Shirou's Return from the Fae Kingdom

"You probably can't do it."

This was the conclusion Kenshinnes reached after his thoughts, the only path to victory.

Diarmuid, who cherished knightly honor, could not obtain the Holy Grail for himself.

He didn't need a hypocritical knight putting on airs; instead, he needed a deadly weapon that could faithfully carry out orders and ruthlessly slaughter other opponents.

Kenshinnes let out a cold laugh, then—he raised his right hand, inscribed with a Command Spell, once more.

"With a Command Spell, I order you again—

Lancer, recall the bitter betrayal you once tasted."

Volume 1, Chapter 052: If No One Wants Him, I'll Take Him

"Ahhh...!?"

Lancer screamed as he shot upright, his expression one of disbelief.

Under the absolute coercive power of the Command Spell, distant memories flooded his mind.

It was a dark seal he was most unwilling to touch.

In his life, he had gone hunting with his lord, but a mistake in weapon choice left him gravely wounded in a battle against a Demon Boar.

Although it was a fatal, incurable wound, he did not despair because of it.

Diarmuid's pride, the lord he had sworn loyalty to, Finn MacCool.

He was a great hero who had accomplished many deeds and created countless miracles since his youth.

Finn, renowned throughout the world for his spearmanship and healing powers, could have easily healed Diarmuid's injuries.

However, he was betrayed.

Betrayed.

Betrayedbetrayedbetrayedbetrayedbetrayedbetrayedbetrayed!!

Facing the dying, loyal knight, the old hero's mind was filled with jealousy and rage over having competed for the same woman.

Ultimately, Diarmuid died because he did not receive timely treatment.

What killed him was not the many malicious Curses (Geis) such as "cannot refuse a friend's invitation," "cannot hunt Demon Boars," and "is destined to be killed by a Demon Boar."

Nor was it his brother, reborn as a Demon Boar to claim his life.

It was his lord, to whom he had sworn all his loyalty!

It was a meticulously planned murder from the very beginning!

"Ah... ah..."

Lancer knelt on the ground, tears of blood continuously dripping onto the crimson carpet.

The chivalry he valued more than life itself was, in their eyes, worthless and trampled upon at will.

"Unforgivable... absolutely unforgivable..."

The knight no longer wailed, no longer screamed; he merely repeated curses, his wide eyes shedding two streams of crimson blood.

Thus, only one Command Spell remained in Kenshinnes's hand.

Considering that he would need to retain at least one Command Spell for future operations to prevent his Servant's betrayal, Kenshinnes effectively had no Command Spells left to use.

However, the ill-tempered Magus raised his arm for the third time, as if to exhaust his final Master privilege.

"Lancer, strip away your false mask and show me your ugly true face!!"

Kenshinnes commanded.

But this time, his hand did not erupt with crimson light—

Instead, the three Mana Cores in the room emitted a blinding white light.

A surging torrent of mana gushed from the Mana Cores, all flowing into Lancer's body.

What happened next was astonishing.

The moment it touched Lancer, the vast, surging flow underwent a terrifying magical corruption.

Pure white transformed into chaotic black.

It was less like Lancer was bathing in impure mana, and more like Lancer himself was polluting the pristine mana of the "stones."

The spiritual foundation of Diarmuid O'Duine was undergoing a horrific distortion.

Although its output was greatly reduced due to being divided into three parts, the Mana Cores were still functioning as they were originally intended.

As a mana aggregate of the Age of Gods, a simulated Wish Machine, it responded to the deepest darkness within Lancer's heart.

When it was all over, the proudest knight of the Knights of the Fianna, the radiant handsome man, was nowhere to be found.

Appearing in his place—

Was a pitch-black Demon, wielding a crimson Demon Sword and a crimson Demon Spear, clad in Cursed Beast Hide.

Shirou had been maintaining his stillness in the room for an hour.

Only when he was certain Kenshinnes and Demon Diarmuid had completely departed did he emerge from behind the curtains.

The three Mana Cores, which originally contained immense magical power, had fallen into slumber, appearing like ordinary decorative stones.

As a Wish Machine, its activation function was likely dormant until the end of the Holy Grail War.

In that case, Shirou saw no reason to destroy it.

In that case, Shirou had new plans for it.

Alright, let's pack it up and take it.

Mr. Kenshinnes, I shall be the one to reclaim this creation that possesses power but lacks aesthetic beauty.

"…Heave."

Shirou hugged the stone shaped like a torso and put his back into it, but after lifting it for half a second, he placed it back on the carpet.

So… so heavy.

It was still too much for his 8-year-old self.

While taking it was easy, escaping this hotel, which had been transformed into another world, without making a sound would be difficult.

Shirou took out a small communicator and contacted Hundred-Faced Hassan.

Although a tightly sealed detection Barrier was set up nearby, it had no defenses against radio waves. This was the limitation of Magus.

An hour and a half later, Assassin appeared on the top floor of the Hyatt Hotel, with Loli Hassan by her side.

Upon seeing Shirou wearing a skull mask, Loli Hassan mimicked him, covering her face with the mask from her hair.

Shirou pulled Hundred-Faced Hassan aside and asked in a low voice, "Why did you bring a tagalong when you came to work?"

"Do you think I wanted to?"

Assassin replied irritably that the child had insisted on seeing Shirou.

"No, but aren't you spoiling her too much?"

As Shirou mumbled this, Hundred-Faced Hassan shot him a fierce glare.

In the end, Hundred-Faced Hassan was responsible for carrying the "torso," Shirou for the "wings," and Loli Hassan for the "heart."

The three of them successfully carried the stones out of Lord El-Melloi's Workshop.

Since the three people and three stones were too conspicuous, Shirou hid nearby instead of going straight home to avoid drawing attention.

Recently, someone had been complaining that Shirou was out playing too late and was rarely seen, but there was nothing he could do about it.

The Holy Grail War would last at most two weeks. He'd have to endure it for these two weeks, Sister Fujiwara.

At seven in the evening, the Servants might already be preparing to fight. Shirou and the other two quietly returned to the Amamiya Residence.

The stolen Mana Cores were temporarily stored in a separate building.

"I'll be going now. It would be bad if Master discovered my suspicious movements."

As Hundred-Faced Hassan, holding Loli Hassan's hand, prepared to leave, Shirou suggested she stay for a cup of tea and to exchange information.

She thought for a moment and agreed.

"Tokiomi Tohsaka is clearly anxious because he can't determine the class of the seventh Servant and is frantically searching the entire Fuyuki area... Shirou, are you listening?"

"I'm listening, I'm listening."

Shirou and Loli Hassan left Hundred-Faced Hassan behind and sat in front of the television to watch a late-night Magical Girl anime.

Seeing the red-haired boy so engrossed, Hundred-Faced Hassan sighed helplessly:

"Kirei Kotomine ordered me to search the residences around the Miyama Town shopping street more thoroughly.

When I relayed the mission, I deliberately avoided the area near your house.

Nevertheless, you still need to be careful and avoid being discovered. If anything happens, I'll be implicated too."

"Mm, thank you, Assassin." Shirou said happily.

At this moment, the television suddenly broadcasted news of a large-scale gas leak occurring in multiple locations in Fuyuki.

"That's only natural."

Hundred-Faced Hassan mused:

"Also, something unexpected happened last night.

Kirei Kotomine ordered 'us' to follow the Einzberns who left the warehouse district... Uh, what's wrong with you?"

Hundred-Faced Hassan was startled.

For some reason, Shirou was sitting upright in front of her. His speed was so fast that even Assassin couldn't react in time.

The boy placed his hands on his knees, his expression particularly serious and solemn.

"What happened with the Einzbern? Please tell me."

Volume 1, Chapter 053: True Love Always Comes From Group C

"Brother Shirou, aren't you going to watch anymore?" Loli Hassan asked, turning her head.

Shirou's expression was serious. "I need to discuss important matters with Big Sister Assassin. I'll watch with you another day."

Hundred-Faced Hassan: ...Where did that perfunctory attitude from earlier go?

Then, she began to recount the strange events of the previous night.

After the battle in the warehouse district, while Shirou was carrying Hundred-Faced Hassan back to the inn, the Assassins were ordered to track Irisviel, who had departed.

And then, on the national highway returning to their base, they encountered Caster, who had not appeared until then.

"Caster?"

Shirou's heart leaped: All seven Servants, including Lady Avalon, were present. The last Servant was indeed Caster.

This also meant—the person who attacked Big Sister Assassin last night, and who had targeted him in the darkness, was not any of the seven Servants or seven Magus.

That person...

Shirou gasped, a sense of indescribable excitement surging in his chest.