In the empty night, five disheveled figures suddenly tumbled into existence.
"Phew... I really thought I was going to die just now." Rin sprawled ungracefully on the solid ground, her soul practically halfway out of her mouth.
"Are you okay, Miyu?!" Luvia, oblivious to her own dire state—rocks still atop her head, face smeared with blood—shouted in concern.
"Yes, I’m fine... No, actually, I’m not." Miyu, completely unharmed, averted her gaze. "I mean you, Luvia-nee."
"Oh right, Illya!" Rin finally remembered someone far more deserving of worry. "Illya, where are you?"
Inside the Mirror World, she had clearly seen Illya get hit by that mysterious young man. Though she wanted to help, the Mirror World had begun collapsing, forcing her to regroup with Miyu and escape as quickly as possible.
Where was Illya now? Was she hurt?
"I’m over here..." Not far away, the silver-haired girl sat on the ground in a duck-like posture, seemingly unharmed. "My head hurts... I think I bumped it."
"Illya, thank goodness!" Miyu was the first to rush toward her. But the moment she saw what was beside Illya, her expression twisted into one of rare horror, and she stumbled backwards several steps.
"This... what in the world?"
Luvia and Rin voiced their confusion one after another. Because sitting right beside Illya, in the exact same pose, was another girl.
Pale pink twin tails. Golden-red eyes. A form-fitting outfit.
And a face identical to Illyasviel von Einzbern.
Aside from a slightly darker complexion, she looked like she had been carved from the same mold as Illya.
"What the hell is going on—?!"
The scream tore through the night sky. As Illya shrieked in shock, the mysterious girl instantly sprang up and vanished into the nearby bushes like a wary animal.
And so, tonight’s chaos came to an abrupt and anticlimactic end.
Meanwhile, a thousand meters away, the culprit hummed a tune to himself, having completed his scheme without a trace.
[Skill Entry Loaded: God Hand.]
[Noble Phantasm Rank Increased by Two Tiers!]
[Noble Phantasm Data Updated.]
[Type: Anti-Unit Noble Phantasm]
[Prototype: The future superbike "Kawasaki Ninja H2R." Through True Name Release, it can surpass its original speed threshold. Theoretically, as long as magical energy is supplied, it will accelerate until the Noble Phantasm itself breaks apart.]
[With God Hand’s enhancement, this Noble Phantasm can race indefinitely until the thirteenth destruction. It also possesses unparalleled resistance, making it unmatched in ground mobility.]
"..." Sakatsuki scratched his head as he read the updated status screen.
It had improved... but also kind of hadn’t.
Offensively, nothing had changed—it was still just a bike he could ram into things. Speed-wise, Sakatsuki already had the Three Great Magecrafts, allowing him to retreat or attack at will. Unless he was forced into a class restriction like in the Second Singularity, the Sword in the Stone was practically useless.
But this was only temporary. An EX-ranked skill couldn’t possibly be that simple. Once Sakatsuki obtained a second suitable skill entry, the little bike might just become one of his most frequently used Noble Phantasms.
"God Hand + Roar of the Tainted Beast—twelve kamikaze charges. Let’s see who dares stand in my way." The mere thought sent a shiver down his own spine.
Not only that, but with twelve lives to spare, the bike had endless room for shenanigans. The only limit was Sakatsuki’s imagination.
As for whether he could encounter the right Heroic Spirits?
Pfft, easy. If he just buckled down, gathered materials to craft Class Cards, and summoned Heroic Spirits via ley lines, month after month, year after year... eventually, he’d draw the cards he wanted.
"Damn, did I just measure time in years...?" Sakatsuki twitched his lips and dismissed the Sword in the Stone.
Before leaving earlier, he had fused a hastily crafted blank Class Card with Illya. And in that instant of departure, he had clearly seen a light separate from her body.
Which meant his plan had succeeded.
Kuro had successfully split from Illya.
Her true identity was the personified form of the Einzbern family’s Holy Grail wish-granting device. In this world, Illya’s magical energy, memories, and knowledge had been sealed away by her mother during infancy, and over the years, this suppressed aspect had materialized as a separate personality.
The one who had previously fought Sakatsuki as Archer was none other than her. And those golden-red eyes were the most obvious difference between her and Illya (though in the anime, her skin tone was darkened for clarity, the actual difference wasn’t that significant).
As for why Sakatsuki had gone out of his way to free Kuro early?
In terms of pure combat ability, Kuro—specifically tuned by the Einzbern family—far surpassed the still-developing magical girls. Even without Sakatsuki around, she would serve as an excellent protector.
After all, once matters in the Second Singularity were resolved, Sakatsuki could finally turn his attention to the looming threat tied to Miyu.
The threat from the ancient Ainsworth family—the very world where the "Great Hero" had died and Sakatsuki had been forced to flee.
What was that famous line again?
"Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west—don’t bully the young for their poverty!"
Now, the God of War had returned, only to find his "daughter" living in squalor. With a single command, ten thousand soldiers would—blah blah blah. Point was, the Ainsworths were a problem he could crush with one hand.
No need for pointless chatter, no need for "training" or "growth." This was suffering his little sisters should never have endured in the first place.
The only real challenge now was anchoring that worldline and ensuring a safe return after teleporting.
Lost in thought, Sakatsuki led the ever-loyal Katou Danzou back to the grand hotel.
"Are you hiding a mistress in a golden house?"
"Danzou, has Caren been corrupting you???"
"Uu... Forgive me, Master."
Satisfied, Sakatsuki retracted his claw-like fingers and pushed open the hotel door, rattling off instructions:
"Beast Nero—no, Draco—is still asleep. I’ll need you to babysit again, but don’t worry about food, drinks, or bathroom stuff. Strictly speaking, she’s not even human. Just message me when she wakes up. Last time I left in a hurry, but this time I’ll swing by the church and warn them to keep their filthy hands off Caren—"
His words cut off abruptly.
Sakatsuki froze as he saw the now-awake Beast Nero perched casually by the window, peering out at the brand-new world with detached curiosity.
Draco turned her head, offering the stunned young man a chilling smile.
"We seem to recall hearing something along the lines of... ’Beast Nero’?"
"And pray tell... who is this ’Caren’?"
For some reason, as Sakatsuki stared at the petite Draco, he couldn’t help but tremble.
"Uh, let me explain—"
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