"Ladies and gentlemen: we will soon be arriving at Fuyuki City Airport. The aircraft has begun its descent. Please cooperate with our safety inspection procedures, return your seatbacks to the upright position, fasten your seatbelts, and stow your tray tables. Make sure your personal belongings are properly secured."
"Thank you for your cooperation. We wish you a pleasant journey."
High above the skies tens of kilometers from Fuyuki City, an Airbus A320 flying from London to Fuyuki began its gradual descent under the guidance of the airport control tower.
The formulaic announcement informed the passengers that the flight was about to reach its destination.
Seated by the window, a slender man wearing a red overcoat, a beige scarf draped over his shoulders, and long, loosely flowing hair stared at the brightly lit, bustling seaside airport drawing ever closer beneath the wing. A trace of loneliness flickered through his eyes.
Through the window, everything seemed unchanged.
Only the once-impulsive youth had matured—and in a rather surreal twist of fate, had inherited the title of the mentor he once found mutually intolerable.
"I'm back..."
After ten years, Lord El-Melloi II—no, rather, the magus Waver Velvet—once again set foot on the path to Fuyuki City.
On the plane, he had once more thoroughly reread the documents regarding the Fuyuki Holy Grail War given to him by the Director of the Department of Spiritual Evocation, material he already knew by heart.
"Tohsaka, Einzbern, Makiri (Matou)..."
Without question, the so-called Three Founding Families of Fuyuki had all declined.
The Tohsaka family was reduced to a single surviving branch. The core members of the Einzbern family were nearly extinct, and it was said that now only a group of alchemical homunculi bearing the Einzbern name remained to uphold it.
As for the Makiri family, which had renamed itself Matou, their situation was even more miserable. At least the other two families nominally still possessed heirs capable of practicing magecraft, but the Makiri line might already be completely extinct, its magical bloodline utterly severed.
'Mission: Investigate the anomalies in the Fifth Holy Grail War of Fuyuki City and destroy the Holy Grail. If necessary, completely dismantle the Greater Grail system of Fuyuki City. Thoroughly bring an end to the Holy Grail ritual in the Far East.'
Thinking of the mission assigned to him for this journey, Waver Velvet fell into contemplation.
Was something wrong with the Greater Grail, or was there a problem with the participants of this Holy Grail War—and a serious one at that?
Otherwise, why would those old monsters in the Clock Tower, who pursued the ultimate path of magecraft and sought the Root, take notice of a small magical ritual in the Far East?
But why would they not come personally to handle it? Would that not be more reliable? Instead, they had sent a third-rate magus like him back for a "second round."
Was it not that they did not want to, but that they could not? Or that they disdained to? Or were they restrained by some rule...? Waver Velvet did not feel like pondering further. Perhaps it was simply a realm beyond the reach of a pseudo-lord like him.
Whenever he thought of their cryptic riddles—"fate," "destiny," "the greater flow cannot be altered," "Counter Force," "Age of Gods," "Human Order"—his head began to ache.
You damn riddlers, get out of the classroom!
"The tainted Holy Grail... the evil of this world..." As he spoke, the horrific scene engraved in his memory surfaced involuntarily—
A black sun. A world dyed in crimson. Charred and twisted corpses. Agonized, despairing screams. A burning city. It all felt like something from another lifetime.
"This is troublesome..."
Waver Velvet rubbed his forehead, his expression turning grim. Was it truly the evil of this world?
As for what to do with the Holy Grail after winning the war, those old foxes had not made it explicit. On the surface, it seemed he had full discretion—he could realize a wish, prevent a wish, or—destroy everything.
But Waver Velvet was certain that those old relics had already prepared corresponding countermeasures.
If he chose to follow the mission and destroy the Holy Grail, so be it. But if he dared to covet it and claim it for himself, he would likely be erased from the Clock Tower the very moment the war ended.
There might even be a retrieval squad trailing right behind him as a precaution.
"Sigh... they've calculated everything perfectly. They know I can't abandon the El-Melloi classroom..."
To put it bluntly, even his adoptive sister Reines El-Melloi Archisorte, his disciple Gray, and his close friend Melvin Weinz were effectively hostages.
Let's just hope the things you old fossils prepared will actually work.
"Sir, you seem a bit unwell. Is something bothering you? Is there anything I can assist you with?"
With a professional smile and a practiced bow, a neatly dressed flight attendant with Eastern features asked in standard British-accented English.
"Ah, thank you. I'm fine."
Only then did Waver Velvet realize that the plane had already landed smoothly and connected with the jet bridge. The surrounding passengers were busy gathering their luggage.
Sitting there motionless with a furrowed brow did make him stand out.
"Very well, sir. We wish you a pleasant journey."
Picking up his briefcase, Waver Velvet nodded to the attendant and followed the crowd off the plane.
It was the hour of transition between day and night. After stepping outside, the somewhat intense floodlights shone directly from a distance, and Waver instinctively raised his left hand to shield his eyes.
"Hm?"
At that moment, a numbing pain shot across the back of his hand. Looking closely, beneath the pure black glove, a streak of pitch-black light quietly emerged through the leather.
A tattoo-like pattern was engraved on the back of his hand. It was the Command Spell that manifested when the Holy Grail acknowledged Waver Velvet as a Master.
A black Command Spell... An emergency mechanism of the Greater Grail?
Waver Velvet narrowed his eyes.
According to the archives provided by the Clock Tower, aside from the standard battle among seven Servants like the Fourth Holy Grail War he had experienced, the Greater Grail could activate auxiliary measures related to the war, such as redistributing Command Spells, depending on circumstances.
Although the possibility was low, if all seven Servants were unified under a single faction, the backup system would be triggered to devise a countermeasure. That was how the Three Founding Families had originally designed it.
Because the magical energy accumulated ten years ago had not been used to grant a wish before the Holy Grail was destroyed,
Fuyuki's ten years—no, seventy years—of continuously accumulated magical energy reserves meant that even if seven additional Servants were summoned, it would not be entirely unexpected.
Though if things went wrong, it might completely drain the spiritual veins beneath Fuyuki City.
"However... If seven Servants truly belong to a single faction—or a single individual—how did he manage that?"
Aside from irregular summons, Waver Velvet could think of no other explanation.
"Another magus blinded by desire, perhaps."
The Holy Grail War...
To the present-day Waver, the so-called wish-granting Holy Grail was nothing more than a moth lamp luring fools to their doom.
Even the mutual slaughter between Servants was, in truth, completely meaningless.
Only because the ritual's structure was exceptionally refined had that fact been hidden away in secrecy. Ironically, even the Three Founding Families who knew the true purpose—though the current participants among them did not—were still required to participate fairly.
Completely different from the anxiety he had felt the first time, ten years later, stepping onto this land once more, Waver Velvet felt only a quiet sigh.
"Ruler... the Ruler class, the Arbiter. Compared to Rider, what kind of Servant will that be...?"
Following the airport signs toward the exit, he tightened his grip on the briefcase containing the Saint Graph catalyst.
...
"Ah, this is bad, this is bad!"
"Why did they have to start fighting here of all places?! That idiot Emiya won't have been targeted by the other Servants as prey, will he?"
Under the influence of the People-Clearing Field, the main road near Homurahara Academy was completely deserted. The first thing that came into view was the back of a girl in a crimson coat, running in a fluster.
Her long black hair, tied into twin tails behind her ears with black ribbons, bounced up and down as she ran. Beneath her skirt and coat, her slender legs were fully wrapped in black stockings.
Not bad at all. No wonder Shinji, that seasoned degenerate, once evaluated her as "someone I could play with for a whole year."
"What on earth happened at the academy? That level of magical energy fluctuation... is it a chaotic battle between multiple Servants?"
"Archer! Go check it out—ah!"
Archer suddenly appeared in front of her, causing Rin Tohsaka to stumble from the collision. "Archer!"
"You'd better have an explanation." Frowning as she glared at the red-cloaked Servant who had materialized before her, Rin applied silent pressure with her eyes.
"Uh..."
'If you don't give me a proper explanation, you can apologize with your life!'
Reading that sentiment from the corner of his Master's eyes, the red-clad Servant let out a helpless sigh and manifested his twin black-and-white blades.
"Rin, be careful. That's a Servant-level magical energy reaction."
In the next instant—
Boom!
As the dust from the impact gradually dispersed, a dark shield and a head of cherry-blossom-colored hair came into view.
"Excuse us for interrupting! Master over there—"
Appearing before Rin Tohsaka and Archer was a young man dressed in a black Chaldea uniform, exuding a gentle temperament.
Short black hair. Blue-green eyes.
For some reason, the moment she saw him, Rin felt an inexplicable sense of déjà vu. He resembled her. Or rather, he felt strangely similar.
Rin's naturally overactive mind instantly ran wild.
Could he be Father's illegitimate son...? W-wait, no! I'm sorry, Father! That was disrespectful!
As the young man extended his hand, Rin quickly noticed the conspicuous Command Spell pattern engraved on the back of his right hand. Her eyes narrowed slightly.
But wait. The patterns and insignia on his uniform looked somewhat like the crest of one of the Twelve Lords of the Clock Tower—the Animusphere family of the Department of Astromancy.
Unlike half-baked participants like Shirou Emiya and Shinji Matou—barely magi, or not even magi at all—Rin had received orthodox magecraft education since childhood. Naturally, she was deeply familiar with the authority of the Clock Tower.
The Animusphere family, one of the Twelve Lords and a supporter of the aristocratic faction—if someone were discovered impersonating their crest, the punishment would be self-evident.
So for the moment, Rin did not consider the possibility that the opposing magus was merely impersonating the Animusphere emblem.
No way!
Ahhh, this is so annoying! As if dealing with irregular summons wasn't enough—now even a Lord family has shown up?!
"My name is Ritsuka Fujimaru. This is Mash."
The next moment, the opposing Master's self-introduction caused Rin to pause.
Wait—are you really a magus of the Animusphere family? Why do you give me the same impression as Shirou Emiya, that half-trained amateur?
"And this little one is Fou."
"Fou~ fufu!"
He even introduced a small white creature that looked somewhere between a white dog and a white fox. The creature showed no fear of strangers and chirped "fou fou" at Rin.
Oh? You're even introducing your pet?
"Rin, shall we attack?" Archer transmitted to her silently.
"Wait." Rin tilted her head gracefully.
"Rin Tohsaka."
Remembering the Tohsaka family's creed of elegance, she finally composed herself. Brushing the dust from her skirt, she introduced herself to Ritsuka Fujimaru with refined poise.
"Then, good evening, Mr. Ritsuka Fujimaru."
"No need for honorifics. Just call me Ritsuka Fujimaru."
"Miss Rin Tohsaka, I would like to—"
"If you want to discuss an alliance, we can talk after tonight! I'm very busy right now!"
It was not only Rin who felt that Ritsuka resembled her. Ritsuka also felt that Rin resembled him. Yet their temperaments were completely different. In contrast, Rin carried an unmistakable air of authority.
Though caught off guard, her beautiful gem-like eyes met Ritsuka's directly, without the slightest trace of timidity. Her fair, delicate face bore a calm and composed expression. Though she stood only about one hundred sixty centimeters tall—shorter than Ritsuka—she somehow appeared even more imposing.
Those jewel-like eyes ignored the timid shield-bearing Servant at Ritsuka's side and stepped closer. Her brows knit slightly, her pink lips forming a downward curve that revealed her displeasure.
"Don't block my way."
Without hesitation, she brushed past Ritsuka.
"..."
"Senpai... what should we do? I have no idea what's going on." Mash stepped forward and whispered softly. To be honest, she too was intrigued by the uncanny similarity between Rin and Ritsuka.
Watching Archer dematerialize once more and Rin's retreating figure, Ritsuka suddenly remembered something.
"It's him—the fallen Archer."
Mash blinked. "The archer we encountered during our first Rayshift?"
"Yeah. Fuyuki... Fuyuki. I see now."
Ritsuka murmured in realization.
Just then—
"Hello? Hello? This is Chaldea Control Room. Can you hear me? Ritsuka, can you hear us?"
A pale blue translucent screen flickered into existence midair. On it appeared Romani Archaman in his Chaldea uniform.
The moment communication was restored, he shouted anxiously,
"Ritsuka, hurry and follow the girl named Rin Tohsaka! The direction she's heading shows intense readings of corruption energy!"