A Certain Magical Index Mage in Type-Moon

"Sakura, are you going to Emiya's house again today?" someone familiar with the girl asked the proactive young woman.

"Yeah. Senior has helped me out a lot, so I should repay him a little," Sakura Matou answered her classmates with a smile, making them laugh.

"Sakura, don't tell me you like Senior Emiya?"

"N-No, it's just because Senior usually takes care of me, so I go over there." Sakura Matou hurriedly explained, looking extremely serious, which made them laugh again.

"We know. You're taking this way too seriously."

"No, I'm afraid people will misunderstand. It would be too pitiful if Senior got rejected because of this." Sakura Matou said as she packed up a few things, then picked up her schoolbag and headed for Shirou Emiya's house.

What looked like youthful campus romance to ordinary students was something entirely different to her.

Sakura Matou had her own mission. Or rather, she had been assigned a task by an elder of her family when she began visiting Shirou Emiya's home.

"Keep an eye on Shirou Emiya. He is highly likely to be your opponent in the next Holy Grail War!"

Zouken Matou, the true ruler of the Matou family, had given her that order when Sakura Matou had just entered high school.

The man called Zouken Matou hid in the shadows, wanting to seize the Holy Grail for himself. To that end, he had long begun monitoring anyone who could potentially stand in his way.

Including his own descendants!

Sakura Matou had been sent to the Emiya Household as a spy!

But that was only how Zouken Matou saw Sakura Matou. In truth, she possessed a mysterious identity of her own, one she had hidden from nearly everyone she knew.

An ordinary-looking man in his thirties appeared nearby. He merely passed by her, then stopped and took out his phone, staring at it as though he did not understand such advanced technology.

Yet Sakura Matou could hear his voice.

"Saintess, we have buried all the explosives brought in from outside throughout the Mount Enzou area. Once detonated, they can level Ryuudou Temple and most of the surrounding area."

Sakura Matou spoke quietly. "You've worked hard. Try not to take any further action for now, in case someone notices something... Besides, we need to wait until the Holy Church moves the people from Ryuudou Temple away before continuing. We only want to destroy the Holy Grail ritual. We cannot drag ordinary people into this."

"All shall follow your will, for the great God of Magic, Mephistopheles."

With that, the man left.

Sakura Matou continued walking.

She recalled her past.

The Fourth Holy Grail War had brought her nothing but pain. She had been forced to leave her home and become a child of the Matou family, forced to endure days of inhuman torment.

Perhaps as a small comfort, Kariya Matou had given her that necklace. From then on, she had received salvation.

Only, Kariya Matou had died. He had died miserably, becoming almost crazed by the time he was on the verge of death.

He was a pitiful man. Sakura Matou often thought so.

But it was not his sin. Sakura Matou understood that clearly. The Root of it all was the Holy Grail. The Holy Grail had caused far too many tragedies!

Whether it was herself, Kariya Matou, her biological father Tokiomi Tohsaka, or her mother Aoi Tohsaka, every tragedy had arisen because of the Holy Grail.

Even Zouken Matou, who had once tormented her and still treated her as a tool, was someone Sakura Matou considered pitiful.

Zouken Matou was merely another tragedy born of the Holy Grail.

"Perhaps my sister will become a tragedy too. After all, she will surely want to fulfill Father's dream and seize the Holy Grail..." Sakura Matou thought silently, letting out a sigh.

That was why she wanted to destroy the Holy Grail—to destroy the thing that had brought about all these tragedies, and at least return Fuyuki City to the state of an ordinary city!

Of course, that thought had not appeared so early.

Back then, Sakura Matou had only been a little girl. Even as she learned the Matou family's magecraft under Zouken Matou, relying on the power of deception and trickery to fool him and keep him from discovering her true condition—

She saw the pain she was supposed to suffer in the eyes of those she had deceived, the hair and eye colors that should have completely changed because of that pain, and how she was eventually supposed to become a spare body, a tool kept ready for the old man Zouken Matou's resurrection at any time.

Sakura Matou sincerely thanked the true owner of that necklace, the mysterious Mephistopheles, who had given her the power of deception and trickery and allowed her to live normally.

A powerful thought arose in the little girl's heart.

How could she repay him? How could she repay Mephistopheles, who called himself "an ordinary person pursuing the path of magecraft"?

Then the girl thought of a way.

It had been one afternoon. Her brother Shinji Matou had gone somewhere to play. Arrogantly convinced that his talent for magecraft was exceptional, he had probably sneaked off to study magecraft.

Though that was hardly a secret in their home.

As for Sakura Matou, under Zouken Matou's instruction, she was learning about Servants, gods, and related knowledge.

"Heroic Spirits are souls of the dead that have transcended humanity and reached the realm of spirits. That is not degeneration, but ascension. Their rank has risen from that of humans, elevating them into higher forms of existence.

"They are beings even the Holy Grail cannot summon, beings that can be called divine spirits. After all, Servants are merely projections of Heroic Spirits, inferior existences.

"If comparisons must be made, Heroic Spirits are equivalent to spirits. Divine spirits fall to the level of spirits when they lose faith, but if a hero who has become a Heroic Spirit is forgotten by humanity, their power will naturally be restricted and may even continue to weaken."

As Sakura Matou learned this knowledge, her eyes sparkled. The expression Zouken Matou could not detect revealed the girl's excitement at that moment.

A possibility immediately came to her young mind.

"Brother Mephistopheles said he was an ordinary person pursuing the path of magecraft. When it comes to knowledge of magecraft, gods surely know the most.

"If I can make Brother Mephistopheles into a god, wouldn't his wish come true?!"

Any adult, or even a high school mage, would have found that idea absurd. But after Sakura Matou came up with it, she believed it was possible.

"Grandfather explained the comparisons and relationships between Servants, Heroic Spirits, divine spirits, and spirits. There are also stories in mythology of people becoming gods. Gods fall to the level of spirits because they lose faith, while Heroic Spirits are spirits that humans ascend into.

"If that's the case, then as long as I shape Brother Mephistopheles into the God of Magic and make many people believe in him, isn't it possible for him to become a true God of Magic?"

Once she thought of that, Sakura Matou's heart filled with excitement.

But she quickly discovered a problem. How could she gain followers?

The Matou family's magecraft was unsuitable for teaching others, yet she knew no other magecraft. How was she supposed to draw people in?

So, after studying magecraft for some time, the girl remembered the scene she had once witnessed—the sight of creation itself!

Recollecting that scene, the girl spent several months in contemplation. From it, she comprehended several entirely new forms of magecraft—or perhaps they should have been called magic.

This knowledge could be spread. It could be taught to those who became followers!

And who was most likely to become a follower? Those whose hearts had been wounded!

There was no shortage of such people in this city. Because of the Fourth Holy Grail War, many had lost loved ones. Though they had been told it was due to gas explosions and the like, that was a lie.

Sakura Matou approached each person she had chosen, told them the truth, taught them knowledge of magic, and led them to believe in the God of Magic.

When the organization was truly established, a new thought was born in her heart as she looked upon these people suffering because of the Holy Grail War.

"Destroy the Holy Grail and prevent tragedies like this from ever happening again!"

From that day onward, the organization known as the Heavenly Fire Cult began preparing in secret, spending years readying itself for the Fifth Holy Grail War!

Within the vast castle, there were only three people—or rather, four.

A silver-haired girl, who had inherited her mother's hair color, stood looking out the window. Her red eyes gleamed like gemstones.

"The Holy Grail War is finally about to begin. I wonder how Brother's preparations are going..." she murmured. No pain showed on her face, as though she had long since become numb to it.

Then she looked to the side and called out, "Berserker, you are the strongest. We can definitely win the Holy Grail War, right!"

The black giant hidden in the shadows said nothing. He had long since lost the ability to speak, but his eyes were firm. The fighting spirit in them answered the question of the girl who was his Master.

But for the girl, staying here all the time was boring. After thinking for a moment, she made a decision.

"Let's go take a look around outside!"

As the current master of the castle, the girl named Illyasviel von Einzbern, left to wander around Fuyuki City, the two maids could only worry. They had no way to stop her.

Besides, with Berserker, a Servant, protecting her, she should not encounter any danger.

Thus, the two maids silently watched Illya leave the castle, leave the barrier, and head toward the city.

"Einzbern Family... do you want me to investigate them?"

On the way home, Mephistopheles casually asked Rin Tohsaka.

Rin Tohsaka sighed. "No. If you investigate now and get discovered, it will be no different from declaring war. Besides, the Einzbern family's surroundings are filled with barriers. You'll be discovered the moment you enter."

Mephistopheles smiled. "That may not necessarily be true."

"But we still can't take the risk, at least not now. Let's wait a little longer. Maybe someone else will lose patience in the next few days and decide to strike first!"

Seeing that Rin Tohsaka had no intention of making the first move, Mephistopheles did not press her further. He merely said, "I'll follow your arrangements."

At that moment, Rin Tohsaka's eyes widened as she looked into the distance.

A small silver-haired girl in a purple dress walked over with a smile on her face, passing right by Rin Tohsaka.

Her smile made her look like an angel, but the words she spoke sent chills down one's spine.

"The next time we meet, I'll kill you, Rin."

Rin Tohsaka abruptly turned around, gritting her teeth as she called out the other girl's name. "Einzbern..."

She had just rejected Mephistopheles's suggestion to investigate them, yet she had run into one of them directly!

Then she heard Mephistopheles's voice.

"This young lady is rather rude. Would you like me to teach her a lesson?"

Rin Tohsaka nearly choked. "Teach her a lesson?!"

"Of course. Teach her what manners and morality are." Mephistopheles's answer sounded utterly gentlemanly, but it only made Rin Tohsaka more helpless.

"That person is the current head of the Einzbern family, the highest-ranking person here, and our opponent..."

She wanted to tell him that the girl's identity was complicated and that he needed to be more cautious.

Yet Mephistopheles's response did not change in the slightest. If anything, he doubled down.

"That has nothing to do with whether she is an enemy. Children like her need to be properly educated. Killing people casually is wrong!!"

Divine Creation Wholesale

"The Einzbern Family's summon is definitely not simple. Your strength..." Rin Tohsaka fell silent for a moment before finally saying it. "If you go over recklessly, you might be gone in an instant."

Mephistopheles curled his lip. "Looks like Rin really looks down on me!"

"You're Archer, but your parameters are really..." As Rin Tohsaka spoke, she looked over Mephistopheles's status panel again and could not help raising a hand to cover her face.

Class: Archer

True Name: ???

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: D

Mana: D

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: ??

Class Skills

Magic Resistance: E

Independent Action: EX

Personal Skills

???

???

???

???

Possessed Noble Phantasms

???