"Roar—!!!"
A massive white bear burst through the wall of a residential house, roaring furiously, its massive paw clutching a figure tightly.
Upon closer inspection, the person gripped in the bear's paw was Zuke—yet despite being squeezed by the enormous beast, his expression remained calm. After smashing through the wall with Zuke in its grasp, the white bear let out another furious roar and slammed him violently into the ground, creating a massive crater in the street.
"Did he die?"
Illyasviel sat atop the white bear's back, gazing at the crater where Zuke had been thrown, murmuring to herself.
This white bear was none other than Illyasviel's Noble Phantasm—"Howl, My Friend, My Strength."
It was formed from her comrades transformed into familiars, further enhanced by the ancient magecraft of Freyja and Louhi. The white bear's appearance was shaped by Louhi's will.
This Noble Phantasm was even ranked as EX-tier, a testament to its overwhelming power. An average Servant struck by it would either die or be left half-crippled.
But Zuke was no ordinary Servant.
As the dust settled within the crater, his figure emerged completely unharmed before Illyasviel and the white bear—not even his clothes were torn.
After all, Zuke had no interest in fighting naked. Before the battle, he had already reinforced his clothes with "ki" to prevent them from being destroyed mid-fight.
In Dragon Ball, fighters always managed to keep their pants intact—but that was only because it was a manga. Zuke couldn't count on the same luxury.
"Finished attacking? Then it's my turn now."
Brushing off the dust on his clothes, Zuke turned his gaze toward Illyasviel, who wore a stunned expression—clearly not expecting him to remain unscathed after taking her Noble Phantasm's full assault.
Though Sella had warned her earlier that Zuke was terrifyingly strong and even urged her to flee, Illyasviel had been confident in her own strength, believing she could still put up a fight.
But reality had mercilessly doused her in cold water—her attacks had no effect on Zuke.
He had even casually protected his clothes from being damaged!
A thought flashed through Illyasviel's mind—escape with Sella and Leysritt.
She had never cared much for the Holy Grail in the first place. That had always been the Einzbern family's obsession, not hers.
But the thought came too late.
Before she could act, Zuke's figure blurred, and in the next instant, he stood right before her.
Without any visible movement, an invisible force erupted from Zuke's body, instantly slamming the enormous white bear into the ground with crushing force.
If Illyasviel had been a Stand user, she would have seen "Black Bird Requiem" pinning the white bear down with a single hand—so forcefully that the ground beneath it cracked apart.
Fortunately, it was nighttime, and the residential area was remote, meaning no bystanders were around to witness the chaos.
Even if someone had noticed, the Holy Church would have handled the aftermath—covering up incidents related to the Holy Grail War was their duty.
"Let it go!"
A flicker of anger crossed Illyasviel's face—the part of her that was "Illyasviel" couldn't stand seeing her "comrades" treated this way.
Frigid energy surged from her body, encasing Zuke once more—this time, she had learned her lesson. Instead of injecting the cold into his body, she coated his exterior.
Instantly, a layer of solid ice armor encased Zuke. Though made of ice, its durability rivaled steel.
But no amount of ice could hold Zuke.
With a casual wave of his hand—without even flaring his ki—the ice shattered into fragments.
Then, Zuke reached out and lightly swiped his fingers across Illyasviel's wrists and ankles at a speed she couldn't react to.
The next moment, she found her hands and feet bound tightly together—as if something had fused them, making it impossible to separate.
Had Illyasviel been able to see Stands, she would have noticed zippers now locking her wrists and ankles together.
This was the effect of the Stand "Sticky Fingers." Zuke had created zippers on her limbs and linked them together.
Now, Illyasviel couldn't move her arms or legs apart.
She struggled desperately but only succeeded in hurting her own wrists from the strain.
"I wouldn't try to force them open if I were you."
Seeing her struggle, Zuke smirked.
"Your limbs are now connected. If you tear them apart, you'll destroy your wrists and ankles—and then you'll have even less chance of escaping."
After securing Illyasviel, Zuke carried her back into the house and unceremoniously tossed her onto the couch.
He then restrained Sella and Leysritt in the same manner, placing them together in the living room.
Though the two continued to struggle, Zuke silenced them with a single threat:
"If you don't behave, I'll punish Illya."
It sounded like something a villain would say—and in their eyes, Zuke probably was the villain.
"Guh… Just kill me..."
Watching Zuke bind Sella and Leysritt as well, Illyasviel's face twisted in humiliation.
Though she was now a Servant, her dominant consciousness was still Illyasviel's—and to Illya, Sella and Leysritt were the only people she could trust.
The only other person she had ever trusted was her late mother, Irisviel.
Being captured by Zuke, she assumed her fate was sealed—she'd rather die as a human than be turned into a Lesser Grail.
"Tch, you attacked me first, got captured, and now you're demanding I kill you? You're quite the demanding one."
Zuke crouched down, looking at Illyasviel, who lay sideways on the couch, and grinned—conveniently ignoring the fact that he had been the one to break into their home.
"But don't worry. I never intended to kill you in the first place. In fact… our relationship is quite special."
"...Huh?"
Illyasviel froze.
This guy barged into the house, beat up her maids, tied her up, and now claimed they had a special relationship?
To be continued…