Only after the constantly swaying red ponytail vanished from his sight did Lord El-Melloi II finally let out a long breath.
"Teacher... do you know that girl?"
Rei looked curiously at her teacher. For her, Lord El-Melloi II's reaction was quite rare. If Rei had to describe her herself, the girl with red twin-tails was beautiful and lively, someone who gave off a very friendly feeling. Yet to her teacher, she seemed more like some terrifying demon.
"Well... since you saw her, there's nothing for me to hide."
Lord El-Melloi II nodded.
"She calls herself Red Ponytail. Obviously, that's a nickname; her real name is unknown. I encountered her several times during that Holy Grail War ten years ago."
"Huh?"
Rei froze upon hearing that.
"Ten years ago? But that girl looked only thirteen or fourteen..."
"She looked exactly the same back then as she does now. She hasn't changed at all, as though time simply means nothing to her... I never expected her to be with the Thousand Tree Clan. This is troublesome..."
"What kind of place is this Thousand Tree Clan?"
"To the Mage's Association, they are heretics."
"Heretics?"
"That's right."
Lord El-Melloi II reached into his coat and took out a cigar.
"You probably don't know this, but the Thousand Tree Clan used to take in all kinds of mage families. Over its long history, many mage bloodlines declined for various reasons, and the Thousand Tree Clan took them in and consolidated them. You could say that the Thousand Tree Clan was once an alliance of weak mage families. Naturally, the Mage's Association did not take the Thousand Tree Clan seriously at the time, but..."
"But?"
"After that, the Thousand Tree Clan suddenly announced that it would begin a Holy Grail War, and even killed the members