A Full-Blown Identity Crisis (Continued)

After all, the Holy Grail War hasn't really started yet, and apart from Emiya Kiritsugu, probably no one else has summoned a Servant. Luvia is probably still in the preparation stage.

So just as he was about to give Rin Tohsaka another reminder about the precautions for summoning a Servant the ritual, Rin Tohsaka interrupted him, grabbed his hand, and hurriedly led him to the Tohsaka Family's basement.

Immediately afterwards...

"Announcement--"

Soon after, in front of a summoning ritual circle that already existed in the Tohsaka Family, Rin Tohsaka slowly raised her right hand. A blue arc of electricity containing magical power danced around her body, accompanied by a slight stinging sensation, and the Magic Circuits within her body began to be rapidly activated.

"You're summoning a Servant right now? And you're even using Tokiomi Tohsaka's remaining ritual arrays...?"

Looking at the obviously aged summoning ritual circle on the ground, clearly left over from Tokiomi Tohsaka's ten years ago, Rovey couldn't help but ask, "Didn't you agree to use your own strength? Isn't what you did cheating?"

Don't worry.

Upon hearing this, Rin Tohsaka's serious expression fell, and she said righteously, "We just agreed to compete fairly without using your abilities. This is something my father left over from ten years ago. It's been sitting in our basement for ten years and is already a fixed asset of the Tohsaka Family. I'm just making proper and appropriate use of it."

"..."

Listening to Rin Tohsaka's serious-faced nonsense, Rovey couldn't help but retort, "According to you, wouldn't the remains of the Primordial Serpent that Luvia bought also be considered part of her family's fixed assets?"

"Cough cough cough... That doesn't count. Anyway, I absolutely, absolutely did not cheat."

Upon hearing this rebuttal, Rin Tohsaka, whose true feelings had been exposed by Rovey, coughed a few times before hurriedly trying to defend herself.

Seeing this, Rovey knew that his words could not possibly wake someone who was pretending to be asleep, so he stopped discussing the matter with her. Instead, he glanced at the old ritual array in front of him, and after confirming that there was nothing unusual, he asked Rin Tohsaka again:

"Isn't it a bit too early for you to summon Servant now?"

Is it early?

Upon hearing this, Rin Tohsaka's expression turned strange, and then she began to ponder Rovey's words.

Generally speaking...

Isn't the process of summoning Servant in the Holy Grail War supposed to be done as quickly as possible?

After all, this allows for ample preparation time.

Furthermore, it's good to understand the Servant's temperament early on and discuss combat strategies.

Getting to know each other better and building rapport—isn't that the right decision?

Although it is also possible that the situation could worsen for various reasons.

But no matter how you look at it, the outcome will definitely be better than being forced into battle.

Honestly, if things were still as carefree as before, with Rovey as her temporary guardian, she wouldn't be in such a hurry. After all, although Rovey is usually very approachable and often jokes around with her, he is still someone on par with the head master of the Tohsaka Family —a legendary Magus. Even the Lord in London can't compare to him. So, as long as he's by her side Rin Tohsaka can do whatever she wants without worry.

Even if you summon Servant slowly, and even if you lose to other teams, nothing will happen.

But the thought of Luvia ruining what was originally a great situation, and not only that, but also the fact that she would have to fight her, made Rin Tohsaka feel extremely uncomfortable.

Despite her loud pronouncements, she was actually quite aware of her hidden tendency to falter. She had a premonition that if she didn't rush and take her time, she might end up in a terrible situation where she was forced into things.

Even with just the summoning right now, Rin Tohsaka has no confidence.

That's why she summoned Rovey while he was still around; at least that way she would have some confidence.

Furthermore, she could circumvent the previous rules; she only summoned him in front of Rovey and didn't seek his help, so it shouldn't be considered a violation.

Rovey, who had also noticed Rin Tohsaka's behavior of recklessly pushing the boundaries of the rules, was somewhat speechless.

However, he didn't leave just like that. Instead, he sat down to confirm whether the Servant Rin Tohsaka summoned were the ones he had in mind. If they were, then they definitely needed to be kept under surveillance.

Otherwise, Kirei Kotomine's voice would probably be cracking and popping tonight.

"Speaking of which... don't you really have anything you want to say to me?"

Rin Tohsaka suddenly turned around and asked Rovey Wei.

What do you mean?

Rovey became curious.

"Summoning precautions and such, you've been Master, so you must know more about them than I do, right?"

"Since the summoning circles are all the same, there are no special precautions to take. You'll have to rely on yourself."

Upon hearing this, Rovey shook his head.

"Alright, but... isn't it rather impolite of you to just sit here and watch like this?"

Rin Tohsaka's expression remained conflicted.

"It's nothing, I'm so far away from you, it won't affect your summoning at all, just don't worry about it."

Rovey waved his hand dismissively.

"That's not what I meant. I meant, what if your dismissive attitude angers the Servant I summon?"

Rin Tohsaka somewhat helpless.

"What should we do?" This question made Rovey laugh. "What else can we do? Or rather, what do you want to do?"

"If the other party gets angry over such a small thing, it means they're definitely petty and have a bad temper. We should teach them a lesson first." Rovey shook his head, then said casually, "After all, respect is relative, isn't it? Only with mutual respect can we cooperate well in battle."

"And didn't you use affinity to summon?"

"Yes."

Rin Tohsaka nodded slightly.

"Then there's even less of a problem."

Rovey said with absolute certainty, "After all, that's Servant you get along with."

"Huh? Are you complimenting me?"

Rin Tohsaka's eyes lit up.

"No, what I mean is, the Servant you get along with are definitely not serious people, so they naturally won't pay attention to these kinds of etiquette issues. It's fine if they're casual."

"Aren't you implying that I'm promiscuous?"

"More or less."

"Damn it! Although what you said is infuriating, it does make some sense. I'm going to begin."

Despite feeling somewhat annoyed by Rovey's words, Rin Tohsaka quickly began the summoning ritual.

With the flow of magic and a special ritual, the three red Command Spells on the back of her hand transformed into three Command Seal, clearly indicating that her contract had begun to connect.

On the other hand, seeing that the usually unserious Rin Tohsaka was now actually quite proper, Rovey Wei felt that it was quite plausible. Although she had many problems with her character, her talent as Magus was truly exceptional.

Only...

As expected, her tendency to mess things up reappeared once again.

Sizzle!

Accompanied by the chaotic flow of light.

At this moment, rings of colorful light suddenly burst forth above the summoning ritual circle, which had been emitting a blue halo.

Oh wow, a five-star character has been released?

Of course not, this isn't a game.

This situation does not indicate that five stars have been produced; rather, it suggests that there was a problem with the ceremony.

At this moment, Rin Tohsaka, who possesses dozens of Magic Circuits, felt for the first time in her life that her magical energy was insufficient.

She closed her eyes in pain and then cried out to Rovey for help.

And indeed, Rovey's figure appeared directly behind Rin Tohsaka, and he reached out to support her. Then he looked at the ritual circle in front of him.

And they began to wonder where exactly the problem lay.

Does this mean the ritual has failed?

No, not at all... on the contrary, it was a great success.

Because it absorbed too much magic power, the ritual circle not only didn't stop, but spun even faster, and even emitted the aura of multiple magical forces.

What exactly is this magic...?

Just as Rovey was pondering what had happened, suddenly, Rin Tohsaka, who had been nearly exhausted, raised her head. Even her previously drowsy eyes suddenly flashed with two different colors: her left eye was gold, symbolizing wealth, while her right eye was a dark red amber.

She moved away from in front of Rovey's palm and took a few steps forward to the summoning ritual circle, then turned around under Rovey's strange gaze.

"Hmph, what a lucky fellow, actually managing to summon me, the noble goddess of love and beauty. Although you're still no match for my true form, I'll reluctantly accept your body."

The next moment, Rin Tohsaka tossed her hair, her golden eyes looking at Rovey: "What's wrong, human? Are you stunned by my beauty? But there's nothing I can do about it. After all, I am the embodiment of beauty, Ishtar."

Upon seeing this, Rovey's lips twitched slightly.

It really is this guy, and...

"Wait a minute! It's you? You big liar, you summoned me again?"

This Ishtar's wavelength was exactly the same as the one he had seen in other timelines. Without a doubt, she was the Ishtar from the Seventh Singularity. And she immediately recognized Rovey, seemingly still harboring resentment about the past.

And things aren't that simple, because Rovey just sensed two familiar magical fluctuations.

"Rovey!"

Sure enough, in the next moment, Ishtar's expression changed drastically, like a face-changing act in Sichuan opera. Even her golden eyes turned into a dark red, amber-like color, and her long, jet-black hair turned golden. Then, she grasped Rovey's hand, her eyes sparkling with countless tiny stars, and said with immense joy.

"No wonder I was suddenly summoned. It was you! So you were the one who summoned us? Great, I can see you again so soon! After Mother left, Gilgamesh signed a fifty-year work contract with me. After I gave him some gold that was useless in the Underworld, he helped me oversee the construction team. Now my dungeon is almost half completed, and the garden we promised is almost there too... Oh dear!"

"What are you doing here? Why are you inside my body, Ereshkigal?!"

Suddenly, Ereshkigal, who had been happily holding Rovey's hand and excitedly telling him about her changes, let out a scream. However, this inappropriate scream was not from her, but from another entity within her body that had seized control.

"What on earth is going on?!"

At this moment, Ishtar regained control of Rin Tohsaka's body. Recalling what had just happened and the existence of Ereshkigal's soul, she spoke loudly with extreme displeasure.

The next moment, Ereshkigal's voice reappeared.

"Why am I here? I don't know either. I just felt someone calling me. It's been so long since anyone called me, so I came to check. I didn't expect you to be here too, Ishtar."

Ereshkigal was clearly surprised by Ishtar's presence.

However, his emotions were noticeably more stable.

"You too?! Me too! What's going on? Why are you still inside me even here?!"

Recalling the awkward feeling of having only half control over her body, Ishtar let out a desperate cry.

Then she abruptly turned her head, looking at Rovey who was equally speechless, and questioned him, "You did this, didn't you?! It must have been you! You summoned me here just to mess with me, didn't you? How shameless! I'll teach you a lesson!"

"--Ma Maanna!!"

As expected, Ishtar remained as impatient and quick-tempered as ever. Without hesitation, she raised her hand, assuming a pistol stance, and pointed her fingertips at Rovey, gathering her magic to teach Rovey a lesson without any provocation. Behind her, the enormous blue bow and arrow— Ishtar's mount—was also summoned, aimed at Rovey, and prepared to attack.

"Rider."

Upon seeing Maanna's appearance, and noting that this time Maanna wasn't the pure blue bow and arrow type seen in Mesopotamia, but rather resembled a mount, Rovey recognized her current class. Looking at the magical energy gathering around her, Rovey's eyes narrowed slightly. He roughly estimated that if Ishtar fired this shot, the entire Tohsaka Family would truly experience a massive gas explosion.

"You really love causing trouble for others."

So, just to give Rin Tohsaka a final bit of courage to live, Rovey raised his hand, preparing to use his own energy to block Ishtar's attack.

But just then--

"Can't!"

The next moment, Ereshkigal's voice appeared again.

A golden light reappeared on her hair, successfully suppressing Ishtar's emotions.

Maanna, who was standing nearby, was also abruptly stopped, looking at her owner with a puzzled expression.

However, at this very moment, Ishtar, Ereshkigal, is performing a double-fighting technique using Rin Tohsaka's body.

With one hand on each side, they were pulling each other's hair incessantly, and then they started shouting together.

"--Ouch ouch ouch ouch!!"

The whole scene looked absolutely bizarre.

Later, Ereshkigal even grabbed Rin Tohsaka by the neck and started to exert force, making Ishtar feel what it meant to be unable to breathe, and she could only summon Maanna to help her.

Then the two started blaming each other again.

Ishtar demanded, "What are you doing? Why are you protecting this guy? You almost suffocated me!"