Rin Tohsaka, Under the Thumb

"I'm back." Yu Feng tossed his bag onto the sofa and glanced around the room.

Where is everyone?

Shouldn't they be back by now?

A flicker of doubt crossed his mind, but he didn't dwell on it. Instead, he flopped onto the sofa and stared at the ceiling.

Ahh, I never thought I'd be chosen for the Holy Grail War. So this time, am I joining as the seventh Master, or did I replace one of the original six?

It was a question worth pondering. Maybe he'd been selected as the seventh Master, or maybe he'd swapped in for someone from the original six—the Holy Grail War's rules had plenty of loopholes. But for now, Yu Feng only knew the rough locations of some of the other Masters; he had no clue about their current situations.

Rin Tohsaka was right next door, Sakura was at the Matou family, Illya was still at Einzbern, Shirou Emiya was probably playing househusband at home, the Mage—no, Sister Baz—was likely still on her way, and Attram Galliasta had apparently already summoned Caster. He didn't know if they'd fallen out yet. The gatekeeper definitely hadn't been summoned by Caster at this point. This Holy Grail War was riddled with holes.

In the original story, a Servant summoning another Servant already broke the rules, let alone the fact that there were only six chosen Masters. The Fifth War was stranger than the ones before it.

Come to think of it, he'd almost forgotten—in the original, the Mage had cut off the arm of Sister Baz, the Master sent by the Clock Tower for Sasaki Kojirou, right? He hadn't killed her, but he'd left her to rot in the Twin Mansions.

As for the timing now... Yu Feng wasn't sure if the Mage had already done the deed. He didn't have a clear grasp of the timeline from the original. If he had time, he'd check the Twin Mansions.

Just then, Rin Tohsaka's figure suddenly appeared in the living room.

"You're back this late?" Rin glanced at the time—it was nearly eight o'clock—and spoke with clear displeasure, as if his tardiness really got on her nerves.

Yu Feng replied flatly, "I've been sitting here for over half an hour, so I should be asking you where you've been."

"Forget it, this isn't the time for that." Yu Feng rolled up his sleeve and showed it to Rin.

Instantly, Rin's expression turned incredulous. "Huh?!"

"No way. That can't be. How is this possible? You got chosen?"

Her voice was thick with disbelief, as if Yu Feng becoming a Master felt like a dream—but it was an undeniable reality.

"You... actually got chosen?" Rin repeated herself, which showed just how shaken she was.

Yu Feng waved his arm. "With these three Command Spells, can I join your so-called Holy Grail War now?"

Rin seemed to realize she'd lost her composure. She quickly cleared her throat and nodded seriously, though her eyes still brimmed with shock. "That's right. And these three Command Spells prove you have talent in Magecraft, so I don't need to vouch for you."

Then, as if something else occurred to her, Rin looked at Yu Feng. "Do you want the Holy Grail?"

Yu Feng raised an eyebrow at her, but quickly caught on—she was probably trying to recruit him into her camp.

He thought it over. If it were the original Holy Grail, maybe he'd have a few wishes to make. No, not wishes—more like ideas. But this Holy Grail? Honestly, he didn't have any desire for it.

"Hmm... I don't want this current Holy Grail, but if it were the old one, I might consider it," Yu Feng replied.

"Really? That's... ahem. In that case, you'll help me win this Holy Grail War, right?" Rin got excited for a second, then quickly forced herself to be serious as she questioned him.

Clearly, Rin hadn't caught the implication in his words. That was normal—she still believed the Holy Grail was a universal Wish Machine, with no idea it had been tainted by the Black Mud.

Yu Feng looked at her. "Sure, but why should I?"

Rin blinked, a bit dazed. "Huh?"

"Why should I help you win the Holy Grail War?" Yu Feng's mischievous side kicked in as he watched her slightly clueless expression.

Rin seemed caught off guard by his question, stammering, "Because... because you've been living in my house for so long, right? You owe me some compensation! You eat my food, use my stuff—it's only fair I get something back!"

Yu Feng let out a light chuckle, slowly stepping closer to her. "Oh~ is that so?"

"And who's been bossing me around like a servant all these years? I think I've already paid my dues. Besides, with your princess attitude, without me, your daily routine and life would probably fall into chaos, wouldn't it?"

Rin watched him approach, a hint of panic creeping onto her face as she backed away. "What are you trying to do? I... I can still introduce you to the world of Magecraft, and... and..."

"You?"

"Yeah! That's right! Huh? What?" Just as Rin was about to come up with a retort, Yu Feng's voice cut in. She instinctively nodded in agreement, then froze as she realized what she'd done.

As Yu Feng got closer, Rin tried to step back again, only to find she'd backed herself into a corner with nowhere to go.

Watching her flustered expression, Yu Feng suddenly spun around and sat back on the sofa. "Alright, I was just joking, my dear Lady Rin~."

Rin stared blankly at his smug, triumphant face, a blush quickly spreading across her cheeks. "You jerk! Pervert! Idiot!"

But Yu Feng seemed to have expected her reaction. He said calmly, "The Holy Grail War is about to start. The first priority is summoning your Servant, right?"

"You're really... such a terrible personality! Hmph!" Rin, her blush still lingering, shot him a glare, let out a tsundere huff, and turned to leave, quickly escaping the scene.