Shirou's Return From the Fae Kingdom

"Mm."

Lady Avalon's voice echoed in Shirou's consciousness.

This was a type of Magic called "Telepathy," used for communication between Master and Servant.

Although the seven Magus and Servants weren't all gathered yet, the prelude to the Holy Grail War had already begun.

Crows, rats, sparrows... even stray cats and dogs, any small animal on the street could be an enemy's Familiar acting as an informant.

Shirou had to be extra careful when conversing with Lady Avalon outside.

"It's so quiet. I thought you might have some reaction... when I was doing 'that'."

After a brief silence--

"Mm, because I promised Master, I wouldn't butt in randomly.

To be honest, I was surprised too...

Master looks so cute, yet he can do 'that' without batting an eye."

Lady Avalon spoke in a very relaxed tone, "That... is a Living Dead, right?"

What happened after Shirou was dragged into the apartment by the serial killer?

Of course, he stabbed Ryunosuke Uryu to death.

But things didn't end there--

In modern Pan-Human History, there were three major organizations collectively known as the Mage's Association.

The Clock Tower, the center of modern Magic, effectively equivalent to the Association itself.

The Saint's sanctuary for alchemists, the cradle of pessimists, the Atlas Institute.

And the most mysterious organization that worshiped divine Magic, particularly focusing on the human body and flesh modification, the Wandering Sea.

Among the many research areas of the Wandering Sea, one was considered the supreme miracle--regeneration after death.

What Shirou did was precisely this.

After stabbing Ryunosuke Uryu to death, Shirou investigated the room and discovered that the killer's purpose in coming to Fuyuki was also for the Holy Grail War.

Shirou gained a new understanding of the diversity of Magus species, no, was he not a Magus?

While it would have been fine to simply kill such a societal scum, a thought suddenly occurred to the young man.

Shirou magically modified Ryunosuke Uryu's corpse, turning him into a Living Dead.

Normally, a Living Dead would require a considerable process and time to prepare the brain of the ethereal body...

However, during his long years in Britain, Shirou had learned a great deal of relevant techniques from a witch to extend the limits of his own physical existence.

If expressed as a Servant's Skill, it would be "Body Modification," a Skill similar to "Self-Modification."

Regeneration after death, simulated resurrection.

With his superb "Body Modification" technique, Shirou made death temporarily stay away from Ryunosuke Uryu, even preserving the last fragment of information and memory from his life.

Since it wasn't true resurrection, he couldn't expect the entity to retain normal logical thinking abilities, which was a slight regret.

But it was enough.

Enough for Ryunosuke Uryu, no, this thing that was once Ryunosuke Uryu, to summon a Servant and participate in the Holy Grail War.

As for when he would discover the truth of his own death, Shirou wasn't sure, and he was curious.

Big brother, you who prided yourself as an artist obsessed with death, believing you possessed an extraordinary sensitivity to the authenticity of death...

Will you not realize your own state of life or death until the very end?

That would be hilariously funny.

After a long silence, Lady Avalon asked, "Why do this?

It would have been fine to just leave him be, the Holy Grail would choose a new Master, why did you have to..."

Shirou said seriously, "Are you accusing me? Sister Avalon, are you trying to criticize me for desecrating a corpse?"

Lady Avalon replied, "No, I didn't mean that at all..."

Shirou continued, "If Ryunosuke Uryu can truly summon a Servant, then we've secured one victory in advance.

On the other hand--he's a rare experimental subject, I want to collect test data using him."

Humans in the Fae Kingdom had a lifespan limit of 30 years, while humans in Pan-Human History could easily live past 80.

Although Shirou had already conducted many experiments on himself in his past life, he didn't consider himself a normal person anymore.

Now that there was a serial killer, Shirou felt no guilt whatsoever in researching the corpse of such a scumbag.

"Just in case he continued to do evil and kill indiscriminately, I've removed the organs in his brain responsible for emotions and behavior, the frontal lobe, I believe it's called...

But if he still continues to do bad things, there's nothing I can do. The progress of science always comes with sacrifices.

Ryunosuke Uryu, I apologize, but please serve your purpose as my observation subject and perform well in the Holy Grail War."

Shirou said with an almost matter-of-fact calmness, and Lady Avalon pursed her lips at the side.

"I-I see... Honestly, how could I possibly blame Master!"

Lady Avalon offered a smile as beautiful as her trademark.

"Rather, if there's something interesting next time, count me in~

I am Merlin's little sister, the Flower Magus from Paradise, so I can guide you in this regard without any issues."

"Alright," Shirou readily agreed.

"It's a promise, Master!"

Lady Avalon said with full of spirit, though for some reason, her eyes looked a little lonely.

She had known for a long time that her Master was far from "ordinary"...

But.

Seeing him smile broadly while fiddling with corpses once again, Lady Avalon felt a deep sadness.

"Master! Master! Finally, a Magus has made a move!"

Two nights later, Lady Avalon excitedly threw open the shoji door.

"Hey! Knock first!"

Shirou slammed off the TV in exasperation.

"I know Master's interests very well."

Lady Avalon giggled, covering her mouth. When she burst in, a highly revealing magical girl anime was playing on the TV.

Shirou said with a straight face, "I'm watching this anime so I have something to talk about with my friends. I'm not personally interested."

"Yes, yes, yes."

Lady Avalon sat down in front of Shirou. Her slender legs, encased in thigh-high stockings, were laid across the tatami mat, drawing the eye.

Shirou averted his gaze. "What are you here for?"

"Of course, to report on my reconnaissance."

After manifesting, Lady Avalon declared that reconnaissance and surveillance were her specialty, and forcefully took over that part of the work.

Shirou was actually curious: would such a peerlessly beautiful woman, as delicate as a flower, use creatures like bats, rats, or crows as familiars?

But no matter how he asked, Lady Avalon remained tight-lipped about the types of familiars she used, saying, "It's a girl's secret?"

Whatever, as long as she completed her work honestly.

Lady Avalon spread her slender fingers, and a crystal ball appeared in her palm.

Accompanied by a dazzling white light--

An image appeared inside the crystal ball, showing a luxurious Western-style mansion standing in the silent, deep night.

"The Tohsaka family's mansion?"

Volume 1, Chapter 035: The Most Suitable Ally

"Correct."

Lady Avalon explained proudly, "This is a live broadcast."

Shirou looked into the crystal ball.

There were two Servants in the image.

One was a person in black, whose palm was pierced by a spear, pinning him to the ground.

The other was the golden shadow standing proudly on the roof of the Tohsaka mansion.

The golden figure exuded a terrifying pressure, making even the vast expanse of stars seem dim.

"The one on the ground should be Assassin, right? I heard the skull mask is Assassin's symbol.

He actually thought of assassinating the lax Tohsaka Master before the ritual fully began... but his movements were exposed."

Lady Avalon explained from the side, while Shirou remained silent, only staring at the crystal ball and asking.

"How many factions are monitoring the surroundings?"

"Huh?"

Lady Avalon was taken aback by the question.

Normally, wouldn't one be concerned about the two Servants in the picture? Who would pay attention to the audience?

She answered honestly, "Besides us, there are three other parties."

"Three parties?"

Shirou didn't think Ryunosuke Uryu would dispatch familiars for surveillance.

This means if Ryunosuke Uryu successfully summons a Servant, then almost all participants will be present tonight.

"Has the Einzbern Family arrived in Japan yet?"

Lady Avalon shrugged her shoulders, pulling the conversation back on track.

"Isn't the Master of Assassin too reckless? To think of directly assassinating the head of the Tohsaka Family!"

"It's not reckless, it's stupid," Shirou commented calmly.

"Could there be some past grievance with the Tohsaka Family?" Lady Avalon pondered, pinching her delicate chin.

"...Strange."

"What is it?"

"Lady Avalon, don't you think Assassin's presence is too weak?"

The Flower Magus stammered, "No, even if you say that, if Assassin's presence is too strong, it would be troublesome, wouldn't it? How could they infiltrate and assassinate..."

"That's true, but this Assassin, I feel something is off."

Shirou thought to himself: The principle of the Holy Grail War is to fill its power by absorbing the souls of defeated Servants.

The soul of each Servant is equivalent to the sacrifice of tens of thousands of people, which is why it can achieve such an effect, even opening a path to the Root.

However—isn't the soul of this current Assassin a bit too thin?

Lady Avalon scrambled to the crystal ball, staring at it for a while.

Ah, this is...

"Did you see something?"

The silver-haired female Magus quickly waved her hands, "N-no!"