Type-Moon at the Start, but an A Certain Magical Index Magician

In the dim room, the controller of the Matou family, Zouken Matou, sat in a chair, silently looking out the window.

Sunlight shone through the gap in the curtains, lending a trace of warmth to the cold, gloomy room. Yet that little warmth could not dispel the damp, clammy aura surrounding the old man.

The old monster who pursued immortality was filled with confusion. Several days had already passed since the Holy Grail War began. Why had not even the first death appeared?

No ordinary people had died, no magi had died, and not even a Servant had died. If not for the news a few days ago reporting that a street had been damaged for unknown reasons, he would have suspected that the Holy Grail War had not even started.

"How could things be like this?" The ancient undead who had lived for centuries pondered carefully, recalling everything that had happened recently. "Sakura has been taking Medusa to school as usual, yet no battles have occurred. It is as if there are no Servants at the school. As for that child from the Emiya Household...

"Recently, Sakura has also been visiting the Emiya Household often. I heard Shirou Emiya has become a Master, yet he refuses to make a move. He even forcibly ordered Saber not to act...

"It is not convenient for Sakura to strike in secret now. Hiding for the time being is the right choice. With that child Shirou Emiya drawing attention, perhaps the other hidden Masters and Servants can be lured out.

"But this is far too slow. So much time has passed. Why has no one emerged? What about that girl from the Tohsaka family? She could not possibly sit out the Holy Grail War. Could something have happened to her?"

As Zouken Matou thought this, the confusion in his eyes deepened.

In the end, he sighed and looked into the distance.

"And that brat from the Holy Church. He is hiding himself deeply as well. Yet he has also been holding back. Does he not intend to make a probing move?"

Unable to find an answer no matter how he considered it, Zouken Matou finally rose slowly and walked into the darkness within the house.

"No, I should still make preparations. If necessary, I will have to act personally and transfer my consciousness into Sakura's body at the crucial moment.

"Though Sakura has acquired a portion of the Holy Grail's power, she is not yet the true Holy Grail. With my strength, I can easily erase her soul.

"But I shall wait for now. Let us observe the situation for a few more days. Perhaps that brat from the church will be unable to restrain himself.

"Could it be that the Clock Tower did not send anyone this time? Perhaps someone has already arrived and merely hidden themselves. They are all a pack of cowards, haha!

"If all else fails, this old man will personally assault the Emiya residence and eliminate that troublesome Saber first!"

The old man slowly pushed open the basement door. Beneath it lay the nest of insects!

The Two Who Could No Longer Hold Back

Inside the church, Kirei Kotomine silently looked at the scripture before him.

For a priest, reading scripture when no one was around was a perfectly normal thing to do.

Yet there were others here besides him.

The blond man in a suit, Gilgamesh, watched Kirei Kotomine with a mocking smile on his lips.

"Ever since that brat came to see you last time, you have been unusually happy, as though you had seen your lover. Now that several days have passed without any movement, you have become restless again."

"I am not restless." Kirei Kotomine closed the Bible in his hands and looked at the so-called oldest king. "I was merely wondering whether he differs from his father. Perhaps my expectations of him were too high."

Kirei Kotomine smiled faintly. "After all, I differ from my father, and I differ from my daughter as well."

"The woman who married you was truly pitiful. Though perhaps she was also someone with something wrong in her head."

Gilgamesh mocked him without the slightest restraint. Kirei Kotomine showed no dissatisfaction at all; he even nodded in considerable agreement.

"She did indeed have a problem. She chose to kill herself for someone like me."

As Cú Chulainn, the blue-clad lancer, listened to their conversation, he tried hard to suppress the urge to roll his eyes. If he could, he would not want to stay here at all. He had little interest in the Holy Grail either. He merely wanted to find someone to fight.

Unfortunately, things did not go as he wished. He had to remain here now because that damned Kirei Kotomine was his Master.

Thinking of his original Master, the woman named Bazett, Cú Chulainn could not help sighing inwardly.

She had clearly been someone with considerable combat experience, yet because she trusted this man wrongly, he ambushed her from behind. Her fate was now unknown.

And because of the Command Spell, he was now forced to remain under this man's command, which made Cú Chulainn extremely uncomfortable.

If I could, I'd really like to put a spear through this bastard myself!

At this moment, Kirei Kotomine continued in response to Gilgamesh's mockery. "It is not only because of Shirou Emiya. The participants in this Holy Grail War are truly rather strange.

"They have all concealed their identities. The only ones who voluntarily exposed themselves before me were Rin and Emiya. Of course, that woman does not count. She is already out."

Gilgamesh knew that the woman Kirei Kotomine meant was Bazett. He had originally intended to take her away and throw her into the basement as a human battery to replenish his mana. Yet when he went looking for her, he discovered that she had vanished.

Kirei Kotomine did not care in the slightest. After all, he himself had cut off her hand, then casually thrown her body aside without caring whether she lived or died.

And with such injuries, even if she had escaped, she certainly could not have survived.

The only thing that puzzled Gilgamesh was that not only had she disappeared, but no trace of her could be found at all. That was truly strange.

However, compared to thinking about such matters, there was something else Gilgamesh cared about more.

"Speaking of Shirou Emiya, who do you think his Servant is?"

"I do not know. But judging from when he came to ask questions, Saber was his only possible choice. Therefore, the class of Servant he summoned must be Saber."

Gilgamesh's lips curled upward at Kirei Kotomine's answer. "Saber? For some reason, this king is looking forward to it!"

Seeing this, Kirei Kotomine smiled as well. His smile seemed as though it wished to say something, but he said nothing. Everything was concealed within that smile.

Of course, he knew what Gilgamesh was anticipating. During the Fourth Holy Grail War, Saber—Kiritsugu Emiya's Servant at the time—had been the legendary King of Knights, though she was a woman.

Gilgamesh had been captivated by her and desperately wanted her to become his queen, only to be thoroughly beaten by her.

Gilgamesh had acquired a false body through the special black liquid that flowed from the Holy Grail during the Fourth Holy Grail War, allowing him to remain in this world ever since.

Now that he had heard this was Kiritsugu Emiya's child, and that he had even summoned a Saber, Gilgamesh had certainly thought of that woman.

Seeing the blue-clad lancer standing nearby with a bored expression, Kirei Kotomine said, "Go investigate a little. Go directly to Shirou Emiya's home and see what he is doing now. If possible, test that Servant's strength and confirm her identity.

"But if you find that you cannot defeat her and there is a possibility of an accident, return immediately. Do not force yourself. I am not wealthy enough to waste a Servant."

Cú Chulainn said nothing. He simply flashed away and vanished.

Gilgamesh clicked his tongue at the sight. "Why send someone there specifically? You still cannot forget, can you?"

Kirei Kotomine shook his head. "I merely want to see who his Servant is."

Gilgamesh's brow twitched at those words, but he said nothing further.

Inside Shirou Emiya's residence, everyone wore expressions of confusion and incomprehension.

The reason was the mature woman currently sitting to the side, practically pressed against Mephistopheles.

Just moments ago, Mephistopheles had introduced her identity. She was Caster in this Holy Grail War, someone who should originally have been their enemy.

Yes, someone who had "originally" been their enemy.

Artoria looked at this woman, not knowing what to say anymore.

*I am now almost certain that what Mephistopheles said is true. So there is something wrong with the Holy Grail. I chose to cooperate with him, and Illya obviously intends to cooperate with Mephistopheles too. That girl named Sakura said she was coming today. At this time, she might also be a Master, though that is not certain for now.

*Even if she is not, three Servants have already formed an alliance. Now another Caster has arrived, making four Servants...

*If that girl Sakura is also a Master and looks likely to cooperate with Mephistopheles, that makes five...

So there should only be two or three Servants remaining as opponents, and these people are likely acting alone rather than cooperating. This Holy Grail War will probably be completely different from the last one. It will become a one-sided situation...

At that moment, Mephistopheles spoke again. "I'll go cook first. Once Sakura arrives, I'll explain in detail what exactly is happening."

Hearing that, Artoria finally confirmed her guess.

Sure enough, that girl named Sakura is also a Master!

A Test

Sakura Matou was a very strong person. Though she had suffered much pain herself, she still viewed everything with optimism.

Most importantly, she had not meekly accepted her fate. Instead, she chose to secretly gather strength and prepare to resist.

That was Medusa's impression of the young girl after being summoned and becoming Sakura Matou's Servant for so many days.

Yet at home and at school, Sakura Matou often wore a false smile. It was not because of pain or hypocrisy, but because she had to prevent those secretly watching her from seeing through her and bringing danger upon her.

But now, her smile looked very genuine. Even with the special connection between Servant and Master, Medusa could not detect any falsehood.

It truly was a genuine smile, one that came from the depths of her heart.

"Sakura, you seem very happy."

Medusa did not notice that her own voice carried a hint of a smile as well.

"Yes, I'm very happy right now, Medusa." Sakura Matou smiled. "Because this morning, I basically made things public with everyone. And Big Brother even specifically asked me to come over tonight in front of everyone. That means he recognizes me as a member of his current team!"

"You called me by my name directly," Medusa said.

To prevent their identities from being exposed and their abilities targeted, Masters often addressed their Servants by class. Yet Sakura Matou had begun calling Medusa by name directly, which surprised her.

"Because there is no need anymore. Everyone has begun cooperating. With Big Brother's abilities, I believe the Holy Grail is not important to him either. There is no longer much to worry about in this Holy Grail War."

"You trust him very much."

"Of course. After all, Big Brother gave me everything I have now, including the power to protect myself." As Sakura Matou spoke, she blinked lightly. "Though now, we look about the same age."

As she spoke, she fell into thought. Watching Sakura Matou sink into contemplation, Medusa could somewhat guess what she was thinking, but she did not say it aloud.

Those were Sakura Matou's own affairs, and Medusa had no right to interfere.

Moreover, Sakura Matou's magecraft—or rather, magic—was indeed an extremely peculiar art. Even with Medusa's strong foundation, she found it difficult to understand. Therefore, Medusa was willing to try trusting the man who could entrust such power to Sakura Matou.

But if he intended to deceive Sakura Matou... Medusa took a deep breath and clenched her hand, already prepared.

When Sakura Matou and Medusa arrived at the familiar Emiya residence and entered, Sakura Matou's eyes widened slightly.

There stood Mephistopheles, cooking, as well as a mysterious woman beside him, practically pressed against him.

This mysterious, mature woman in her twenties made Sakura Matou instinctively wary.

Who is this person? Why is she clinging so closely to Big Brother? And judging by her attire, she does not seem to be from this era. Could she also be a Servant? Sakura Matou silently thought. In an instant, she concentrated mana in her eyes and saw the spectrum covering the woman.

She truly was a Servant, and she appeared to be one with immense mana!

She looks like Caster.

Yet Sakura Matou immediately greeted Mephistopheles aloud. "Good evening, Brother Mephistopheles."

"Sakura, you're here. Stay with them for a while first. Dinner will be ready soon."

Sakura took off her coat and set it aside. "Do you need help?"

"No, it's almost done already." As Mephistopheles spoke, he set the broth he had already prepared to one side, then carried it to the dining table. "Rin suggested tonight's meal. Hmm, hot pot."

Medea asked in confusion, "Hot pot?"

Sakura Matou blinked. "Hot pot!"

"Yes, hot pot. It's basically vegetables, meat, and other things stewed together. Since everyone can gather around it, it's suitable for eating and chatting at the same time. The important part is the chatting!" As Mephistopheles spoke, he gently brought over the prepared, washed, and cut ingredients as well, placing them on the table.

The long table was covered in ingredients. By quantity alone, there was enough for everyone present to eat for two or three meals, provided their appetites fell within the range of ordinary humans.

"Hot pot really is suitable for eating and chatting at the same time." Shirou Emiya nodded in agreement.

Mephistopheles smiled and followed up on that remark by asking Rin Tohsaka, "But Rin, choosing hot pot... were you planning to say something while we eat?"

"No, I merely thought everyone could discuss matters concerning the Holy Grail more easily this way. After all, I'm a magus too!"

As Rin Tohsaka spoke, she cautiously glanced at Sakura Matou. Seeing Sakura looking at her, she could not help becoming nervous and added, "Besides, everyone would not start fighting during a meal, right?"

"Tohsaka-senpai, are you saying that none of us are very rational?" Sakura Matou said with a smile, leaving Rin Tohsaka unsure how to answer for a moment. Mephistopheles could only shrug at that.

"No, Sakura. You have read novels or watched anime and manga before, right? The type where someone is obviously worried or happy inside, but still has to act tough with their words."

Before Sakura Matou could answer, Rin Tohsaka glared at Mephistopheles. "Who are you talking about?!"

"Hmm, did I mention anyone?" Rin Tohsaka glared at Mephistopheles again, then sat down in her seat with puffed cheeks.

Seeing Rin Tohsaka's reaction, a trace of softness flashed through Sakura Matou's eyes. Yet that gentleness was quickly concealed, and she sat down as well with a smile. "By the way, who is this older sister?"

She was referring to Medea.

"Hello, I'm Medea. Of course, you can also call me Caster." Medea smiled and greeted Sakura Matou.

She keenly sensed that this girl's relationship with Mephistopheles was somewhat unusual. The girl named Sakura Matou seemed very familiar with Mephistopheles. Perhaps Rin Tohsaka's current relationship with him was like that of teacher and student, but the way Sakura Matou looked at Mephistopheles was dangerous.

His lover? But if she were his lover, there would be no reason to introduce her only now. What exactly happened between Mephistopheles and her?

Suppressing her doubts, Medea looked at Medusa again. "I sense a familiar presence. Are you... someone from my era?"

Medusa shook her head, then nodded again.