Chapter 575: The Man Who Will Become the Moon Spirit King
Although all sorts of things had happened, they were all adults and should handle things rationally and maturely...
Yeah, right.
When these words were spoken, none of the three had even taken off their school uniforms yet.
Rin had initially been full of bluster, but upon realizing Sakatsuki wasn't an NPC, she shrank into herself like a quail, her face red as she muttered to her invisible Servant. Hakuno, who had witnessed Rin's over-the-top behavior, had no grounds to criticize and could only stand there dumbfounded, her eyes betraying a hint of awkwardness.
Only Sakatsuki remained completely unbothered, leaning casually against the railing, entirely unaffected by the atmosphere. He clicked his tongue, looking almost regretful.
The slender, soft touch still lingered on his cheek. Though Rin Tohsaka had eyes befitting a battlefield—firm and resolute—she was still a girl with traces of innocence, something her fingers had unmistakably conveyed.
Incidentally, the Rin Tohsaka of the Fate/EXTRA universe was different from the one in the main timeline. She wasn't the child of Tokiomi Tohsaka and his beloved wife Aoi, but rather the descendant of this world's infamous scapegoat, who had left his bloodline overseas. Though her dream was to defeat the Western European financial conglomerates and settle in Japan, she was, in reality, an alternate-dimensional counterpart with no connection to the girl from Fuyuki City.
While she had designed her appearance in the Moon Cell to be more conventionally appealing, her natural hair color was golden, and her eyes were green, giving her a distinctly exotic charm.
In the real world on the brink of collapse, this Rin Tohsaka primarily operated in the Middle East. From a very young age, she had joined a resistance organization to fight against the Western European financial conglomerates that effectively ruled the world.
Still, when Sakatsuki recalled Rin pressing close to him—her warm breath brushing his cheek, her long hair swaying behind his neck, and the way she had shamelessly groped his shoulders and stomach—he couldn't help but chuckle.
It was hard to believe this childish girl was the same person as the sharp-eyed young woman from before.
"You're laughing…" Rin's cerulean eyes flickered as she caught Sakatsuki's suppressed laughter. As if to mask her embarrassment, she turned and snapped at her invisible Servant, "And you, Lancer! Shut up! Even I make mistakes sometimes… Don't call me a pervert!"
Waving her hands frantically, Rin argued, "It's just a professional habit! There's no other spiritual world with character constructs this detailed. If I didn't investigate, what kind of hacker—magi—would I be?"
"It was just an investigation, okay? Just an investigation! Don't get the wrong idea, you two!"
The rooftop was filled with an atmosphere of cheerful persecution. Under Sakatsuki's amused smirk and Hakuno's complicated gaze, Rin's face burned red with embarrassment and frustration. Finally, unable to take it anymore, she pointed at the two of them—
"Besides, you're way too easy to overlook. How can a Servant have such a weak presence like an NPC? You're even wearing the uniform from Tsukimihara Academy! And you—yes, you, Hakuno—I noticed during the preliminaries that your presence is so faint it's practically nonexistent. Forget being a Master, you're even less noticeable than the windows in the hallway!"
"And you're still standing there with that blank look. Don't tell me you still think you're a student at Tsukimihara and haven't properly recovered your memories?"
Facing Rin's counterattack, Sakatsuki shrugged. "Can't be helped. I'm an unaffiliated Servant, after all. Gotta conserve my magical energy wherever I can. As for my dear desk mate Hakuno here, it's true he doesn't have his memories from before."
"Eh?" Rin Tohsaka gasped, taking half a step back as if she'd discovered some rare species. "One participated in the preliminaries but became an unaffiliated Servant, and the other became a Master but failed to recover his memories... No way, did I really just stumble upon two bugs at the same time?"
The girl looked bewildered. "The Mooncell is a supercomputer far beyond our level of technology. How could even it make mistakes?"
"Could just be some other kind of accident," Sakatsuki said, not planning to explain further. "Either way, life goes on, doesn't it?"
"I suppose you're right." After a brief moment of shock, Rin regained her composure. She stole a glance at Sakatsuki, then suddenly wore a strange expression as if she'd just thought of something.
"Wait... you just said you're an unaffiliated Servant?"
"Yep."
With a clap, the girl suddenly placed both hands on Sakatsuki's shoulders, her eyes burning with fervor as if she wanted to devour him whole.
"Hey, kid! Debut as an idol—ahem, I mean, become my Servant, Sakatsuki!"
All her earlier frustration had vanished into thin air. The way Rin was looking at Sakatsuki now was no different from staring at a priceless, one-of-a-kind gemstone.
A Servant!
An unaffiliated Servant!
A living, unaffiliated, contractable Servant!
What did this mean? It meant a glorious future of kicking ass at the Southern Mountain Retirement Home, punching out the Northern Sea Kindergarten, ganging up on opponents, and throwing martial ethics to the wind!
While the enemy was busy gathering intel and preparing for battle, ready to face her Servant in combat, she'd just let out a cold laugh, flex her might, and Sakatsuki would leap out wielding his twin blades, bypass the two battling Servants, and chop the enemy Master into pieces with a few swift strikes. Then she'd let out an elegant laugh under the enemy's despairing gaze...
Surprised, little girl? Your big sis here's got a hidden ace up her sleeve!
Rin could practically envision how satisfying that scene would be. Her gaze grew even more intense, and she practically clung to Sakatsuki. "So, what do you say? Just agree to join me, and I'll give you all the magical energy, mystic codes, benefits—name it! Heck, if you want me, that's not off the table either!"
Hey, hey, you weren't this enthusiastic when you contracted me, missy!
The Servant trailing behind Rin protested silently, but she paid no heed, single-mindedly focused on recruiting Sakatsuki. Just then, a figure squeezed between them, forcibly separating Rin and Sakatsuki.
"Um, Rin, sorry but Sakatsuki and I have something to do..." Hakuno pushed Sakatsuki, shoving him back toward the stairwell as they practically fled the scene. "We'll be going ahead—maybe we'll meet again later!"
"Hey, wait!" Rin Tohsaka's eyes widened, only catching a glimpse of the girl's chestnut-brown hair swaying at the stairwell like a farewell before it vanished from her sight. It took her a moment to process what had just happened.
"Did I just... get robbed?"
That Hakuno... How dare she snatch prey right from the tiger's mouth in front of me?!
Since when did she become so bold?
————
From start to finish, Sakatsuki hadn't put up much resistance—first being grabbed by Rin, who wanted to recruit him, then being dragged away by Hakuno to escape... The entire time, he had gone along with the girls' actions as if he had no will of his own.
Yet inwardly, he was indeed pondering what to do next.
He had already walked around the school but hadn't found any trace of Draco. Upon reflection, even if he had, it wouldn't have mattered—he wasn't planning to approach Draco immediately.
Since that matter couldn't be resolved for now, Sakatsuki's next concern was his own survival.
As everyone knew, Servants were massive mana consumers. Without a Master to supply them, their eventual disappearance was only a matter of time.
Even with his Red Earth Mystic Code and Independent Action skill, Sakatsuki couldn't possibly sustain himself through the forty-plus days of the Moon Holy Grail War, let alone engage in combat.
Thus, finding a tool—ahem, a suitable Master—was absolutely imperative.
For example, Rin Tohsaka.
Miss Rin had proven herself time and again across countless works in the Nasuverse—not just in personality, but also as a top-tier magus. In the Moon Holy Grail War, she was even the author's designated favorite to win (aside from Leo).
Let's not forget Sakatsuki's purpose here—he was a man who aimed to become the King of the Moon Cell!
So, agreeing to become Rin Tohsaka's Servant, crushing the first six battles with overwhelming force, and then decisively betraying her in the final match... Given his understanding of Rin, as long as he seized the right moment, victory would be within his grasp. He could then take the crown for himself.
Still, doing so would inevitably leave him with a tiny, tiny twinge of guilt. Moreover, Sakatsuki had another concern—what if Draco really did contract with a Servant and, by some twist of fate, made it all the way to the end? She would inevitably cross paths with him.
At that moment, who should he choose? Rin Tohsaka, or Draco?
Lost in his thoughts, Sakatsuki didn't even realize Hakuno had led him into the Master's private room (My Room) until a soft cough snapped him back to reality.
"Hakuno, what is it?"
Speaking of Hakuno, Sakatsuki's feelings toward her were rather complicated. During the preliminaries, he had always treated her as a well-behaved desk mate, occasionally joking around but never thinking much beyond that... Who could have predicted this mess right before the finals?
Logically speaking, while Sakatsuki had taken advantage of the situation, he had also indirectly saved Hakuno's life—call it an even exchange. But could matters of the heart ever be settled so simply?
The tangled, messy nature of romantic feelings was precisely what made them both alluring and frustrating.
The debts of love were far too many, and Sakatsuki wasn't the type to keep one foot in each boat. So from the very beginning, he had drawn a clear line, decisively cutting ties with Shirou—even though he was an unclaimed Servant, and Shirou happened to be a blank-slate Master.
But even he hadn't expected… that this girl, Kashinomiya Shirou, would actively separate Sakatsuki and Rin, then 'run away' with him to this place.
It was as absurd as a bridesmaid suddenly pulling out a pistol during a wedding, shooting the axle of the getaway car, and kidnapping the groom—leaving the bride and a crowd of onlookers utterly bewildered.
So, having gone this far, the girl's feelings didn't need to be spelled out, did they?
Under Sakatsuki's calm gaze, Kashinomiya Shirou took a deep breath, mustering her courage. Finally meeting his eyes, she stammered:
"I… I want you to become my Servant!"