Tick-tock, tick-tock...
The clock in the hall clicked forward in the quiet room.
Two girls of similar age stood facing each other.
Tohsaka Rin instinctively looked toward the girl standing at the hall entrance.
Matou Sakura was staring at the black cloth fragment in the girl's hand with a doubtful expression.
Rin quickly hid the black cloth fragment behind her back and showed a gentle smile. "Sakura, it's so late. Why aren't you asleep yet?"
No matter how long she stayed in Britain, less than 0.1 seconds passed in the modern world.
But the last time Rin returned, it had been nighttime.
Fuyuki, being a seaside town, didn't have much nightlife and especially Sakura, who was still growing, normally went to bed early.
But tonight was different... by this time she should already be asleep.
Sakura's delicate, porcelain-doll-like face soon softened. "I saw that you hadn't gone to your room to rest, so I came to check if something happened."
"...Did father give you some sort of task, sister?"
After the previous traversal ended, Tohsaka Tokiomi had already booked a flight to London and was now at the Clock Tower searching for a way to cure his curse.
Before leaving, he met each of his daughters.
To Rin, he entrusted a task: to participate in the upcoming Fifth Holy Grail War and summon the White Dragon to win.
As for Sakura... perhaps because of guilt for having "sent" her to the Matou family, or for other reasons, he simply wished for her to grow up normally.
But now, the Matou family head has died, and the current head was the severely ill Matou Kariya.
Under his insistence, Sakura still retained her status as "heir of the Matou family," and she might inherit the house in the future.
Putting your daughters in two different baskets... from a magi's coldly logical viewpoint, it was indeed rational.
But—
The older sister grew up healthy in the Tohsaka home, while the younger sister lived under the shadow of the Matou family, believing her parents had "abandoned" her.
Tokiomi clearly never considered how his daughters actually felt.
Tohsaka Rin, however, young, understood Sakura's trauma. And because of it, she always tried to take care of her younger sister.
Hearing Sakura's question, the girl hesitated for a moment, then briefly explained what had happened recently.
Travelling to ancient Britain, being kidnapped, being saved by the White Dragon, living in the royal palace, being taught by Morgan every day... and everything involving the White Dragon.
At the end of this explanation, Sakura froze slightly.
Her eyes flickered, and in her already somewhat gloomy gaze, a strange light surfaced.
"So that means... sister, you met him in ancient Britain?"
Rin gently nodded, her eyes warm as she looked at Sakura. "Sakura, before, I couldn't understand your thoughts very well... but now, I think I can understand a little."
"When the next Holy Grail War begins, I will definitely find a way to let you meet him."
"I see... so you've already met him?"
Sakura stared at Rin, dazed.
After a long time, she finally forced out a tiny smile.
"...Um."
"Thank you... sister."
Under the dim light, Matou Sakura lowered her head without thinking, her expression faintly darkening for some unknown reason.
Tohsaka Rin clearly didn't notice her sister's gloom.
After thinking for a moment, she continued, "But I still feel like things aren't completely secure."
"I heard the Einzbern family seems to be making moves recently... Sakura, you've been going to the Matou house these days, right? Did you hear anything over there?"
In Fuyuki, the Three Great Families were the Matou family, the Tohsaka family, and the Einzbern family.
Ever since the Fourth Holy Grail War ended, the Einzbern family had shut themselves inside their castle, refusing to let anyone approach.
Even the Tohsaka family couldn't get any information.
But the Matou family might have their own channels for obtaining intel.
That was why Rin asked.
"I did hear something from Uncle Kariya recently... they said someone from the Einzbern family bought plane tickets and left Fuyuki last night."
Sakura said softly.
"Left Fuyuki...? Where did they go?"
Rin raised her eyebrows and quickly asked again.
With her father absent, she felt she had to take responsibility for Tohsaka's future and for the upcoming Holy Grail War. Information-gathering had to start early.
"Same as father, they also went to England... According to the airline staff, it was a mother and daughter. But their destination wasn't London."
"Then where?"
Rin asked.
"Cornwall... In history, it was part of ancient Britain."
Cornwall was a small island at the southwestern tip of England, and also the legendary birthplace of King Arthur.
Every year, it attracted countless tourists, but recently the place had become noticeably quieter.
After all, the weather forecast said there would be heavy snow for nearly half a month.
With the freezing cold, no normal person would willingly come out here.
But at this very moment, two figures were walking across the land of Cornwall.
The bone-chilling wind slapped against their faces with icy snowflakes, making their skin sting.
It was a mother and daughter... though to outsiders, they could easily pass as sisters.
Irisviel and Illya.
The cold wind blew Irisviel's dress backward, outlining her graceful, elegant figure.
She wore a white dress that matched the color of the snow, and she squinted her eyes, trudging through the snow.
Beside her, a silver-haired girl with a petite, doll-like frame clutched her hand tightly.
Her bright red eyes wandered curiously over the snowy scenery, full of wonder toward this new place.
As a homunculus, she should not have been able to leave the Einzbern castle, but this time her "grandfather," the creator of homunculi and master of the Einzbern castle, made an exception and allowed both mother and daughter to come to Cornwall for the Fifth Holy Grail War.
As for why they came to King Arthur's birthplace... the answer was obvious.
Irisviel raised her head against the blowing snow.
The air was filled with drifting flakes and a world of white.
Ahead, the vague outline of a castle could be seen.
Irisviel quietly breathed in relief, held her daughter's soft hand and stepped through the deep snow until they finally entered the castle.
Sheltered from the storm, she let out a breath she'd been holding.
She looked at the snowy world outside, mixed with sea breeze and whirling flakes, and sighed.
"I didn't expect the snow to be this heavy... If I'd known earlier, we should've come a few days later."
"If we waited a few more days, the 'thing' might be taken by other magi first."
Illya's clear, pleasant voice rang out from beside her.
Hearing that, Irisviel paused for a moment, then silently nodded.
Ever since the last Holy Grail War ended, the existence of the Greater Grail in Fuyuki became known to the entire world overnight.
Now countless factions knew about the upcoming war.
And with the recent appearance of those "magus time travelers"... once they acquired relics in foreign timelines, they would naturally covet the Greater Grail.
Arriving in Cornwall early, finding the relic early, and returning early to prepare... truly was the best option.
"Is your body alright?"
Illya's bright red eyes stared straight at her mother. "Ever since the last Holy Grail War ended, your body hasn't been doing well, right...? Are you really okay?"
Irisviel's eyes softened. "I'm fine... As long as the Saint is still here, nothing will happen to me."
During the last Holy Grail War, the consciousness of the Winter Saint had resided inside Irisviel.
A normal homunculus's lifespan was short, but the Winter Saint had used the Third Magic to reconstruct Irisviel's body, allowing her to continue living.
As long as the Saint's consciousness remained, Irisviel's life would not end.
And as long as Irisviel lived, the Saint's consciousness could continue to exist.
The two were now a symbiotic pair.
"If we can win the Fifth Holy Grail War, I want to use my wish to make you a real human."
Illya said seriously, staring at her mother.
Hearing her words, Irisviel's expression softened as she gently stroked her daughter's silky silver hair. "Just the thought already makes me happy... but I don't want you to force yourself."
Illya shook her head quickly, smiling brightly. "It's not really forcing myself. It's not only for you... I also want to see big brother again."
"I can't wait to see how he reacts when he meets me in the next Holy Grail War."
Irisviel froze for a second.
Her beautiful, cool features revealing a faintly complicated expression.
During the previous war, she and Alvin had been through many things together... Her feelings toward that Servant had always been complicated.
No complicated might not be the right word to describe it, because she....
To be honest, if he really appeared again in the coming war... even she wasn't sure how she would react.
A swirl of emotions crossed her mind. Irisviel quickly composed herself.
She pressed her fingers lightly against her chest and closed her eyes.
To help locate a certain relic, the eighth head of the Einzbern family, Ahad, had uploaded a special magecraft technique into her terminal, allowing her to track it upon arriving in Cornwall.
Silver threads slowly drifted around Irisviel like sentient tendrils, sensing everything within the castle.
At the same time, memories of the last Holy Grail War surfaced uncontrollably in her mind... the small apartment she stayed in with her daughter... and the things that happened there.
And the extremely explicit words she once said to that young man on the balcony.
Even though it wasn't actually her who said them...but, actually she didn't seem to be resistant.
Recalling those moments, a faint blush spread across Irisviel's flawless, snow-like face.
"What's wrong, mother?"
Illya, who knew nothing about her mother's thoughts, looked at the woman in front of her and called softly.
Of course, if she knew her mother was thinking about the young man, she liked...she didn't know what expression she would show.
After all, even though there was no biological relationship between the two, Illya had always treated Irisviel as her mother.
Oh well, that's a question for the later.
Hearing her daughter's words, Irisviel snapped out of her reverie, quickly shook her head, and chased away the jumbled thoughts.
"It's nothing... Give me your hand, Illya."
She reached out toward her daughter. "Next, I'm going to link our senses together... using the highest-class index magecraft of the Einzbern family."
Illya nodded obediently and placed her small hand into the silver-haired woman's.
The instant Irisviel closed her eyes, everything inside the castle silently entered her perception.
"If you're still willing to manifest in this world, please guide me to the right path... Alvin."
She whispered in her heart.
...
Clock Tower.
Library.
Cold winter sunlight poured through the open windows, making the golden strands of the girl's hair shimmer enchantingly.
Reines leaned against a bookshelf, idly flipping through an ancient tome.
"The Legend of King Arthur."
"Gray, have you noticed? The contents of the old records seem to have changed."
After skimming for a few moments, she looked up at the silver-haired girl beside her, speaking with a hint of disbelief.
"I never imagined that the history of ancient Britain would actually be altered because of transmigrators."
Gray, still draped in her usual black robes, stepped closer.
Her beautiful eyes fixed quietly on the book in Reines's hands as she fell silent.
In the original legend of King Arthur, the king ultimately fell at the Battle of Camlann, and was laid to rest on the "Isle of Apples" (otherwise known as Avalon).
Yet the history recorded in this volume was now completely different from what they remembered.
First century AD: the Vanguard of the Wandering Star from beyond the heavens, and the Beasts lurking in the shadows, prowled the borders of Britain, yet none ever drew near.
Crimson Moon, Artoria, Morgan le Fay, and others stayed by the side of the White Dragon and Britain until the Age of Gods came to its final end, and Britain welcomed its last radiance.
In the very end, the White Dragon, King Arthur, and Morgan departed for the legendary Avalon... After that, history recorded nothing more of the three.
"Perhaps, to history itself, as long as the outcome remains the same, the process is unimportant."
Gray murmured softly.
In history, ancient Britain ultimately collapsed.
And in the records now, ancient Britain had likewise become a part of the past.
So long as the result does not change, the journey taken to reach it is irrelevant, that is simply how history works.
Reines wore a thoughtful expression and Gray couldn't help studying her friend a little longer before suddenly asking, "Why have you suddenly become so interested in the legend of King Arthur?"
From what she knew of Reines, the girl had never cared much about such historical matters.
Reines's blue eyes flickered but she quickly laughed it off. "Just pure curiosity, nothing special."
"Is that so..."
Gray, however, continued to look at the blonde girl with obvious suspicion.
Under her intense state, finally, as though surrendering, Reines let out a helpless sigh.
"Fine, I'll tell the truth..."
"Have you heard about the Greater Grail system in Fuyuki lately?"
Reines's clear sapphire eyes locked onto Gray's as the latter nodded slightly.
The matter had practically taken the entire Clock Tower by storm recently; of course she had heard.
Reines glanced around to make sure no one was nearby, then leaned close to Gray's ear and whispered conspiratorially,
"Actually... I'm planning to participate in the next Holy Grail War."