Shirou's Return from the Fae Kingdom

"Grandpa?" Shinji blinked.

Shirou replied in a flat tone, "Of course not, Shinji is my friend."

Zouken Matou said, "Is that so... I apologize for earlier, old man's manners were lacking, being so impolite to a guest. Ah, Tsuruno already agreed to let you stay, right? You can stay as long as you like, don't mind me."

Shirou asked, "Does the old man live here too?"

Zouken Matou said, "Yes, but as you can see, this is just a decaying husk. I just spend my days in the depths of the residence, quietly waiting to die. ...Then I'll take my leave, Shirou Amamiya. Please get along well with my grandson."

The old man disappeared with light steps into the darkness of the corridor.

The Matou Residence returned to silence. Not only the sound of conversation, but even the noisy chirping of insects had stopped.

"Hey, Shinji, your grandpa--"

Shirou looked at the kelp-haired boy beside him, only to find him looking moved, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Shirou... is my friend... sob..."

"Clairvoyance."

Unlike Mage's Eyes, which lean towards magical applications, it is a potential ability inherent to the human body. Throughout history, many great warriors have possessed "Clairvoyance"— low-level "Clairvoyance" grants powerful static and dynamic long-distance vision, an ability limited solely to combat. Shirou Amamiya also possessed the potential for "Clairvoyance," his hawk-like eyes rated C... or so it should have been.

But in another Britain, Shirou faced betrayal, deception, and malice from the Fae day in and day out... His eyesight was trained in a way unimaginable to the human history. Coupled with the magical modification by a certain genius witch, the result was this.

"Boundless Mage's Eye."

Shirou Amamiya's eyes can trace back to the "end" of causality, to the "origin" of all things. In Shirou's view, the world's assessment of Shinji's grandfather as a "Vampire" might not be entirely wrong. Despite his outwardly aged appearance, his inner decay was even more profound. Normally, he should have gone mad, but this old man retained his reason. Rotting and deteriorating through repeated reincarnations, yet still capable of thought. What kind of powerful obsession could achieve this? Does he still remember his "purpose" from back then?

"Humans are truly incredible..."

Shirou Amamiya thought this, burying his head into the soft, unfamiliar pillow. He had found a place to stay for now, but the path ahead remained uncertain. Where should he go next? What was Shirou Amamiya's "purpose" as a human? Gazing at the familiar yet strange starry sky outside the window, Shirou suddenly felt a sense of loneliness.

"Knock, knock, knock."

Someone knocked on the door.

"Shirou! Are you still awake?"

"Not yet."

Hearing this, Shinji Matou pushed the door open.

"What's that?"

Shirou noticed the kelp-haired boy brandishing a brick-shaped object.

"My new game console, want to play?"

"Gimme that."

Shirou got up from the bed and snatched the toy from Shinji's hand.

Never mind... Before I decide my future, I should enjoy this rare second childhood.

And so, a week passed at the Matou residence.

Although freeloading at someone else's house and doing no chores wasn't Shirou Amamiya's style, the GameBoy was just too fun.

What a terrifying human civilization!

One morning, Shinji burst into his room excitedly.

"Shirou! Shirou! Wake up!"

"Huh? Let me sleep a little longer, stop bothering me."

Shirou buried his head in the covers.

He had stayed up until past four in the morning last night.

Shinji, meanwhile, was excitedly shouting while yanking at the covers.

"Shirou! Get up! I'm getting a little sister!"

"What? What does that have to do with me..."

Volume 1, Chapter 005: Sakura Matou

Shinji Matou's new little sister's name was Sakura.

She wasn't his biological sister, but rather adopted from someone else's family.

The family that gave her away was the Tohsaka Family, located on the mountaintop. The Tohsaka and Matou families seemed to be old acquaintances, having known each other for generations.

At that moment, Shinji was kneeling outside the living room, peeking through the gap in the door to observe the situation inside.

"Come look, Shirou... that's the second daughter of the Tohsaka Family. She'll be my sister from now on!"

He tugged at the young man's sleeve, and Shirou impatiently peered through the door gap.

There were four people in the room.

Sitting on the sofa was Zouken Matou.

Tsuruno Matou stood respectfully behind him like a secretary.

When he first moved in, Shirou had already realized that Tsuruno's position as head of the household was a facade; Zouken was the true master of the house.

"And then, sitting opposite Zouken is..."

A middle-aged gentleman, dressed expensively, with elegant manners and a goatee, was conversing with Zouken.

"That's Tokiomi Tohsaka, the current head of the Tohsaka Family,"

Shinji explained amicably.

"And sitting next to him is Sakura Tohsaka... no, she should be called Sakura Matou now!"

The boy, hiding furtively behind the door, was grinning foolishly with delight.

Is getting a little sister really that joyful? Shirou, being an orphan, didn't quite understand.

The Fae of "Britain" couldn't reproduce, but they did form families.

These weren't families bound by blood, but by "obligation." Morgan herself was raised as a daughter by other Fae.

Watching Shinji's beaming smile, Shirou suddenly felt annoyed and kicked him in the backside.

"Ahhh... Ah!?"

Shinji stumbled forward, crashing into the slightly ajar door and landing face-first on the floor.

"Well then, I'll be counting on you with Sakura..."

Tokiomi Tohsaka and Zouken Matou paused their conversation, and the four people in the room looked towards the doorway in unison.

"Shinji! What are you doing there!"

Tsuruno Matou's roar echoed through the living room.

Shinji Matou, terrified, flailed on the ground, trying to explain.

"N-no, it wasn't me, Father... This is... it was Shirou..."

"You must be Shinji-kun. You've grown so much since I last saw you a few years ago."

Tokiomi Tohsaka smiled as he looked at the boy who had interrupted their discussion.

"Ah, yes, this is my unfilial son, Shinji Matou."

Tsuruno Matou bowed his head apologetically. "His mother died early, so he's always been a bit mischievous. I'm truly sorry."

"It's quite alright. Children at this age should be lively."

Though it was very subtle, Shirou noticed a flicker of disdain and contempt in Tokiomi Tohsaka's eyes as he looked at Shinji.

The gentleman then patted the head of the young girl beside him. "Sakura, go and greet your future brother."

"Yes."

Sakura Tohsaka—no, Sakura Matou jumped down from the sofa and walked up to Shinji, bowing politely.

"Brother, please take good care of me from now on."

"Oh, oh! Please take good care of me too, Little Sakura~"

Shinji Matou was lying on the ground, chuckling foolishly.

The guy didn't seem to realize that after Tokiomi left, his father would beat him until his skin was torn.

Sakura Matou looked at Shirou Amamiya beside her again and bowed once more, "Brother, please take care of me from now on."

No, no, no, I'm not your brother.

Shirou thought, If we're going by actual age, I could be your grandfather.

Tokiomi Tohsaka also noticed the red-haired youth and asked curiously, "Old man Zouken, who is this...?"

"He's Shinji's friend, staying at my place recently... well, a slightly precocious and strange child."

Tokiomi Tohsaka's attention didn't linger on Shirou for too long, and he turned back to the adults.

"Then, I'll be counting on you for Sakura's matters."

"Hehehe, leave it to me." Zouken Matou said in a cheerful tone.

Tokiomi Tohsaka called his young daughter to him again, gracefully knelt on one knee, and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Sakura, from today onwards, you are a child of the Matou family. You must listen to your grandfather, understand?"

"Yes, Father... Uncle Tohsaka."

Seeing Sakura Matou nod obediently, Tokiomi Tohsaka also nodded in satisfaction.

"Always maintain elegance, no matter when or where," this was the family motto passed down through generations of the Tohsaka family.

Separated from her parents before she was even seven years old and sent to a stranger's home, even so—Sakura didn't cry or fuss, accepting everything quietly.

This was undoubtedly a result of his successful upbringing, and Tokiomi Tohsaka felt exceptionally proud of it.

"Well then, we shall take our leave for today."