For Kiritsugu Emiya, Kayneth choosing to entangle himself with Darnic over an old grudge was one of the few pieces of good news.
Whether it was Darnic, who had lived for over a century and was notorious for his cunning, or Kayneth, who had been hailed as a prodigy since childhood and whom many believed might one day earn the rank of Grand among magi, both were renowned master magi.
Even Kiritsugu Emiya, known as the Magus Killer and armed with the devastating Origin Bullets, had to approach them cautiously, exploiting their carelessness to devise the best possible plan to kill them.
Although he was merely a mediocre mage who used magecraft as a tool, he was still a mage. That was precisely why he understood how difficult master magi were to deal with.
"In short, during this contest for the Holy Grail, I'll try to make Darnic my first priority. If no opportunity presents itself, I'll consider the Tohsaka and Matou families instead. Irisviel, when you command your Heroic Spirit, just keep those two points at the forefront of your strategy."
"Understood."
Although she represented the Einzberns in monitoring and supporting Kiritsugu Emiya, Irisviel, who was not adept at combat, had no intention of interfering with his strategic choices. Leaving specialized work to specialists was the approach the Einzberns had chosen after their repeated failures.
"Counting you, that makes six, doesn't it? Is there still no news of the last Master?"
"None. Ultimately, the Three Founding Families have kept the truth of the Holy Grail War under wraps. If not for those two from the Clock Tower, it would probably have attracted even less attention. Still, magi chosen at the very last moment generally aren't particularly capable. They might get themselves killed without us having to do anything."
"Let's hope so."
Irisviel turned back toward the floor-to-ceiling window, bringing their conversation to an end.
In the brief silence, Kiritsugu Emiya sighed soundlessly and rose to his feet. Leaving several paces between himself and Irisviel, he too stood before the window.
Against the snow-white landscape, even the nearby forest looked gray and dim. Without having to look closely, he spotted the girl running freely through the snow.
She was the reason Irisviel had been distracted earlier.
"Watching Illya again? That child loves going out to play whenever the snow stops."
Perhaps noticing the complicated expression on Irisviel's face, Kiritsugu Emiya spoke softly. In the Einzbern Family, which consisted of homunculi, Irisviel's humanity made her one of the few people he could talk to.
"Yes. Look, Kiritsugu. That child is wearing so little, yet she isn't afraid of the cold at all."
Kiritsugu Emiya looked over. Indeed, the little girl frolicking through the snow like a fawn wore only a purple coat and a fluffy hat of the same color. Even for a child who did not mind the cold, that outfit was alarmingly inadequate for the conditions.
This region was locked in ice and snow year-round. Even inside the warm castle, Kiritsugu wore a winter trench coat. Outside, even someone bundled up tightly would have their body temperature drop to freezing within hours.
Yet Illya seemed unable to feel the cold, dancing freely like a sprite in the snow.
As the two watched her, Illya seemed to discover something and crouched down. Her cheeks flushed crimson, then she blew gently. A searing stream of flame spilled from her mouth, instantly melting the surrounding snow and exposing scorched, blackened ground.
She could achieve something of that caliber without even an incantation. Seeing it, it was no wonder Irisviel, who normally doted on her child, did not stop Illya from running outside in such thin clothing.
"Is that Einzbern technology? Impressive..."
The sight sent a tremor through Kiritsugu's heart, and he instinctively looked at Irisviel. If this Winter Beauty could do the same thing, the prospect was rather frightening.
Even so, Kiritsugu Emiya did not let it show on his face. He had long known that homunculus technology lay at the heart of the Einzberns. Irisviel was this war's Lesser Grail, while Illya was a reserve candidate for the next. Everything from their Magic Circuits to their growth had been adjusted. Despite her air of an aristocratic lady, Irisviel was not even a third of his age.
Although Illya was a homunculus, she had also been conceived by Irisviel alone and supposedly had no father at all. She was usually kept under strict supervision, leaving Kiritsugu Emiya almost no opportunity to interact with her. But seeing Irisviel look as though she was hiding some painful secret stirred his curiosity.
"Are you saying that shouldn't be possible?"
"Of course it shouldn't. I gave birth to that child. Although perhaps I shouldn't put it this way, her capabilities are far superior to mine, but only within the scope of Einzbern technology. Everything about her is normal, yet she has displayed many abilities I never anticipated."
Irisviel instinctively brought her hand to her collar and clenched it tightly, trying to ease her unease through the gesture.
"Her growth cycle and weight are exactly as predicted, yet from a very young age, she could control fire. She doesn't fear the cold, and she's highly resistant to flames. By expending just a little stamina, she can unleash attacks comparable to greater magecraft."
"And even though her physical abilities haven't been specially enhanced, she surpasses most of the combat maids without using any magecraft at all... Even when I ask Great-Grandfather, all I get is some vague answer about how it's perfectly normal."
The more Irisviel spoke, the more agitated she became, a faint gleam of tears appearing in her eyes.
"But there aren't any other abnormalities, are there? Shouldn't this be a good thing?"
Although Kiritsugu Emiya understood Irisviel's feelings as a mother, he had no children of his own. He still voiced his thoughts from his usual pragmatic standpoint.
"A good thing?" Irisviel gave a bitter laugh, then seemed to finally make up her mind.
"Kiritsugu, I'll reveal some of the Einzberns' secrets to you. In exchange, I need you to win this Holy Grail War, no matter what. Otherwise, Illya will..."
"That was my goal to begin with, Irisviel."
Kiritsugu Emiya's gaze grew serious as well. Although the Einzberns had given him access to a great deal of information, he was ultimately an outsider in their employ. Some things remained beyond his reach.
"You should know that Illya isn't merely a homunculus. She's a child I carried and gave birth to like an ordinary person. But aside from me serving as her mother, what truly gave her those strange abilities was something Great-Grandfather obtained in the previous Holy Grail War."
Irisviel drew a deep breath and instinctively touched her abdomen, recalling it with a hint of nostalgia.
"It wasn't any tangible power, only residual traces of magical energy. Great-Grandfather collected those remnants and used them as a blueprint to create Illya."
"But that power didn't come from a Heroic Spirit, nor was it any tangible thing I can currently understand. It was an intangible mass of vapor. There was no process at all. When that vapor attached itself to me, combined with Einzbern technology, Illya came into being in my womb."
"..."
Kiritsugu Emiya tried his best to appear unmoved, but the account was so absurd that he nearly interrupted several times, wanting to confirm whether this was a joke. Irisviel's solemn expression had already ruled that out.
"And now, as the Holy Grail War draws nearer, I can sense more and more that something is wrong, as that child's mother. She hasn't yet been imbued with knowledge of the Holy Grail, but lately, she keeps unconsciously looking toward Fuyuki. Asking her doesn't yield any useful information, either."
"Without a doubt, Great-Grandfather obtained something during the last Holy Grail War. And lately, after continually reviewing records of that war, I've reached a somewhat unbelievable conclusion."
Irisviel lowered her hands and clasped them behind her back, saying earnestly, "I know you might not believe me, because this is only a theory of mine. But I think-the previous Holy Grail War was cursed."
"An intangible spirit, or a demon, used the connections created by the Holy Grail War to travel and wander between the Masters and the Holy Grail."
Irisviel's voice dwindled to a whisper. By the end, only her lips moved, silently forming the words.
But Kiritsugu Emiya, who had long since honed his lip-reading skills over years of warfare, still understood what Irisviel was saying.
-I suspect that intangible demon has attached itself to Great-Grandfather.