There's no need to worry about it."
"That aside, did you come up with any solutions? If that barrier is not dealt with, things are going to become very troublesome afterward, won't they?"
Even though he clearly knew that Tohsaka Rin was deliberately changing the subject, Alvin tactfully chose not to press the matter and turned his gaze toward Merlin, before saying, "You explain it to her."
The frivolity on Merlin's face had already faded, and now, he spoke with a more serious tone, "Over the past few years, someone has likely been secretly setting up small-scale barriers throughout this city.
These barriers are linked together, perfectly covering the entire city. It is not realistic to destroy all of them in a short period of time."
"The only solution is to find the person behind this magecraft."
"Also, Master and I need to make a trip to Ryuudou Temple."
Merlin continued, "If my guess is correct, after absorbing enough 'desire', the person behind all of this will definitely head to the Greater Holy Grail to complete the final evolution of the Beast."
Hearing his words, Tohsaka Rin looked at the White haired Mage with a complicated expression and said,
"You know who is using this magecraft?"
"Of course."
Merlin smiled faintly. "You already know as well, don't you?"
The girl fell silent.
"Alvin, Master and I will go to Mount Enzou first and wait for you there.
If possible, it would be best to persuade the Masters participating in this Holy Grail War to temporarily join forces and deal with the threat."
"I think that if you step in, Miss Manaka would surely be willing to help."
After saying this, Merlin lightly tapped his staff, and pink flower petals quickly blurred the figures of him and Illya.
The hall immediately fell quiet.
Alvin looked at Tohsaka Rin, who was still spacing out, and extended his hand. "Let's go, Rin."
"Oh… okay."
Tohsaka Rin took hold of the young man's hand.
However, neither of them seemed to notice that in the courtyard, the pink crystal that had already been crushed into powder was quietly condensing once more, forming a delicate, vividly blooming flower.
...
....
Above the Matou residence, a flock of crows circled, letting out hoarse cries.
Morgan le Fay's courtly gown remained perfectly still in the cold wind.
The runes embroidered in gold thread along the hem of her skirt emitted a faint, ghostly blue glow as she lightly tapped the air with her fingertip.
The shadow of the Tower of Seclusion coiled around Matou Sakura's ankles like a living thing, then firmly bound her delicate body.
Almost instantly, the latter felt a faint sense of suffocation wash over her, even her breathing gradually growing hurried.
Morgan le Fay, as a mage from the final era of the Age of Gods, commanded numerous "Grand Magecrafts of the Age of Gods", and the Water Mirror was one of the magecrafts she took the greatest pride in.
It imposed "dreams" upon those trapped, then repeatedly subjected them to negative psychological assaults.
In a sense, it could also be considered a form of illusion.
"Even if you are a Beast, in the end, you are still only in your juvenile stage."
Morgan walked leisurely up to Matou Sakura, studying the girl before her with interest, and said, "I am actually quite curious. You should have been waiting for whatever is inside the Greater Holy Grail to mature, right? Why did you expose your identity so hastily?"
"If you had continued to lie low cautiously, even I would not have had much I could do to you.
After all, index magecraft can only be used after discovering the magical traces left behind by the target."
Hearing her words, Matou Sakura frowned tightly.
Under the power of the Tower of Seclusion, her body was suspended in midair, her hands seemingly bound by invisible chains, her slender body taut.
She stared fixedly at the woman before her and said softly,
"You are not Morgan le Fay in the true sense, are you?"
"If I am not mistaken, you are not in a Heroic Spirit body, but in a human body. Am I right?"