"Damn Merlin!"
Yu Feng suddenly opened his eyes and found that he had already awakened. His palm was burning hot, and a silver-white petal mark lay upon it, proving that Yu Feng's dream had not been fake. This petal mark was definitely Merlin's handiwork.
Afraid Yu Feng would refuse to go, he had even specifically made a contract.
"Merlin must die!" Yu Feng muttered, his tone filled with resentment toward Merlin.
At that moment, a future powerhouse and a certain Beast IV reached a shared goal. That was...
Merlin must die!
Surely, the man and beast had much to discuss on this point.
For example... what kind of death he should have.
Yu Feng got dressed, left his room, and headed downstairs.
By then, Rin Tohsaka was already awake. Emiya was making breakfast, while Mordred had been dragged off by Emiya to serve as free labor.
After all, Little Mo, if you ate that much and still refused to work, didn't you realize someone might raise you into a useless member of society?
As for Bazett, she appeared to still be in her room.
Emiya said he had already brought her breakfast earlier. Her complexion looked much better, so there should be no need to worry.
Seeing Yu Feng come downstairs, Rin Tohsaka said in surprise, "That's rare. You got up even later than usual today."
Yu Feng waved dismissively. "Don't mention it. Just pretend I was dragged away by some damn nightmare."
Rin Tohsaka smiled and did not take Yu Feng's words seriously.
But she had no idea that what Yu Feng had said as a joke was actually true.
After breakfast, Yu Feng and Rin Tohsaka walked down the small road toward Homonculus Academy.
The morning air was especially fresh. The fragrance of flowers planted along the streets drifted through the air, and the breeze carried their scent past them, brushing their cheeks and lightly lifting their hair.
A ray of warm sunlight shone down upon them through gaps in the green leaves. The morning sun was far more pleasant than the blazing noon sun, carrying a faint warmth rather than the heat of midday.
Students in Homonculus Academy uniforms and others riding bicycles passed by from time to time, while the silhouettes of birds occasionally flitted across the sky.
The students chatted and laughed as they made their way to school.
"Hey, Feng."
Just as Yu Feng and Rin Tohsaka turned a corner, they heard a familiar voice call out from nearby.
Two figures were walking toward them: Shinji Matou and his younger sister, Sakura Matou.
When Rin Tohsaka saw Sakura, a complicated expression flashed across her face, while Yu Feng simply greeted Shinji Matou.
Shinji Matou threw an arm around Yu Feng's shoulders and quietly led him away from Rin Tohsaka and Sakura Matou, leaving the two girls standing face-to-face.
Shinji Matou leaned closer to Yu Feng and whispered before Yu Feng could shake him off, "Hey, Feng, lately I've felt like that old man at my house has been acting strange. And yesterday, I think I saw him on campus."
Yu Feng's expression turned slightly grave. "Are you telling the truth?"
The old man Shinji Matou referred to was the current head of the Matou family. No, it would be more accurate to say he had always been its head.
Zouken Matou!
Originally known as Makiri Zolgen, he was one of the founders of the Holy Grail War, the first head—and every generation's head—of the Matou family, one of the Three Founding Families.
He had originally been a mage who devoted his entire life to eradicating all the evil of this world and humanity's wickedness. Yet as time wore him down, he forgot his original ideals after a hundred years and became obsessed with eternal life, obsessed with immortality.
He became an evil man who had forgotten his original intentions and fixated on eternal life.
It could even be said that he would do anything for immortality.
He had done countless things in the original work that no human being should do.
Shinji Matou nodded slightly. "It's true. I feel like that old man will make some kind of move after the Holy Grail War begins. Be careful yourself. He's been very strange lately, and he often goes out without anyone knowing what he's doing."
"Yeah, I understand. I'll be careful. What about Uncle Kariya? Have there been any updates about him lately?" Yu Feng asked.
Kariya Matou had been a participant in the Fourth Holy Grail War, the Master of Berserker, Lancelot, Knight of the Lake. Lancelot was not originally supposed to enter the Fourth Holy Grail War as Berserker, but Zouken Matou had tampered with the summoning ritual, causing Lancelot to appear in the Fourth Holy Grail War as Berserker.
However, Yu Feng felt that the Fourth Holy Grail War seemed to have changed its original course due to someone's intervention. The outcome of the Fourth Holy Grail War in this world had developed in a direction Yu Feng had never expected.
Kariya Matou, who should have died in the Fourth Holy Grail War, had not died. Sakura Matou, who had been thrown into the worm pit by Zouken Matou, had somehow become a somewhat capable mage and had never been thrown into the worm pit.
Rin Tohsaka's mother, Aoi Tohsaka, had not been accidentally killed by Kariya Matou in the church. Instead, she had been found dead alongside Tokiomi Tohsaka at the Tohsaka Estate.
Kaineth El-Melloi Archibald, Lancer's Master, had not died to Kiritsugu Emiya's methods during the Holy Grail War either. Instead, he returned to the Clock Tower after his fiancée Sola's Magic Circuits were destroyed and Kaineth El-Melloi Archibald's left arm was severed.
No news had come from either of them after they returned to the Clock Tower. Instead, word had reached this place that Princess Waver Velvet had become Lord El-Melloi II.
At Yu Feng's question, Shinji Matou's expression grew somewhat complicated. "There's still been no news, but it looks like something really may have happened..."
Seeing this, Yu Feng patted Shinji Matou's shoulder. "It's okay, Shinji. Nothing should happen to him."
However, Yu Feng could not help linking Kariya Matou's disappearance with Zouken Matou.
When the four entered the campus, the other three aside from Shinji Matou all halted.
Shinji Matou looked at Yu Feng in confusion. "What is it?"
Yu Feng stared at Homonculus Academy before him, his gaze becoming more serious. "A Magic Barrier has been set up here. And this feeling... I have a very bad feeling about it."
Shinji Matou looked around at Rin Tohsaka and Sakura Matou. Their expressions were much the same as Yu Feng's.
If Shinji Matou still did not understand what was happening by then, that would have been absurd. He had no talent for Magecraft, so naturally he could not sense what the other three, who had come into contact with Magecraft, sensed. Although Yu Feng sensed it through the talent from his simulation and the self possessing him, it made no difference.
Shinji Matou was utterly depressed. So everyone except him had sensed it?
Fine. A world where only Lord El-Melloi II got hurt had been achieved.
Before you continue