Aozaki Touko

Magicians were divided into seven ranks according to their magical attainment. From lowest to highest, they were Child, Elder, Open, Sacrificial, Canon, Color, and Grand—a total of seven ranks.

At present, the only known Color Rank magus was Lord Kenneth, who had first been brushed aside by Green Brush, then crippled by Kiritsugu, and finally finished off by the ahoge.

As for Grand Magi, the only known ones were Aozaki Touko, who stood before Shirou and the others, and Darnic, who appeared in Fate/Apocrypha and went down with the Grand Duke.

Speaking of Darnic, one point needed to be added: the ranking of magi was not absolute. Both Darnic and Aozaki Touko were Grand Magi, but Darnic did not possess the magical standards of a Grand Magus.

Touko was different from that fraud Darnic. She possessed the technique to create dolls exactly identical to herself and always kept one version of herself in hibernation.

Once the living Touko died, her memories would transfer into the spare body and awaken. The awakened Touko would then make another dormant body. Because the manufactured flesh was no different from the original, even Touko herself did not know which body had been the first. Therefore, according to Schrödinger's cat principle, every one of her was the real her.

In other words, unless every single "Aozaki Touko" could be destroyed at once, Touko would never die.

It was precisely because of this ability that Kiritsugu sought out Aozaki Touko and intended to have her adjust Illya and the others' bodies. It had to be said that Einzbern was truly awful. Leaving aside the foolish things they had done during the Third Holy Grail War, even the homunculi they created had lifespans of less than twenty years.

"You don't come to the temple without a reason. If you have a commission, just say so. I'll take it. I just left the Clock Tower, and I'm short on cash."

That was the truth. Not long after Touko had finished repaying her debts, she was placed on the Sealed Designation list for creating a doll identical to herself. She was genuinely broke now.

"Ms. Aozaki, can you adjust a homunculus's physical condition?" When dealing with serious business, Kiritsugu rarely wasted words and went straight to the point.

"Hmm... that depends on what kind of homunculus it is. I make dolls, but homunculi and dolls do share a great many similarities," Touko said.

"They're Einzbern homunculi. Have you heard of them, Ms. Aozaki?" Shirou asked.

"Is that so? Einzbern... I haven't heard that name in a very long time. It's a little nostalgic." Aozaki Touko sounded somewhat wistful.

Einzbern had once been a workshop established by the disciples of the Third Magician, while Aozaki Touko herself had once been a magus raised as an "egg of a Magician."

Originally designated as the heir to the Aozaki family's magecraft, she had undergone her grandfather's strict training from childhood. Her eyesight had worsened because she tried too hard to live up to his expectations. But when she was eighteen, her grandfather suddenly decided to make her younger sister Aoko the heir instead. She killed her grandfather, who had also been her teacher, and severed all ties with her sister and the entire Aozaki family. Her life had once been nothing but a tragedy.

"Phew—" Touko let out a long breath. "All right, I'll accept this commission. I may not have their techniques and can't create homunculi like Einzbern's, but I can make adjustments."

"Then name your price, Ms. Aozaki. We have nothing but money to offer, so money isn't much of an issue." It was not Kiritsugu who spoke, but Shirou. Although Kiritsugu was the head of the household, his principle was: if it could be handled with a 98k, there was no need to argue. In terms of eloquence, Kiritsugu could not compare to Shirou.

"My fees aren't cheap. Even simple adjustments would cost nearly ten million yen. Are you planning to pay in installments? Let me make this clear first—I don't accept that."

"No. Even if you did, we wouldn't have the patience for it. Also, it isn't one homunculus you'll be adjusting, but three."

Shirou pointed in Illya's direction. Illya, Sella, and Lizelotte—three in total.

"Are you sure? Paying an eight-figure sum all at once would be difficult even for a major corporation."

"Let me correct you again. What you described is a corporation, while we're merely a family of five."

As he spoke, Shirou pointed at Kiritsugu, proving that there was a wealthy patron on their side.

Kiritsugu had followed his adoptive mother Natalia as a bounty hunter. In the beginning, their primary targets had been valuable research results. Several years later, Kiritsugu sent Natalia flying into the sky with one shot, and his targets changed to commissions from the Mage's Association. Although the targets changed, one thing never did: making money!

"My, my, I overthought things. If I'd known, I would've quoted a higher price and taken you for more." Touko smiled.

"Uh... you could've just kept that to yourself. Why say it out loud?"

"Haha, indeed, you really suit my tastes, kid! I truly don't know how Emiya Kiritsugu managed to raise a son like you."

"We can talk about that later. Since you're willing to accept this commission, sign this." Shirou did not continue following Touko's lead. They had come to discuss business, not chat.

The moment Touko saw the yellowish-brown parchment Shirou handed over, her expression instantly collapsed.

"You really are father and son. Another Self-Geas Scroll. What was that saying again? Like family, like family—that's you two, isn't it?"

"Can't be helped. No one in our family has experience negotiating with magi. To avoid any accidents, we can only use this stupid method." Shirou gave a guileless smile, one so honest that it was difficult to doubt him.

"Is my professional integrity really that untrustworthy?" Touko gave a bitter smile. No magus liked Self-Geas Scrolls, especially magi who were not good at playing word games.

"With all due respect, Ms. Aozaki. Regarding the credibility of magi, as an orthodox magus, you should understand it better than an outsider like me."

That was why Kiritsugu was sometimes unsuitable for conversation. His words were simply too stifling. Either he said nothing, or he left others speechless the moment he opened his mouth.

"All right, all right, you win. I'll sign it, okay?" Touko said helplessly.

"Please forgive us if we've caused any offense. After all, the people who need adjustment are our family. Even if they aren't perfect, that doesn't change anything," Shirou added.

"Yes, yes, I know. You're worried I'll leave some hidden trick during the adjustments and use your homunculus ladies to threaten you, aren't you?" This was not the first time Touko had encountered such a situation. It was common among magi.

"Hehe, I do trust your professional integrity, Ms. Aozaki." Shirou smiled awkwardly.

"Then please say that earlier next time. At least before I sign the scroll."

"Um... it's already dinner time. Ms. Aozaki, would you be interested in having dinner with the Emiya Family?"

"Tch! Thanks to you people, I'm in a terrible mood right now. Watch me eat you out of house and home!"