In Type-Moon, it all starts with adopting Sakura.

Chapter Fourteen: The Snow Castle (Please add to your favorites!)

Sasa sasa—!!

The wind and snow pounded against the glass, making the wooden windows creak.

In Western Europe, nestled in a forest perpetually covered by snow, lies a vast expanse of private land belonging exclusively to the Einzbern family, far removed from the world.

Einzbern Castle, Germany.

Snowflakes slowly fell from the sky, and in the large courtyard, two figures of different sizes, one black and one white, were chasing each other.

"Kiritsugu, come and catch me!"

Ahead, a little girl, like a snow sprite, nimbly weaved between the buildings, eventually disappearing into the snow as if she had become one with it.

Behind him, a man named Emiya Kiritsugu was playing with him.

The calm before the storm is also a rare moment of leisure, and he wanted to spend these last moments with his daughter before heading to the battlefield.

"Hmm." Not far from where they were, a blonde woman standing in the winter snow picked up a cup of coffee, took a small sip, and her eyes lit up slightly. The ahoge (cowlick) on her head swayed happily.

"Coffee...what an interesting flavor. Although it's not as sweet as Merlin's flower tea, it's still quite delicious. Modern cuisine has indeed improved a lot."

She spoke, her voice clear and mature, but just as she finished speaking, Kiritsugu Emiya, who had handed his daughter, who had finished playing, to his wife's care, strode toward her.

"The Holy Grail War is about to begin. Are you ready, Saber?"

Emiya Kiritsugu greeted the Servant he had summoned not long ago.

"Of course, I was ready to fight at any time when I answered your call."

She nodded solemnly.

She is a very beautiful woman.

With long golden hair, emerald eyes, and a blue dress, she appeared somewhat petite, but the aura honed through countless battles remained undiminished.

She has many names in this world: King of Knights, King Arthur, Artoria Pendragon.

He is also the king who wields the holy sword and protects humanity.

If it were anyone else who summoned a Servant as powerful as King Arthur, they would definitely be overjoyed and shout with barely concealed delight, "It's a sure thing! This Holy Grail War is in the bag!" and other similar pronouncements.

After all, in the Holy Grail War, the stronger the Heroic Spirit, the greater the advantage they can gain. And King Arthur, who possesses the best class Saber and whose fame resounds throughout the world, is definitely among the most powerful Servants.

However, Kiritsugu Emiya, as the summoner, did not feel much joy towards the Heroic Spirit before him.

Although he knew that King Arthur's strength was undoubtedly the best, what about their compatibility? The two of them were like temporary partners who had been forcibly put together.

"..."

Kiritsugu Emiya remained silent and nodded to Artoria in front of him.

Was he the knight-king who was appointed to a critical mission in the midst of crisis, saving Britain from disaster and protecting Camelot for decades?

What a noble and radiant person...

Compared to someone like him, he's practically an eyesore.

He squinted, inwardly shaking his head slightly.

Without even needing to confirm, Kiritsugu Emiya already knew, just as he had predicted, that he and this king would not have any compatibility.

In war, if people cannot understand each other and share the same thoughts, even the greatest power is useless.

For a moment, Kiritsugu Emiya even felt a little resentful towards Ahadeon, the one who ordered him to summon King Arthur. Perhaps such a filthy and despicable person was more suited to using Assassin.

Pulling himself back to reality, Kiritsugu Emiya sighed deeply.

He knew that he could only rely on himself to win this Holy Grail War.

……

This heartwarming moment did not last long.

After spending time with his daughter and entrusting her to his wife's care, Kiritsugu Emiya led Artoria into a secluded room. His previously melancholy expression softened, replaced by a slightly serious one. He then looked at his Saber, who was seated on the sofa beside him, and said:

"Saber, although I don't want to disturb you from enjoying your hard-won return, the Holy Grail War is not child's play. Before it begins, it's extremely important to have some tactical communication and preparation. You should understand that, right?"

"Of course, Master, although filling your stomach and conserving your energy is part of battle preparation, I was a knight before I became a king, so I can naturally distinguish between what is important and what is not."

Artoria nodded, then said seriously, "So, Master, what are your plans? How is the intelligence gathering work before the battle begins progressing?"

"..."

Seeing Artoria's cooperation, Kiritsugu Emiya nodded with satisfaction.

Although they were somewhat incompatible, he could not deny that King Arthur was indeed an excellent follower, at least not as arrogant and disobedient as some ancient heroes recorded in the Einzbern family history.

"As for the battle plan, it will be arranged as I told you. Alice, who is better at magic, will appear in the open with you, pretending to be your Master and providing assistance, while I will hide in the shadows to collect information and provide support."

Kiritsugu Emiya nodded slightly, then turned on a specially encrypted computer and began exporting confidential documents, projecting them onto the room. Irisviel, who had just managed to get Illya to sleep, appeared behind him, blinking and looking curiously at the projected confidential documents on the wall.

"Now that everyone is here, let's begin. First, let's talk about Aozaki Touko, the puppeteer who was once known as the 'Egg of the Magician' in the magical world, and who was granted the highest rank—the Grand rank—by the Clock Tower for her amazing talent and subsequent revival of the [foundation of medieval puppet magic] and the [foundation of Norse rune magic]."

Upon seeing Irisviel arrive, Kiritsugu Emiya began to seriously analyze the events that had occurred during this period and the information he had gathered.

"Two months ago, the other party forcibly broke into the Einzbern family under the pretext of visiting each other among the descendants of mages. They also plundered some of the homunculi under the guise of exchange and learning, and finally broke into the archives and forcibly took away a lot of information related to the Third Holy Grail War."

When the name of that nightmarish woman was mentioned, Kiritsugu Emiya's fingers, which were holding a cigarette, began to tremble uncontrollably. Clearly, the battle two months ago, in which Aozaki Touko had put him under considerable pressure.

At that time, he hadn't had time to summon his servant yet; he only brought some androids and weapons with him and his assistant to deal with her.

He originally thought that being in the Einzbern family's territory, coupled with the skills and secret weapons he had honed through years of life-and-death battles, meant that even the renowned Grand Puppeteer had nothing to fear.

However, Aozaki Touko truly showed him what the "Grand Rank" meant, and just how valuable this highest rank of magician truly was.

The so-called artificial humans were like puppets in the hands of the other side. After only a few exchanges, they were subdued, their technology was simply dismantled, and they were tampered with, making them difficult to use.

And his Origin Missile, which was a secret weapon, became a joke in front of it.

During their battle, Kiritsugu Emiya was surprised to discover that his opponent was inexplicably extremely familiar with his magical information, and that his secret weapon had been discovered from the very beginning. Aozaki Touko already knew of the Origin Bullet's existence and had made corresponding preparations. A military-grade bulletproof vest, specially designed with rune magic, was worn underneath, rendering the Origin Bullet, which had lost most of its gunpowder propulsion, completely impenetrable. As a result, Kiritsugu Emiya was forced to flee in panic.

Kiritsugu Emiya, who believed he had always been absolutely certain of success, was completely baffled. He couldn't understand where the secret of his Origin Bullet had been leaked from, and how it had just fallen into the hands of Touko Aozaki.

“Aozaki Touko…Aozaki, I remember that name is from the Far East region, the family name of the family that controls the fifth magic. However, the current fifth magician is named Aoko, who is her younger sister and has been given the color title of [blue].

"As for Aozaki Touko, because of her sister's special circumstances, she didn't obtain [Blue], but was instead awarded [Red]. I remember her title was something like..."

"Don't ever say that title carelessly, Alice!!"

"Huh?"

Kiritsugu Emiya quickly stopped his wife from saying something disastrous, then looked around with lingering fear, worried that a red figure might suddenly appear and kill them.

Such an extreme action startled Irisviel and Artoria.

"What's wrong, Master? Is that magician named Aozaki Touko really that scary?" Artoria asked curiously, seeing that Emiya Kiritsugu's face had turned pale with fright.

Having just dealt with him and knowing how terrifying he was, Kiritsugu Emiya broke out in a cold sweat and spoke up.

“Saber is a hero of a past era, so she doesn’t know the situation, but Irisviel, you must remember that title is a taboo in the magic world. It’s a name that you must never utter, no matter the time or place.”

"oh oh."

Although she didn't understand why Kiritsugu Emiya was so agitated, Irisviel still nodded obediently.

Kiritsugu Emiya couldn't explain much to his naive and inexperienced wife.

Anyone who knows that any magician who dared to utter those four words would be long gone by now if Aozaki Touko found out. Even the Lords at the top of the Clock Tower wouldn't dare to easily antagonize that Grand Puppeteer. After all, anyone who constantly worries about being killed and then resurrected in some corner of the world in a different body would be uneasy. Not everyone is a Blue Mage.

However, for Kiritsugu Emiya, this time he must be fully prepared, because they may very well encounter Touko Aozaki again in the Holy Grail War.

Although no Command Seals were seen on Aozaki Touko's hand during the battle, her intrusion into the Einzbern family and the taking of the Third Holy Grail War data already indicated that there must be some connection between her and the Holy Grail War.

Although it is still uncertain, they must be more fully prepared for battle this time.

The image of Aozaki Touko, like a nightmare, flashed through his mind. Emiya Kiritsugu sighed deeply, his gaze imperceptibly drifting to Artoria, who was sitting quietly eating pastries next to Irisviel.

Despite their incompatible personalities, if he were to encounter the monster Aozaki Touko, all he could rely on was the legendary King Arthur he had summoned.

The legendary king, the knight wielding the holy sword, the true sage—I hope you won't disappoint yourself...

After playing back the intelligence he had gathered, Kiritsugu Emiya went out for a while and used a satellite phone to call his assistant who was out on a mission.

At this moment, Maiya is using smuggling to help transfer the weapons she needs into Fuyuki City, in preparation for the upcoming Holy Grail War.

Beep beep beep—!

After a brief busy signal, the call was successfully connected.

"Kiritsugu?"

The other party sounded slightly pleased when they received the familiar contact number from Emiya Kiritsugu.

"Maimi, how's the transfer of the military supplies I ordered in advance going?"

"Don't worry, we're already on our way to the base in Fuyuki City. We'll be able to enter the base successfully in a few days. Don't fret."

"I see..."

Kiritsugu Emiya asked, "If I were to order another batch of weapons now, would there still be enough time?"

"It's still not too late if we buy it through the black market or from mercenaries."

"Kiritsugu, is there anything else I need to prepare?"

On the other end of the phone, Wu Mi, who was sitting in the transport vehicle escorting supplies, immediately took out a ballpoint pen and a notebook.

"C4, RPG, Barrett M82A1 sniper rifle, and if possible, please also purchase some Stinger missiles or high-explosive rounds."

"Stinger missiles, high-explosive shells..."

The other party was clearly taken aback when they heard these names.

Although she couldn't help but wonder if the Holy Grail War really needed to go this far, Maiya, as her assistant, didn't ask. She simply nodded and replied.

"Kiritsugu, these things are not easy to obtain, but I will try my best to find a way to get them for you."

"Okay, then I'll trouble you."

After giving his instructions, he hung up the phone with his assistant. Having completed a new round of preparations, Kiritsugu Emiya walked to the castle window and lit another cigarette for himself.

No matter what, no matter who he fights, his pursuit and the outcome will not change.

No matter how dirty the means, he will kill all magicians, obtain the Holy Grail, and save all mankind.

This is also the last obsession and the only remaining meaning of life for Kiritsugu Emiya, who killed his biological father and adoptive mother with his own hands and has survived to this day.