Sakura Matou Rewrites Destiny

But... for a king like Artoria, she would never let personal likes or dislikes decide a matter. So long as it could benefit her people, even if the other party was utterly wicked, Artoria would not mind associating with them.

If someone would bring disaster upon her people, even if they were a saint or an angel, Artoria would not hesitate to draw her sword against them.

Therefore, even though she could be said to have an awful impression of Gilgamesh and his Master,

Artoria still silently walked behind Gilgamesh, adopting a stance of advancing and retreating alongside him.

Gilgamesh glanced back at Artoria, who had come to stand behind him.

Facing this "treasure" with her brows tightly furrowed, Gilgamesh, his eyes filled with almost undisguised mockery, spoke.

"King of Knights... choose. Stake your life and continue fighting, or... strive for victory in the Holy Grail War..."

As he spoke, Gilgamesh raised a finger and pointed toward the graveyard not far from the church.

With the perception granted by her top-tier intuition, Solomon, whose location had now been exposed, immediately entered Artoria's senses.

"Oh, right, King of Knights. I forgot to tell you... that mongrel Hassan came here to play house, and that dead girl over there has no interest in the Holy Grail either..."

The mockery in Gilgamesh's eyes deepened. Having roughly figured out the character of this "treasure" called Artoria, Gilgamesh seemed to have begun his first round of polishing...

Inherited Habit of Dropping the Ball?

Late at night, in the underground laboratory beneath the Matou Family residence in the city.

Using Floating Magecraft, Sakura carried the sleeping Shirou Chiko in her arms and entered the place once again.

The battle over "Shirou Chiko" before the church

had already come to an end. After accepting Artoria's demand,

Sakura severed the contract between Shirou Chiko and Artoria on the spot. Then, after stripping Berserker's Command Seals and handing them to Artoria,

Sakura naturally obtained Shirou Chiko without any trouble.

Sakura was naturally very satisfied with how smoothly she had recovered Zouken Matou and acquired Shirou Chiko.

After all, if she had truly needed to seize Shirou Chiko by force, with King Hassan putting in no real effort, Sakura—who had already fought two full battles today and was exhaustion incarnate—might not have been able to accomplish it smoothly.

She stretched lazily with a tired groan, then casually placed Shirou on the clean, orderly dissection table nearby. After nodding at the smiling but silent Orochimaru, she turned and walked out of the underground Laboratory.

For Orochimaru, who controlled Fuyuki City's Surveillance System, Sakura naturally had no need to provide any detailed explanation. The Holy Church in Fuyuki City was a key surveillance zone in the entire system. Perhaps Orochimaru knew even more clearly than Sakura herself what had happened there.

Watching Sakura leave,

Orochimaru immediately summoned two giant snakes he had raised himself, then had them carry Shirou Chiko and place him into the special surgical device that had long been prepared.

Late at night, at the Matou Family's mountain villa in the outskirts of Fuyuki City.

After this "thrilling" day had finally ended,

Sakura could finally rest in peace for a while.

"I'm so tired..." she complained helplessly.

During battle, Sakura had to constantly adjust her Mage Circuits, continuously use the Yellow Court Scripture to switch emotions, and remain completely focused on watching her enemies. How could she possibly not be tired?

If it were not for the fact that her cultivation of the Yellow Court Scripture and the fusion with her soul had given her far more stamina than an ordinary person,

an ordinary human her age would probably have collapsed before the first battle even ended.

Even adults, even Magi, could not endure switching their emotions and casting spells at Sakura's frequency for long.

King Hassan slowly walked before Sakura and removed the skull mask from his face.

A trace of concern surfaced in the depths of his eyes. As always, King Hassan spoke in his deep voice.

"How did true slaughter feel to you?"

"Tiring, very tiring... Not only did I have to keep adjusting myself, I also had to constantly watch the enemy and think through tactics... This was more exhausting than cultivating nonstop for several days..."

King Hassan lightly shook his head, his face expressionless. It was impossible to tell whether he was satisfied or disappointed with Sakura. In any case, after shaking his head, he put his mask back on and vanished from Sakura's sight as he spoke.

"Sakura, remember this feeling well... In the future, you will grow accustomed to it and make use of it!"

Sakura blinked in confusion, then turned toward Kurumi, who was lying in a chair not far away, her gaze never having left Sakura.

"Sister Kurumi, what does Old Man of the Mountain mean by that?"

"Hehe, Sakura, you're usually so clever. Why do you always get muddled over things like this? The old man means~ he wants you to remember how today's battle felt. When you encounter real battles in the future, you'll use those feelings and grow accustomed to them."

"Huh... encounter real battles in the future... Ah... Sister Kurumi, does that mean the old man won't force me to fight anymore?"

Kurumi stood and walked before Sakura, raised a hand to gently scrape Sakura's nose, then bent down and picked her up. Sitting in Sakura's chair and placing Sakura on her lap, Kurumi nodded.

"That's right. You don't need to take part in this Holy Grail War anymore, hehe..."

Sakura shook the little braid by her ear, which was tied with Solomon's ring as a hair tie.

Feeling puzzled by her own sudden lapse, Sakura unconsciously tilted her head.

Could it be... I inherited the Tohsaka Family's habit of dropping the ball too?

Still, no matter what, not being forced to participate in the rest of the Holy Grail War was undoubtedly good news for Sakura.

It was only... for some reason, Sakura was feeling muddled at the moment and failed to realize something.

Even if she wanted to keep participating, she no longer had the chance.

After all, with the triangular balance broken, the Holy Grail War now had only two major factions left and had entered its decisive stage. Sakura was no longer allowed to casually step in as a bystander.

She rested in Kurumi's embrace for quite a while.

Perhaps it was because she had constantly switched emotions today, leaving Sakura's brain overly stimulated.

Or perhaps Sakura was still unconsciously replaying the sensations of battle in her mind.

In any case, Sakura lay in Kurumi's arms until three in the morning and still could not fall asleep.

She carefully climbed out of Kurumi's arms while Kurumi was already sleeping soundly, then covered her with a blanket.

Sakura quietly opened the door to her room and slipped outside.

Before dawn in the mountains was precisely when animals were most active.

Walking through the empty mountain villa, with the calls of small mountain animals occasionally sounding by her ears, Sakura wandered without realizing it until she arrived before the Tohsaka family's guest room.

She gently pushed open the guest room door and entered without making almost any sound, feeling somewhat guilty as though she were a thief.

"Sakura!"

The sudden voice startled Sakura.

Looking closely, she saw that the speaker was Tokiomi Tohsaka, who was sitting on the bed, holding a basic magecraft book and reading under the faint moonlight.

He gently lifted the blanket from himself, carefully avoiding disturbing his wife and daughter sleeping beside him.

Having recovered his basic mobility, Tokiomi Tohsaka then walked gracefully over to Sakura.

"Can't sleep, Sakura...?"

"Yeah. I'm tired, but for some reason, I just don't feel sleepy."

Looking at Tokiomi Tohsaka's smile, which carried a trace of gentleness, Sakura felt happy inside but also could not help growing wary.

After all... the last time Sakura remembered seeing Tokiomi Tohsaka wear such an expression toward her was a year ago.

Catching that hint of wariness in Sakura's eyes, Tokiomi Tohsaka raised his severed arm and smiled self-deprecatingly. He did not mind Sakura's vigilance and instead continued gently.

"Would you mind taking a walk with me... head of the Matou Family?"

"Sure. I can't sleep anyway..."

Although Tokiomi Tohsaka had changed how he addressed her, Sakura still gave him a suspicious glance as she agreed...

Tokiomi's Ambition and Tsuruno's "Delusion"

In the mountain garden beneath the moonlight.

One large figure and one small figure slowly walked through the courtyard steeped in nature beneath the hazy moonlight.

Breathing in the fragrance of grass and earth that filled the air.

Sakura had already gained quite a lot today and was in excellent spirits. Though she felt suspicious and wary of what Tokiomi Tohsaka wanted,

it did not affect her mood at the moment.

She skipped around the garden for a long while before, finally... Tokiomi Tohsaka broke the silence.

"Sakura... do you hate me?"

Sakura stopped and turned to look at Tokiomi Tohsaka.

"Hate you... maybe a little. But now, I probably don't care anymore."

"Then can I entrust Aoi and Rin... to you from now on?"

As he spoke, Tokiomi Tohsaka walked to the edge of the garden, gazing out at Fuyuki City, brilliantly lit beneath the moonlight and the city's lights.

"...What are you trying to do, Tokiomi Tohsaka?!"

Faced with Tokiomi Tohsaka's inexplicable request, Sakura immediately furrowed her brows.

"I'm going to continue fulfilling the Tohsaka Family's long-cherished wish..."

"Are you trying to get yourself killed, Tokiomi Tohsaka? In your current state, do you still intend to return to the Holy Grail battlefield in Fuyuki City?"

With a trace of determination, Tokiomi Tohsaka nodded before Sakura as though he had already made up his mind.

"Sakura, this is the long-cherished wish pursued by the Tohsaka Family for generations... I can rest easy leaving Aoi and Rin to you... And besides..."

Tokiomi Tohsaka lowered his head and looked at his severed arm. A bitter smile crossed his face, and then, as though his resolve had been set, he looked at Sakura with an expression asking her to grant his wish.

Unable to understand the way Magi thought or this so-called family responsibility at all, Sakura immediately spat at the feet of this nominal father of hers in annoyance.

"Pah... Why should I? I don't dislike Mom... Aoi Tohsaka and Rin, but don't forget that I'm the head of the Matou Family. Why should I help your Tohsaka Family raise people?"

Watching Sakura suddenly begin acting shamelessly, Tokiomi Tohsaka, who still had a soft place in his heart, smiled sincerely. Then he resumed a serious expression and spoke.

"Aoi has a patent transfer agreement that I signed. Although the patent does not have much time left, consider it a small compensation from me... Also, the Tohsaka Family's Jewel Magecraft, I have already..."

"Wait, stop talking. I don't care about your patents. Don't think I don't know that those patents of yours only make a few hundred thousand dollars a year at most. Do you think I'm short on that little money?"

With one hand on her hip and a disdainful look on her face, Sakura directly cut off Tokiomi Tohsaka's "last wishes."

Then, after saying that, Sakura pulled out her Magic Wand from her sleeve.

"As for Jewel Magecraft... forget it. Maybe I'd care if it were that old man's version, but I don't care about your Tohsaka Family's Jewel Magecraft..."

Seeing Sakura say she did not care while drawing her Magic Wand and aiming it at him,

Tokiomi Tohsaka first furrowed his brow. Then, seeming to realize something, he smiled and waved his intact left hand, summoning a ball of flame and drawing from it a civilized cane set with a fist-sized gemstone.

Sakura waved the Command Seals on the back of her hand at Tokiomi Tohsaka.

"How about this? Since I'm planning to withdraw from this Holy Grail War anyway, let me use this chance to see Jewel Magecraft. If you win, I'll transfer the Command Seals to you."

Kirei's Command Seals... What was going on, Sakura? Why had she joined this Holy Grail War...

Tokiomi Tohsaka did not know that after he fell unconscious, Sakura had been forced into this Holy Grail War and now planned to withdraw. His brows immediately furrowed again.

Just as Tokiomi Tohsaka pondered how Kirei Kotomine's Servant and Command Seals had appeared on Sakura, what role Kirei Kotomine had played when he himself was attacked by a Servant, and whether his "old friend" and the Holy Church had intervened in the Holy Grail War,

Sakura waved her Magic Wand and cast Silent No More toward the villa behind her.

Another day arrived. Bright sunlight filtered through the trees, lighting patches of brilliance across the walls of the mountain villa.

As for the duel between Sakura and Tokiomi Tohsaka last night, aside from the two involved, perhaps only King Hassan, who had remained hidden around Sakura to protect her, and Kurumi, who had always been within Sakura's shadow, knew what had happened.

But the result was quite obvious.

Inside the villa's dining room.

The Tohsaka Family and the Matou Family were chattering noisily over breakfast.

Her father sat to her left, and her mother sat to her right.

Rin Tohsaka, who had been tense yesterday and kept shedding tears, now had happiness written all over her face.

"Dad, hurry and try it... it's a continental breakfast Sakura specially prepared for you."