Asagami Fujino

The negotiation went smoothly. According to Kiritsugu, by the time he went to the Asagami Family to demand Fujino's release, her father had already been thinking of handing her over—he was just held back by the pride of an old-fashioned clan.

When Kiritsugu offered to pay out of his own pocket, the other side agreed immediately. After a few polite formalities, they handed her over.

When Kiritsugu walked out of the Asagami Family compound, his face was dark and terrifying—with anger!

She was his own flesh-and-blood daughter, and he sold her for a mere five million yen. When he himself had given up his own child, it was to save the world. Did this man really think the world was only worth five million yen?

Both were human, so how could their priorities be so different?

And just like that, Fujino became the sixth member of the Emiya Family. In The Garden of Sinners, Fujino was riddled with ailments—analgesia, optic neuromyelitis, and even chronic appendicitis—but there was no denying that her ability was incredibly strong.

More importantly, all of these illnesses could be treated!

First, the analgesia. It wasn't true analgesia, really—just the result of abusing painkillers. A few bottles of sports drink would be enough to handle it. Painkillers weren't good stuff; if you went numb from them, you wouldn't even know when you'd frozen to death.

Then there was the optic neuromyelitis—an acute or subacute demyelinating condition affecting the optic nerve and spinal cord simultaneously or sequentially. It was characterized by acute or subacute onset of monocular or binocular blindness, preceded or followed days or weeks later by transverse or ascending myelitis.

It sounded pretty serious, and the original Fujino did go blind from it, but honestly, any decent hospital could treat it.

Finally, the chronic appendicitis—the big illness that nearly killed Fujino. So dangerous... yeah, right! It was just appendicitis. Any hospital that could perform surgery could handle it, and she hadn't even developed it yet.

Fujino's story taught us one thing: when you're sick, get treated. Don't skimp on money and pop random pills—you might not cure the original illness and just end up with a new one.

By the time everything was arranged for Fujino, Asagami Fujino had vanished, and she naturally became Emiya Fujino. But whether Asagami or Emiya, one thing was certain: one of Type-Moon's Four Great... well, you know... Asagami Fujino was gone. She would never exist again in this lifetime.

Fuyuki City, Emiya Residence.

"Yo, we meet again, little miss." A certain young man born with a natural affinity for woman troubles flashed his trademark smile at Fujino, who was spacing out under a tree.

"Huh? It's you!" Fujino remembered Shirou quite vividly. After all, the former had used her Mystic Eyes of Distortion to twist off the latter's arm—a scene so bloody it would be unforgettable for anyone.

"Oh, that's right, it's me. I took a liking to your power, little miss, so I had the old man spend five million to dig you out of that house."

"My... power?" If she could, Fujino would rather not have the power that had brought her nothing but disaster.

The Asagami Family was originally a famous demon-slaying clan, but they began keeping the 'demons' they captured as guardian spirits. As a result, the Asagami blood—meant to slay demons—became mixed with demonic factors. Like that unfortunate one-quarter recessive gene, the Asagami bloodline grew thinner with each generation of mixing, and the family's decline was tied to this.

'Demons' possessed the power to distort nature. Those carrying the 'demon' factor might manifest supernatural abilities, and Fujino was one such person.

The ridiculous part was that even though they had brought the 'demon' in themselves, the Asagami family was deeply wary of this power and refused to let the outside world know about it. It was just power, after all.

Also, just as natural diamonds were always more expensive than synthetic ones, Fujino's Mystic Eyes of Distortion were naturally formed, making them far stronger and rarer than artificial Mystic Eyes.

"I don't think I have any power that can be useful to you. My power only creates disaster." Fujino shook her head. As a child, she had been ostracized because she could twist objects without touching them.

"Disaster? It's just power. Even if a sword kills countless people, it's never the sword's fault. The idea that 'it's not me, it's the weapon' is wrong from the start."

"But... am I really human? The people in the village always called me a monster. Even my father..." Fujino lowered her head as she spoke, thinking: I once twisted off his arm. In his eyes, I must be a monster too.

Watching Fujino bury her head like an ostrich, Shirou almost wanted to give her a good knock on the head, but considering the girl was still under the effects of her painkillers and in her analgesic state, he gave up.

"Just because they say you are, doesn't make it true. How could it be!" Shirou's words made Fujino jerk her head up.

"Huh?"

"Like today, I call myself Emiya Shirou. Tomorrow, I could call myself Emiya Dirt-Dog. But that's just a name. I'm still me. I won't actually turn into a dog just because of a label. Get it?"

"Mm." Fujino nodded, still a bit dazed.

"As for the pain issue, we can set that aside for now. Every problem has a solution. There are no unsolvable problems, only wrong approaches." Shirou said.

"People die when they are killed. But every person has their own value, and you're no different. I'll help you master the power you should have."

"Why? Why are you helping me?" Fujino asked. In all her life, she had never met anyone who truly cared for her or loved her. Everyone treated her like a monster.

Now, suddenly, someone had appeared who was willing to talk to her and even said he would help her. It felt unreal to Fujino.

"Emm... I wouldn't say I'm helping you, exactly." Shirou thought for a moment before answering Fujino's question. "Because I want to, so I'm helping you. That's a more accurate way to put it."

Fujino: ???

What kind of answer was that?

Seeing the question marks all over Fujino's face, Shirou continued, "If I had to put it another way, it's what I said before. I've taken a liking to your power. I want that power to serve me. Consider it a transaction."

"Mm... I understand." Fujino said. Heaven only knew what this girl actually understood. "My power will serve you. I'll prove my worth in living this way. That should be enough, right?"

It wasn't exactly what he had in mind, but it wasn't wrong either.

"Close enough. Let me introduce myself. My name is Shirou. Emiya Shirou."

"Asagami Fujino. My name is Asagami Fujino."

Without realizing it, Fujino had already been led astray by Shirou. In the days to come, she truly became a force at his side, shining brilliantly in the battles that followed.

Of course, that was later. For now, Fujino was just a little girl with insufficient ability—the lowest combat power in the Emiya household.

"Now, let's start with the basics. First, sweep the yard."

"Yes!"