Chapter 121
After a while, a slender figure quietly emerged from behind the streetlight. The little girl looked very small, with a red bow tied in her hair, and she looked very cute.
Lan Ze and Irisviel exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise in each other's eyes.
It's so late, and there's a little girl wandering around the street all by herself?
Irisviel gazed at the little girl before her, pondered for a moment, and then said, "If I remember correctly, you should be a child of the Tohsaka Family, right? What's your name?"
"Matou Sakura," the little girl replied in a voice so clear it almost melted your bones.
Matou Sakura...?
After pondering for a moment, Lan Ze suddenly exclaimed in his mind, "Holy crap!"
If I remember correctly, Matou Sakura was Tohsaka Tokiomi into the Matou Family. He didn't know the reason, but he knew what kind of inhuman treatment this little girl had suffered in the Matou Family. When he saw this part of the story, Lan Ze was so angry that he wanted to go in and cut the Old Worm into a thousand pieces.
Throwing a little girl into a bug pod to be tortured by the Crest Worms —let alone a child, even an adult couldn't withstand that kind of place.
Judging from the light in her eyes, this girl shouldn't have been thrown into the insect pod yet, right?
Thinking of this, Lan Ze walked up to Matou Sakura and asked in as calm a tone as possible, "You're Tohsaka Tokiomi's child, right? Why are you out on the street so late at night instead of going home?"
He paused here, then said softly, "Was it that old man from the Matou Family who bullied you?"
"Why does this guy talk so much nonsense..." Matou Sakura, or rather, the being lurking within Matou Sakura, muttered to herself, then said crisply, "Grandpa... is scary."
Matou Zouken is such a useful tool; you can push all sorts of things onto him... the little girl thought to herself.
At this moment, after Matou Sakura finished speaking, she noticed that Lan Ze's expression had become much more serious. "Did he take you to the insect warehouse?"
Matou Sakura paused visibly, nodded, then shook her head. "Grandpa only took me to see it briefly, but he didn't take me inside..."
This is really strange. Given the Old Worm's ruthlessness, he shouldn't have felt any pity for Matou Sakura and let her go... Lan Ze frowned slightly, pondering something in his heart.
"Could this guy be suspecting my identity...?" Matou Sakura's heart skipped a beat. Although she was secretly anxious, she still maintained a timid demeanor. "Grandpa said he wants me to go there again tomorrow..."
"Tomorrow...?" Lan Ze repeated.
It seems the Old Worm's storage unit has encountered some problem, or some ritual needs to be prepared, which is why it has temporarily spared Matou Sakura...?
Lan Ze seemed to be deep in thought.
"How did you get out?" Irisviel also half-squatted beside Matou Sakura, her beautiful red eyes gazing at the little girl in front of her.
This woman always gives off a gentle and tender feeling; just hearing her sweet voice can soothe the anxiety in one's heart.
"While Grandpa was resting, I had Berserker take me away..." Matou Sakura answered in a very soft voice. Every move she made made her seem pitiful. When she finished speaking, she raised her moist eyes and gazed into Lan Ze's eyes.
The allure effect was subtly applied at this moment. Not long ago, Matou Zouken only resisted for a short while before giving up and becoming her subordinate. This allure effect not only works on Master but also on Servant.
This is the power of Cupid.
Irisviel felt her heart race involuntarily, and she subconsciously swallowed. A blush gradually spread across her face as she thought the little girl was so sweet and adorable.
At that moment, she even thought that if she could stay by Matou Sakura's side, she wouldn't mind becoming her subordinate.
Matou Sakura, noticing this scene, barely managed to suppress her laughter. She absolutely had to hold it in; she couldn't laugh now... she had to wait until she subdued this Servant.
Although this Servant seems to have high Magic Resistance, her Charm level is even higher... to be precise, Charm Max.
Charming a Servant is a piece of cake.
That's how it should be, but Matou Sakura suddenly heard a confused voice from the Servant in front of her. "Why do you know about Servant?"
Matou Sakura was momentarily stunned, and subconsciously glanced at Lan Ze again.
What's going on...?
The charm didn't work?!
How is that possible...?
Matou Sakura's thoughts flashed through her mind like lightning, and in almost an instant, she returned to her previous gentle and weak demeanor, lowering her eyes and softly saying, "Grandpa told me. He had me perform Heroic Spirit Summoning."
"I see..." Lan Ze looked thoughtful, glancing silently at the frame that had disappeared from sight.
A "Charm Failed" message popped up in front of him.
This guy... shouldn't be Matou Sakura.
Or perhaps, this Matou Sakura is possessed by some kind of creature.
This explains why Matou Sakura would appear on such an empty street late at night.
So it seems possible that Matou Zouken also made a deal with some creature inside Matou Sakura's body...
Lan Ze secretly wondered what was going on.
"You've been following us the whole time?"
At this moment, Irisviel parted her lips slightly and asked softly.
Almost immediately after she finished speaking, she lowered her eyes and avoided looking at Matou Sakura, because she felt that this little girl was inexplicably cute. Just looking at Irisviel made her heart race, and her mind felt a hazy, foggy feeling.
Matou Sakura nodded gently, then hugged Lan Ze, looked up at him with pleading eyes, and said, "Big brother, I don't want to go home... That place is so scary."
"That should allow them to take me back to Einsbern Castle, right?" Matou Sakura thought to herself.
"We can take you back to the Tohsaka Family," Irisviel suddenly said.
This woman is really difficult to deal with; she wasn't even seduced by me... Matou Sakura clicked her tongue inwardly and gently shook her head. "No, Father has already adopted me into the Matou Family. If I go back to him now... I'll definitely get scolded."
Irisviel was suddenly in a dilemma.
To be honest, she also wanted to take Matou Sakura back, but the Holy Grail War was still ongoing, and it seemed a bit inappropriate to rashly take a Master's daughter back...
Thinking of this, Irisviel subconsciously turned to look at Lan Ze, wanting to see his opinion.
"I understand." Lan Ze nodded after a moment of contemplation.
Matou Sakura was secretly delighted, but she didn't show it. She just lowered her head slightly and said, "Won't this cause trouble for you older brothers?"
As she finished speaking, she raised her head, her moist eyes revealing a captivating allure that made one's heart race.
Although charm doesn't seem to have any effect on him, it still provides a bonus... after all, it's a request from such a cute little girl.
Matou Sakura thought of this, Lan Ze suddenly patted her shoulder gently. "I know."
"I'll help you get rid of Matou Zouken."
"Huh?" Matou Sakura, or rather the beast possessing Matou Sakura's body, was momentarily stunned.
What's going on?
Shouldn't he be taking me back to the castle now?
--Although she can't charm Caster, Matou Sakura can charm Caster's Master. Once she controls the Master, it's the same as controlling Caster.
After that, we can slowly interrogate this guy to see where his blessing came from... Matou Sakura originally planned to do so, was clearly stunned and did not expect the other party's answer at all.
"Your Berserker is still here, right? Call him out, let's take care of Matou Zouken together tonight!" Lan Ze said indignantly.
"That kind of guy who actually planned to throw his granddaughter into the insect storage has no reason to stay in this world!"
"Um, I, I..." Matou Sakura stammered for a moment. Matou Zouken was still somewhat useful to her, and killing him like this would be a waste...
Before Matou Sakura could finish speaking, Lan Ze waved his hand gently. "I know, you don't need to say anything."
"Master, you don't need to say anything more. I know what you want to say." Lan Ze glanced at Irisviel, who seemed hesitant to speak, and said:
"The Matou Family is one of the Three Founding Families of Fuyuki. Your relationship with the Matou Family isn't great, but it's not convenient for you to take action against them, right?"
"It's alright, I'll do the things you're afraid to do."
As Lan Ze finished speaking, his gaze was fixed intently on Matou Sakura.
"Sakura, what do you think of my suggestion just now?"
After hesitating for a moment, Matou Sakura nodded gently. "Mm."
This time, however, her answer lacked any hint of gentleness; instead, it contained a trace of annoyance.
Knock knock knock.
Late at night, Lan Ze stood in front of the Matou Family's house and knocked on the door.
However, there was no response.
Lan Ze raised his hand again and knocked on the door, saying, "Is anyone home? Open the door quickly, the community is bringing warmth!"
After knocking on the door, Lan Ze waited at the door for a while, but still didn't hear any response from inside.
Could the Old Worm have already been killed by this imposter Sakura...? Feeling the gaze of the little girl behind him, Lan Ze muttered to himself, increasingly sensing something was wrong.
He remembered Merlin saying that there was a possible Beast in this Singularity.
Actually, when Lan Ze first heard about Beast, he was completely unmoved.
Without a doubt, the beasts that hinder the progress of Humanity's Order are all extremely powerful. When Lan Ze first saw a beast, his young mind was greatly shocked.
--It wasn't just the sheer power that shocked me, but even more so the humanity of that beast.
The more powerful a Heroic Spirit's Spirit Origin Heroic Spirit, the more deeply it can understand just how terrifying a Beast truly is.
But--
With his two beasts roaming around the living room every day, and needing Tiamat to replenish his magic every few days, plus having seen another beast back in Britain, Lan Ze isn't as shocked as he was at the beginning.
However, one thing at a time, although he wasn't afraid, Lan Ze still felt a sense of awe towards the power that Beast had displayed.
According to his understanding, there seem to be two kinds of beasts in this world: one is a complete beast, and the other is a beast with only half of its power. Sajyou Manaka and Kishinami Hakuno are such beings, while Goetia and Tiamat are complete beasts.
The allure that Matou Sakura just displayed seems to be the same as the allure that Kishinami Hakuno before... In other words, this Matou Sakura may very well belong to the same beast as Kishinami Hakuno.
Unless he launches a surprise attack, such a person might not necessarily be able to defeat his opponent.
After all, he is now Servant, not the original being, and therefore his magical power is ultimately limited.
"Big brother, why don't we leave..." Matou Sakura tugged at Lan Ze's sleeve, looking up with a worried expression.
"Grandpa is very capable. I would feel terrible if he caused you any trouble."
"It's alright, I'll definitely take care of that guy for you!" Lan Ze shook his head and firmly refused.
Matou Sakura paused slightly, couldn't help but glance at Lan Ze a couple more times, and then lowered her head.
This Servant is much more righteous than I imagined... willing to fight the enemy for a little girl she doesn't even know.
However, this very sense of justice is precisely the real reason you will be defeated later... Matou Sakura tucked a strand of hair that had fallen behind her ear, and a cute smile appeared on her small face.
"It seems they don't intend to open the door," Irisviel said softly, her gaze falling on Lan Ze.
"Caster, what should we do now?"
"It's simple." Lan Ze smiled. "If the other party doesn't want to open the door, I'll just open it for them."
Under Irisviel's puzzled gaze, Lan Ze raised his leg and kicked the door.
With a loud crash, the door collapsed to the ground, and then, amidst the rising dust, Lan Ze reached out his hand to Irisviel.
"Follow me."
After taking Irisviel's hand, a golden halo appeared behind Lan Ze, and the moment the Golden Gate opened, the brilliant light seemed to envelop the entire Matou Family.
"Matou Zouken, if you don't come out soon, your insect silo might be destroyed by this attack of mine!"
As Lan Ze's voice faded, he suddenly heard a rustling sound of flying insects beside him. The sound was like countless insects flying in the darkness. Lan Ze abruptly looked up.
Countless flying insects were seen hurtling towards his location from mid-air.
Then, in the next instant, the insects quietly merged together, and an old man who looked aged and sinister appeared in sight.
The old man, leaning on his cane, had a somber expression, but his voice was incredibly gentle. "Isn't it during the Holy Grail War? I wonder what business the Einzbern Family has with me in the middle of the night, summoned Servant?"
As he spoke, Matou Zouken looked at Matou Sakura was standing motionless at the gate, with a hint of surprise in his eyes.
Why is she with a Servant, and why are they causing trouble together...?
"I ran into your granddaughter on the road, and she has exposed all your crimes!" Lan Ze stared directly at Matou Zouken.
Matou Zouken remained calm. "Are you a Caster? I think you have some misunderstanding about me. If you observe carefully, you can probably see that I have not done anything to endanger my granddaughter's safety."
This Old Worm is much more troublesome than I imagined... Lan Ze was somewhat surprised. The so-called troublesomeness did not refer to strength, but rather to Matou Zouken's smooth interpersonal skills, which made him feel a bit difficult to deal with.