Heading to Fuyuki City

Looking into Kitagawa's eyes, brimming with anticipation, anxiety, and even a hint of hurt, Rin rolled the words of refusal around on her tongue again and again. In the end, they came out as a delaying answer, tinged with compromise:

"Marin-nee," Rin said gently, her voice softening. "Please wait a little longer."

She paused, her gaze sweeping over Chen Tian's eyes, which had settled back into calm but seemed as deep as an abyss, before finally resting on Kitagawa's face.

"Until I get back from Fuyuki City, okay?"

The light in Kitagawa's face dimmed at once. Like a deflated balloon, her shoulders slumped, and she pouted as she muttered under her breath, "I still have to wait..."

At just the right moment, Chen Tian reached out and gently ruffled her soft blonde hair in a soothing gesture. His voice returned to its usual warmth. "All right, Marin. Respect Miss Tohsaka's decision."

Kitagawa was still a little glum, but having Chen Tian ruffle her hair helped ease her mood.

She looked up at Rin. There was still a hint of reluctance in her eyes, but she nodded anyway. "All right... Rin-chan, we'll take care of the paperwork as soon as you're back!"

"Mm," Rin replied softly. The tension in her heart eased a little at Marin's simple concern.

A faint sound of a door closing came from the second floor, and the living room fell completely quiet.

Chen Tian was still leaning back in the armchair, one leg crossed over the other, his posture unchanged. Light from his phone screen illuminated his calm face as his thumb moved swiftly across the screen, apparently handling messages.

Soon, light footsteps came down the stairs. Kitagawa Marin appeared at the living room entrance. Unlike usual, she didn't come bounding over; her steps were heavy with unhappiness.

Her gaze fixed on Chen Tian on the sofa. She hurried over and buried herself in his arms.

"Mmm..." She hid her face against his chest, her lips pushed into a pronounced pout. Her muffled voice was full of grievance.

Chen Tian's lips curved slightly. He put down his phone and naturally wrapped an arm around her, while his other hand gently stroked her smooth blonde hair.

"Still upset?" His voice was low and gentle.

The head nestled in his arms nodded emphatically. "I'm just worried about Rin-chan..."

She nuzzled against his chest, then lifted her head. Her big eyes were filled with sincerity and concern. "Rin-chan and I are really, really close. You have no idea—when we were little, whenever she came over to my house, I was the one who showed her around and played with her."

She adjusted her position, leaning against Chen Tian's shoulder, and started counting on her fingers. "She was so reserved when she first arrived, so I'd show her my manga, braid her hair, and take her to the convenience store to buy ice cream... She didn't talk much, but I knew she remembered it all."

Chen Tian listened quietly, his fingers gently smoothing her long hair every so often.

"After we got closer, she'd even smile once in a while. She looked so pretty when she did." Kitagawa's voice gradually softened, growing tender with the memories. "She's had such a hard time... Tian Jun, do you think the Tohsaka Family will give her a hard time when she goes back?"

She sighed softly, her brows knitting together. "I know Rin-chan must have her reasons. Sigh... I've met Rin-chan's father a few times. He seemed like a very gentle person, but there was also something mysterious about him that made him hard to read."

After saying that, she seemed to lose even more heart. Her arms tightened around Chen Tian's waist, as though she wanted to draw strength from him—and also pour out all her worry for her cousin.

Chen Tian held her close and gently brushed his chin over the top of her head, his voice soothing. "Don't worry too much. Miss Rin is much stronger than you think."

The head in his arms rubbed against his chest. "I can't help worrying..."

Chen Tian smiled silently without replying, simply patting her back gently.

Just then, the phone beside him lit up and vibrated. He reached over to check it, and the curve of his lips deepened.

"Xiao Meng," he said, lowering his head and brushing his chin against the crown of her hair. "They've scheduled another concert for me."

"Another show?" Kitagawa immediately lifted her head. Her earlier gloom gave way to curiosity, and she blinked up at him.

Chen Tian murmured in assent and turned his phone screen toward her.

The screen showed a message from his manager, Tatsuzuka Yayoi, concise and to the point:

"天君, the venue for your new performance has been confirmed. Fuyuki City Gymnasium."

"Fuyuki City... Gymnasium?" Kitagawa read it out word by word. Her eyes suddenly lit up like bulbs switched on, and she perked right up.

Her earlier worries were almost completely swept away, leaving only pure excitement.

She snatched Chen Tian's phone and checked again. "It really is Fuyuki City? Tian Jun, you're going to Fuyuki for a concert?!"

"Mm." Chen Tian watched her face brighten in an instant, the smile in his eyes deepening.

"Woo-hoo!" Kitagawa cheered and sprang out of Chen Tian's arms, spinning around happily where she stood, her blonde hair flying. "That's wonderful! This is amazing!"

As soon as her cheering stopped, she rushed back into Chen Tian's arms like a bird returning to its nest, sweeping him up in a gust of sweet fragrance. She wrapped both arms tightly around his neck.

She tilted her face up. Her eyes were dazzlingly bright now, seemingly filled with shattered starlight, and she stared at him without blinking.

She understood! She'd figured it out in an instant!

This new concert arrangement was no coincidence. Her boyfriend had seen how worried and disappointed she was, and arranged it especially for her!

He'd asked his manager to add a concert in Fuyuki City. That way, she could go along openly, under the pretext of work, and set foot in Fuyuki with a perfectly legitimate reason—fulfilling her wish to help Rin-chan!

The thought behind the gesture was silent, but burning hot.

"Boyfriend..." Her voice was as sweet as honey, soft and tender, with a rare hint of coy charm. Her eyes brimmed with undisguised affection and gratitude. "Thank you."

Chen Tian lowered his gaze to the brilliant light in her eyes and smiled. He naturally reached up to ruffle her hair, his voice low and amused. "No need to thank me, girlfriend."

Kitagawa's heart filled with overwhelming happiness. Grinning, she leaned in and planted a quick, loud kiss on Chen Tian's lips.

Then, like a little cat that had gotten away with stealing a treat, she hid her flushed cheeks in the crook of his neck. Her warm breath brushed his ear as she lowered her voice, playful and a little seductive:

"Hey... There's a bathroom upstairs, and Rin-chan probably won't come back down." Her soft fingertips absentmindedly traced circles on his chest. "To protect the planet and avoid wasting water... boyfriend,"

She paused, her breath brushing even closer against his sensitive earlobe, her words laced with sweet insinuation. "How about we take a bath together later?"

Heading: On the Way to Fuyuki City

Warm steam filled the bathroom. Tohsaka Rin was submerged in the bathtub, with only her head above the water.

The steam swirled around her, but it couldn't dispel the heaviness between her brows.

Her mind was like a broken record, replaying Chen Tian's calm but unequivocal words over and over: "I'll take care of it."

Take care of what? How?

Thinking further back, she remembered what he'd said in the car: "Tear it down."

Tear down the Holy Grail? As if it were some unwanted toy? Countless Magician families had staked their lives on it, plotting for generations and stirring up countless bloody conflicts. It was the very Root of it all!

Rin closed her eyes, as though she could see the brutal scenes recorded in her family's secret books: Magicians slaughtering one another in a frenzy, Heroic Spirits wreaking havoc on an apocalyptic scale—all for a chance to touch the Holy Grail, which was said to grant any wish.

Every war meant death, injury, schemes, and betrayal. It was a ritual built on blood and despair.

Yet in Chen Tian's words, putting an end to it all seemed... as simple as swatting a fly.

"I'll take care of it"—just four casual words, but they carried the arrogance of someone who ignored every rule and every force.

Those powerful Masters and those Heroic Spirits from myth and legend seemed not to exist in his eyes.

Rin's eyes snapped open, her icy blue gaze full of confusion.

Reason told her it was absurd. What right did an ordinary person—at least, one who seemed ordinary—have to say that? Yet deep down, a strange hint of doubt had begun to creep in, and even... a hint of trust she herself refused to admit.

Irritated, she lifted a hand and roughly raked it through her wet hair.

"Ugh, I'm not thinking about it anymore!" she muttered, as if trying to shake loose the thoughts tangled in her mind.

Water splashed loudly as Rin stood and stepped out of the bathtub. Droplets rolled down her smooth skin. She grabbed the large bath towel beside her and carelessly dried her body and hair, then quickly changed into comfortable home clothes.

Her thoughts were still a little muddled, and thirst welled up. She needed a drink; perhaps something cold would cool her irritation.

Rin opened the bathroom door and padded barefoot across the cool floor, heading straight downstairs. As soon as she reached the top of the stairs, a burst of deliberately muffled laughter drifted faintly up to her ears.

She strained to listen. Kitagawa's coy little hum, mixed with the sound of water, floated up from the first-floor bathroom.

Rin furrowed her brows and walked downstairs as quietly as she could.

Warm yellow light shone through the crack beneath the bathroom door. Amid the splashing water came Chen Tian's low chuckle and Kitagawa's clingy, coquettish whine. "Tian Jun... stop it..."

Then came a sharp splash, followed by a burst of giggling.

Rin froze.

Her hearing, enhanced by Magecraft, let her clearly catch the suggestive sound of water rippling in the bathtub, along with the wet sounds of kissing.

Her pupils contracted, and the tips of her ears instantly burned red.

"Y-you two are idiots!" She mouthed the words soundlessly, her bare toes curling unconsciously. As she turned, her toes struck the stair railing with a "tap," nearly making her jump.

The sound of water in the bathroom suddenly stopped. "Rin-chan?" Kitagawa's voice came through, slightly nasal.

Like a startled cat, Rin bounded back up the stairs and rushed into the guest room, diving headfirst into the blankets.

She buried her burning face in the pillow, her mind filled with the sounds she'd just heard.

"Hen...tai..." she muttered into the pillow, yet for some reason she remembered the reassuring look in Chen Tian's eyes when he'd said, "I'll take care of it."

The girl under the blankets irritably rolled over, hiding her burning ears as well.

Morning sunlight streamed through the curtains and into the living room. The smell of fried eggs wafted from the kitchen.

Kitagawa hummed as she hung laundry out in the yard. The damp bedsheets swayed gently in the morning breeze.

Rin walked into the living room with dark circles under her eyes, just as Kitagawa returned carrying an empty laundry basket.

"Morning, Rin-chan~" Kitagawa greeted her with energy, her face still carrying a radiant smile.

Rin rubbed her eyes. "Morning, Marin-nee..." Before she could finish, the kitchen door opened, and Chen Tian came out carrying three steaming bowls of noodles.

He wore a simple white T-shirt, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows and revealing his sturdy forearms.

"Good morning, Miss Tohsaka." Chen Tian set the bowls on the dining table and gave Rin a gentle smile.

The moment Rin's gaze touched his face, the suggestive sounds of water from the night before replayed in her mind.

Her ears warmed, and she stammered, "G-good..." Then, like a startled rabbit, she hurried toward the bathroom, nearly crashing into the doorframe.

Kitagawa tilted her head, looking in the direction Rin had gone. "Rin-chan's acting so strange today..."

Chen Tian glanced thoughtfully at the closed bathroom door, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly. "Maybe she didn't sleep well."

As he spoke, he neatly arranged the chopsticks. "Let's eat first, before the noodles get cold."

In the bathroom, Rin splashed cold water onto her burning face. The girl in the mirror had flushed cheeks.

"Idiot..." she murmured, though she didn't know who she was scolding.

At Tokyo Station, in front of the ticket gates.

"Rin-chan, make sure to message me when you get home! Every day!" Kitagawa gripped Rin's hands in both of hers and shook them vigorously, her eyes sparkling.

"Mm." Rin nodded quietly.

"If you run into any trouble, even something tiny, tell me right away!" Kitagawa insisted, still worried.

"I know, Marin-nee." Rin's voice was calm.

"Do you have enough money? Want me to give you some more spending money? What's the weather like in Fuyuki? Did you bring enough clothes...?"

As Rin listened to Kitagawa's warm, endless stream of reminders, she shifted her gaze slightly to Chen Tian, standing beside them.

He wore a black baseball cap and a white face mask, with only his expressionless eyes visible. He looked like part of the background.

"The Shinkansen bound for Fuyuki City is about to arrive. Passengers traveling to..." came the station announcement.

Kitagawa immediately sprang into action, as if someone had flipped a switch, and threw both arms around Rin in a firm embrace. "Rin-chan, have a safe trip!"

Rin was caught off guard by the hug and patted Kitagawa's back somewhat awkwardly. "Mm."

When they let go, Kitagawa's eyes were slightly red as she waved reluctantly. "Message me when you get there!"

Rin pulled her small suitcase along, nodded, and turned to scan her ticket at the gate. Her figure soon disappeared into the passageway.

Almost the instant Rin vanished from sight, the hint of sadness on Kitagawa's face evaporated.

She turned sharply to Chen Tian, shedding her gentle big-sister image, and stamped her feet impatiently like a child about to go on an outing.

"Hurry, hurry! Boyfriend!"

Chen Tian looked at Kitagawa helplessly. "Don't rush."

"How can I not?" Kitagawa held her right hand out like a knife and swiped it through the air twice. Her eyes sparkled like stars. "Come on, find somewhere private, and take out your thing! Then—whoosh!"

She made a slashing motion through the air, excitedly. "We'll go 'zoom' and appear in Fuyuki City, then give Rin-chan the biggest surprise ever!"

A surprise? Looking at his girlfriend's excited, innocent face, Chen Tian's mouth twitched slightly beneath his mask.

Rin-chan would probably be so startled she'd unleash Magecraft on the spot... Fuyuki City was a powder keg right now.

He sighed inwardly, but spoke reassuringly. "All right, all right. Let's get out of here first."

Kitagawa immediately nodded as if she'd received a royal decree, grabbed Chen Tian's arm, and tugged him toward the exit. "Let's go, let's go! I know a secluded little path behind the station!"

She dragged Chen Tian along, as if they could start their space jump at any moment.