"The Holy Grail War—my Tohsaka Family's centuries-old wish—is finally about to come true!"
"The perfect moment for the summoning, a fossilized serpent skin that records the existence of that king, and a special summoning ritual built upon that king's existence!"
"The rules of victory are already in our hands! Kirei!"
A man in a red suit, his face almost entirely shrouded in shadow except for his chin, stood before a red circular magic circle and spoke these words.
Behind the young man stood a short-haired youth in a black uniform, his face expressionless. He was quite handsome, with a distinct air of resolve between his brows, a solemn expression, and strength hidden in his eyes.
After hearing the suited man's words, he nodded.
"Yes, Master. Everything is as you arranged. However, I've heard that the king is arrogant and cruel. Is it really wise to summon him as a Servant?"
The goateed man heard this and curled his lips into a smile. Then he slowly turned around, raised his right hand, and ran it over his hair.
In that instant, the man's face was revealed: a handsome, smiling, middle-aged man. And as if he had hair gel on his hand, his original center-parted hairstyle transformed into a domineering slicked-back look.
Then, with an imposing BGM playing, the man's smile faded. In a voice that was proud, cold, and brimming with authority, he said, "Kirei, no one stands in the heavens from the very beginning. Not you, not me—not even God!"
"But this intolerable vacancy upon the Throne of Heaven is about to end. From now on, I will stand at the summit!"
The real world—
"...That man's obviously a villain, but...he's really handsome!"
"He's got the presence of a major villainous boss. I'm in love, I'm in love! This woman loves him!"
"Who is he, anyway?"
People instantly remembered the imposing man who'd made one slick remark after another the moment he appeared. Meanwhile, in the garden behind the Tohsaka Family residence in Fuyuki City, the usually elegant Tohsaka Tokiomi's teacup clattered to the ground.
Across from Tohsaka Tokiomi, his wife, Tohsaka Aoi, instinctively covered her mouth with one hand. Her eyes widened in disbelief.
The couple had been watching the images on the Light Screen with the casual interest of passersby, never expecting this bombshell to land right on them.
More precisely, on Tohsaka Tokiomi.
Because...
"Darling, that man...is that you when you were younger? You don't have the little mustache, but that's definitely you. Uh...so you're actually a villain who's different in public and in private?"
Tohsaka Aoi gave her husband a timid look and hit him with a devastating triple question.
Tohsaka Tokiomi hurriedly defended himself. "No! This is slander! You know me, Aoi. As the head of the Tohsaka Family, I've always followed our family precepts! How could I possibly be a villain? That would be far too inelegant!"
"And it's not just me. Look, Kotomine Kirei is there too. He even called me Master? When did I become his Master? We've barely even met!"
At that moment, the man who headed the Tohsaka Family was on the verge of losing his elegant composure.
After all, the content on the Light Screen was too shocking—and too humiliating. Tohsaka Tokiomi had no memory of any of it. He hadn't done those things. As for the Kotomine Kirei on the Light Screen, he'd only met him a few times and knew him as a priest at a church in Fuyuki City.
Elsewhere, Father Kotomine Kirei was eating extremely spicy mapo tofu at a Chinese restaurant in Fuyuki City. His mouth hung half open, and even the scorching spice of the tofu couldn't overpower the shock coursing through him.
What the heck?
Why was he in this? And why had he become that Tohsaka Tokiomi's disciple? Why didn't he remember any of it?
Too stunned to think straight, Kotomine Kirei took another big bite of mapo tofu to calm himself.
In an instant, the fiery mapo tofu's assault on his taste buds shot straight to his head. A deep sense of pleasure flooded him from head to toe, and he let out a blissful sigh before continuing to watch the images.
The images on the Light Screen—
"Yes, Master. As you wish, I'll do everything in my power to bring victory to you and the Tohsaka Family!"
Facing the overwhelmingly imposing Tohsaka Tokiomi, Kotomine Kirei lowered his head, like a loyal lackey cowed by a major villainous boss.
Tohsaka Tokiomi smiled with narrowed eyes. His gaze was deep and mysterious, his boss-like aura growing ever stronger. Whatever lay beneath it was beyond anyone else's understanding.
Then Tohsaka Tokiomi turned and glanced at the clock on the wall beside him.
The hands had reached exactly twelve o'clock, and he knew the moment for the summoning had arrived.
He raised his right hand, revealing the back of it to the camera. There was a mark on it, as if it had been tattooed in blood. It resembled a round fan, with two circles enclosing a vertical stroke. Mysterious and strange, it seemed to hold some kind of magical power.
When Kotomine Kirei saw this, he lowered his head and looked at the back of his own right hand. It bore a mark of the same color and material as Tohsaka Tokiomi's, though its shape was different.
The mark on the back of Kotomine Kirei's hand was shaped like a flame.
Then Kotomine Kirei's inner voice rang out.
[Command Spells, the symbol of participants in the Holy Grail War and the authority of a Master. Every Master participating in the Holy Grail War possesses three Command Spells, which can be used to issue three absolute orders to their contracted Servant. A Servant cannot disobey, and even a miraculous command has a chance of being fulfilled.]
This voice-over explained to all the viewers exactly what the marks were.
As countless viewers around the world came to understand, the Command Spell on the back of Tohsaka Tokiomi's hand glowed faintly red. A strange breeze formed around him, gently stirring his hair and clothes. A faint blue light appeared around his body, and a powerful, mysterious force seemed ready to burst out of the Light Screen. The viewers all felt an intense pressure.
At the same time, the magic circle seemed to respond to Tohsaka Tokiomi's power. It glowed red, and arcs of electricity flickered across it from time to time. The dazzling visual effects made it obvious to anyone watching that this was no ordinary ritual.
The summoning ritual in the original work wasn't nearly this flashy, but Su Yun was doing everything for the sake of Fantasy Power. Naturally, he had to crank the visual effects up to the max, so that ordinary people would feel, "I don't understand what I'm looking at, but it seems incredible, so I'm deeply impressed."
Along with the dazzling visual effects, Tohsaka Tokiomi began reciting the summoning incantation.
"Silver of the Origin."
"Contract of the foundation stone."
"My great ancestor and master, Schweinorg."
"Let the surging winds wall off the four sides."
"Close the gates to the four directions. Emerge from the crown, and linger at the crossroads leading to the kingdom!"
As soon as he finished reciting the opening incantation, the visual effects rapidly escalated until they reached the level of a full-blown light show.
Then Tohsaka Tokiomi's voice grew even more impassioned.
"Declare!"
"Let your body come under my command; let my fate rest upon your sword!"
"Answer the summons of the Holy Grail. Heed this will and this reason, and answer me!"
"I shall be the one who accomplishes all the good in the world; I shall be the embodiment of all the evil in the world!"
"Entwine the seven days with the three great words of power!"
"Emerge through the Wheel of Transmigration Suppression, Guardian of the Balance!"
As the final word fell, the magical energy erupted completely, and the summoning ritual was complete.
In an instant, magical energy churned inside the summoning circle. White arcs of electricity crackled nonstop, and violent currents of air swirled around.
Finally, amid a flash of white light, a man clad in magnificent golden armor appeared atop the summoning circle, revealing the flawless lower half of his face.
For some reason—perhaps intentionally—his upper face wasn't shown. Only the lower half of his face was revealed to the audience.
Seeing the man in golden armor, Tohsaka Tokiomi narrowed his eyes and said in a deep, resonant voice, "Now the rules of victory are entirely in our hands! Kirei, we've already won!"
As he declared victory, the image on the Light Screen suddenly went black.
A line of text appeared on it.
[The Holy Grail War has officially begun!]
At the same time, a countdown clock appeared, its numbers rapidly ticking backward.
Then the text changed, and a new message appeared.
[Fourth Holy Grail War: Prologue, End!]
With that, the images on the Light Screen disappeared. As countless people around the world stared in bewilderment, the Light Screen vanished too.
It's still the new-book period, so please keep supporting the story. Thank you, everyone!
Before you continue