Destiny, Holy Grail, and Salvation

Emerging from the Emiya Residence, Irisviel followed Shiki into a vast cavern within Mount Kurikara.

The moment she stepped inside, Irisviel understood. No wonder Rider had searched the entire city without finding Berserker's trace; he was hidden where the Greater Grail resided.

"That makes sense. Only here, with a barrier specifically for spiritual bodies, can a Heroic Spirit's power be effectively limited while remaining safe and hidden. No Magus would ever think to look here."

Ordinary people would never venture into this place, even though it was one of Fuyuki City's ley line nexuses.

But with Ryūdō Temple nearby, a well-known local temple frequented by many, it would be too easy to expose themselves. Given the Magus's principles of secrecy, it was far from an ideal location.

"Magi, hehe."

Shiki let out a soft scoff, finding the Magus's methods difficult to agree with.

He couldn't fathom what these so-called principles of secrecy were all about. Why couldn't mysterious powers be brought into the light?

In his world of origin, supernatural powers didn't exist. And in the other worlds he had experienced, there was never any talk of powers needing to be kept hidden.

Shiki spoke, "Alright, enough about those pathetic Magi. Ms. Einzbern..."

"Mr. Shiki, calling me by my last name sounds so distant. You can call me Irisviel, just like Saber," Irisviel interrupted with a smile.

Shiki scratched his head. Since she didn't like being called by her surname, he'd use her given name. After all, the surname Einzbern was indeed a bit of a mouthful.

"Okay, Irisviel, let's make haste then."

"Certainly, Mr. Shiki. Where should we start?"

"Irisviel, just lie down on the altar."

Shiki pointed to the altar in the center of the pool. What he needed to do, naturally, was to examine Irisviel's body and save her life.

Since he had promised Saber he would save Irisviel, he would give it his all.

However, before that, he needed to understand Irisviel's physical structure, her connection to the Lesser Grail, and so on. This series of issues was quite complex.

The Black Knight placed the tools he was holding onto the altar one by one.

Shiki looked at the tools and inwardly clicked his tongue. The Irisviel before him was undoubtedly a "rich patron." Wealthy and capable, she could obtain anything she desired within an hour. This showed that the Einzbern family's influence in Fuyuki City was not insignificant.

Otherwise, why would the forest east of Fuyuki City be called the Einzbern Forest?

"Then, please excuse me, Irisviel."

Irisviel, lying on the altar, blushed instantly and nodded silently.

After all, a physical examination would inevitably involve rather intimate contact. For Irisviel, this was the first time anyone else had touched her, and she couldn't suppress her shyness.

Shiki didn't overthink it. With the Black Knight's assistance, he connected the equipment, prepared the generator, and attached the sensors to Irisviel one by one.

Then, he slowly removed his eye patch, revealing his Magic Eyes beneath.

Although he could see through the eye patch, it still affected his ability to observe subtle details. To ensure accuracy, he chose to remove it.

At this moment, Irisviel, lying on the bed, bit her lower lip, her cheeks flushed. The sensors touching her body made her feel very uncomfortable.

"Magic Eyes!"

And the moment Shiki removed his eye patch, revealing his Magic Eyes, she couldn't help but gasp softly.

So, the Master of this Berserker was a Magus with Magic Eyes, and not just any Magic Eyes, but the top-tier Rainbow Magic Eyes!

The multicolored light flickering in the pupils of his Magic Eyes was proof.

In this world, top-tier Magic Eyes had not appeared for a long time. No wonder Berserker could regain his sanity. Irisviel had initially thought there was something wrong with his eyes, but she never expected him to possess such a powerful ability.

As Shiki activated his Magic Eyes, Irisviel, lying on the altar, instantly changed in his vision.

In the sight of his Magic Eyes, her entire body was covered in dense blue lines, interspersed with faint golden light.

Those were Magic Circuits. Irisviel's entire body was almost composed of Magic Circuits, occupying more than half of her body, estimated to be several hundred in number.

Shiki subconsciously compared them to his own seven Magic Circuits and couldn't help but twitch his lips. There was simply no comparison!

However, while there was a difference in quantity, when it came to quality, well, it was hard to say.

Using modern equipment, combined with the data observed by his Magic Eyes, and adding some of the Holy Grail's secrets provided by Irisviel, Shiki gradually formed a general treatment plan in his mind.

"Irisviel, this might hurt a little. Please bear with it."

Shiki glanced at the Black Knight reassuringly. The Black Knight understood and walked to Irisviel's side, ready to intervene if she had an extreme reaction.

"Might hurt a little?"

Irisviel was filled with doubt. Just as she was wondering what kind of pain it would be, she saw Shiki's right hand, emitting a dense green light, slowly reaching towards her abdomen. Then, a piercing pain from her abdomen instantly spread throughout her entire body, and she couldn't help but scream: "Ah!!!!"

Her cry, like a soprano's, echoed through the vast cavern. Fortunately, they had prepared in advance, and the location was sufficiently hidden; otherwise, this commotion would surely have attracted outsiders.

Irisviel gritted her teeth, her body trembling. This pain was almost comparable to the excruciating pain of childbirth, indicating its intensity.

"Ah!!!! Mr. Shiki, isn't there a better way?!"

The Black Knight quickly held Irisviel down, preventing her from thrashing and disrupting Shiki's actions.

If the procedure were interrupted, the consequences of failure would be unimaginable.

Shiki, gritting his teeth at this moment, said, "There might be other ways, but they would take too long, and we don't have the time. This is the only method. Hold on, don't pass out, and don't give up!"

As he spoke, blood began to seep from his Magic Eyes. He was pushing the power of his Magic Eyes to the absolute limit, and his eyeballs, bearing the strain of this power, were about to give out.

A single, bright red Command Spell slowly faded from Shiki's right arm.

Command Spells represented hundreds of times the mana of an ordinary Magus, and they were expended like flowing water within a mere minute.

Since he had promised Saber he would save Irisviel's life, he was determined to do so, no matter how difficult the process.

Through the mental link of the Human Path, Shiki maintained contact with Irisviel throughout the rescue, experiencing her pain as well.

This agony was truly worse than death.

But it was still bearable, much better than some experiments.

He began by focusing on Irisviel's mental perception to ensure he could sense her body, then reinforced her weak soul with the Hell Path—after all, she was only ten years old, and the soul of an artificial human had flaws and grew extremely slowly.

At the same time, he had to carefully distinguish the Lesser Grail hidden within her soul and body, marking their differences.

Of course, the legendary conceptual weapon, Avalon, also provided crucial assistance; otherwise, Shiki wouldn't have dared to act so boldly.

Finally, Shiki used the abilities of the Hungry Ghost Path, covering Irisviel's entire body. With the mental link as his guide, he attempted to pull out the Lesser Grail hidden within her.

As an extension of the Greater Grail, the Lesser Grail possessed a very high degree of mystery. It was, after all, a vessel meant to contain the souls of Heroic Spirits. If not for the support of the Winter Saintess, Shiki might not have been able to extract it.

This process lasted about five minutes, during which six Command Spells were consumed.

His cheeks were covered in blood, and a large portion of his tunic was soaked with it.

Irisviel, meanwhile, had been screaming for over five minutes, her voice nearly hoarse. However, her artificial body granted her resilience far beyond that of ordinary humans. Although her mind was dazed from the stimulation, her body suffered no major damage.

When Shiki could no longer sense any extraneous parts of the Lesser Grail, the green light in his right eye suddenly intensified. Unprecedented mana flowed through him, pushing the power of his Magic Eye to a new height.

"Aaaahhhh—Come out!!!"

With a great shout, he yanked his hand back sharply, and a golden cup was pulled from Irisviel's body.

The force of the movement was too great, causing Shiki to stumble back several steps. His body swayed, and he landed on the ground with a thud, the large cup clattering onto the ground in the distance.

"Hoo, ha, hoo, ha~~"

Shiki gasped for breath, utterly exhausted, his head swimming with ringing in his ears.

The mental link with Irisviel had made him experience that birth-like pain as well. Irisviel had merely lain there passively enduring it, while he had to use the power of his Magic Eye to extract the Grail, leaving him completely drained.

Shiki turned his back to the altar and managed to walk to the edge of the pool, splashing water on his face to try and calm his burning head, while also washing away the bloodstains.

"Sigh, I didn't bleed in a fight, but I've lost quite a bit of blood now. Really. If I don't get much out of this, then this Holy Grail War will be a huge loss."

He muttered softly, unaware of a figure approaching from behind him.

When he felt a warm body lean against his back, white arms wrap around his neck, and heard a slightly sickly voice in his ear, he looked at the reflection in the water showing a morbid smile and immediately felt a headache coming on.

"Shiki, hurry, hurry, let's go carry out the Eye of the Moon Plan~~~"