It's normal for an evil god to raise an Abyss.

Chapter 144 Magician

From a rational point of view, there are still Masters hiding in the dark in the school, whether it is Assassin who has already launched an attack, or another Servant who may still exist in the dark. Under such a complicated situation, it is obviously not a situation that Emiya Shirou or Toosaka Rin can handle alone;

From an emotional point of view, Emiya Shirou has some good feelings towards Toosaka Rin. He knows that Toosaka Rin is not a bad person by nature and is a suitable partner for an alliance.

"I didn't say I would help Emiya-san. I just wanted to conclude a truce agreement. But as long as you don't betray me, I will still help you."

Toosaka Rin emphasized it a little bit, but it's obvious that Toosaka Rin always says one thing and means another, probably a kind of tsundere.

"What? Doesn't that mean we'll always be together? Please take care of me~"

Emiya Shirou smiled and held out his hand.

However, I don’t know whether Emiya Shirou did it intentionally or unintentionally, but this slightly ambiguous sentence still made Toosaka Rin blush.

"Well... although it may only be for a short period of time, you have to do your best to help me~"

Toosaka Rin also reached out her hand, and their hands were held together.

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As the two exchanged information, the sky gradually darkened.

"I see. This means that Emiya-san is not the legitimate heir. Your father died before you inherited the Mage's Seal."

Toosaka Rin was drinking a cup of black tea.

"I'm not sure about that. My dad seems to be against me becoming a magician..."

Shirou Emiya also held the teacup in both hands, looking down as if recalling something.

"But isn't this inconsistent?"

"That's probably the case. Dad probably saw that I kept chasing him and couldn't get rid of me, so he taught me... And in the end, I could only use strengthening magic."

"Hey, why do you even tell me something like this?!"

When she heard Emiya Shirou describe the magic he knew, Toosaka Rin seemed very surprised.

"Listen, Emiya-san. Even though we are now working together, as a magus, you should keep your magic hidden."

Toosaka Rin said this in a teaching tone.

"It's useless to hide it now. Besides, Daddy also said that magic is not something that needs to be hidden."

Emiya Shirou was a little confused by this.

"…Is he serious about this?"

"Well, probably because he wanted me to stop being so rigid about the rules. He also often said things like 'if you want to give up, just give up'."

"Don't be ridiculous. Your father is not a magician. I won't admit that you are a magician if you were trained by such a man!"

Toosaka Rin suddenly became a little excited.

"Why are you so angry... I can't really be called a magician, but my father is an excellent magician..."

"That's not what I meant... I meant... forget it..."

Toosaka Rin calmed down, as if she had figured something out.

"Yes, I am dissatisfied with Emiya-san's immaturity..."

"There's nothing we can do about it. Dad's gone..."

"Yes, this is the limit of a solitary magus. After all, a magus doesn't know when he will die, so he has to leave behind magic marks... What makes me angry is that your father did nothing about this."

Toosaka Rin explained, her mind recalling her past memories of practicing magic.

"Magic is something that is passed down from father to son, and is the fruit of life. From the moment a child of a magician family is born, he or she is the successor and heir of the family. We are born for this, and we die for this."

"It is the duty of a magus family to transform their offspring of flesh and blood into another being through years of rigorous training. So, Emiya-san's father is not a magus. Your father did not fulfill his duties as a magus, but chose to fulfill his duties as a parent..."

When Toosaka Rin said this, she also had another kind of sigh.

"..."

As for Shirou Emiya, he just silently lowered his head and looked at the tea in his hand. Then he raised his head and looked at the bright moon outside the window. It was unknown what he was thinking.

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"That's it."

On the way home, Emiya Shirou said to the empty space behind him.

A few steps behind Emiya Shirou, where there was nothing before, Archer appeared in spirit form.

"Really? You don't need a bodyguard?"

"I don't need a murderous bodyguard."

Emiya Shirou retorted unceremoniously.

"Wow, it seems I have to look at you with new eyes. I can actually sense the murderous intent. It seems that you have made progress in fighting. I will follow Rin's instructions and not attack you."

"If you want to fight, I'll fight you! Even if I'm a half-witted magician, I'm still a magician."

For some reason, Emiya Shirou felt that he and the Archer in front of him didn't get along well at all.

Archer felt that when he heard Emiya Shirou's words, he felt like a strong man hearing a child's challenge:

"What a joke! A magician without the smell of blood is not even half-baked."

"You said I don't smell of blood?"

"In order to achieve their goals, a magician can become cold-blooded enough. Learn from Toosaka Rin. Although she is not ruthless enough at times, her understanding is quite high for her age."

"Humph, you should be thankful that your Master is Tousaka. The Holy Grail is within your reach."

"Heh, a sin box that fulfills human greed. I don't need that kind of thing."

Upon hearing that Archer does not pursue the Holy Grail, Emiya Shirou is surprised:

"Eh, no need? Aren't Servants participating in this war to fulfill wishes?"

This was the common answer that Shirou Emiya got from the nun in the church and from Rin Tousaka, but it was rejected by Archer in front of him:

"How is that possible? It just happened. We Servants don't have freedom of thought. The only one who responded to the summons with her own will is your Saber."

"Only... Saber?"

"Heh, it seems like you have no idea what a Heroic Spirit is. Then I'll say a few more words about it."

Chapter 145 Heroic Spirit

"So-called Heroic Spirits are summoned by the will of others, just like tools that are thrown away after use. Do you really believe that a Servant will help humans from the bottom of their hearts? Listen, Heroic Spirits are just devices that are summoned when needed and disappear after cleaning up the mess. A cleaner who has been stripped of his will and serves humans forever is a Heroic Spirit. It is called a Guardian."

"You actually said that Heroic Spirits are [devices]. Saber is a human being. She will refuse to do anything she doesn't want to do. Even if you get here, you still have the right to choose, right?"

Emiya Shirou disagreed with Archer.

"Perhaps. A Heroic Spirit who becomes a Servant will regain the humanity it once had as a human, and will also recall its past obsessions... Just imagine how it would feel if a Heroic Spirit died without fulfilling his wish, and was ordered around by humans even after death. All of this stems from the desire for the Holy Grail."

"Then if the Holy Grail is such an important thing, why do you say [it's not needed]?"

"Because I don't have any unfulfilled wishes. I fulfilled my wishes and died, becoming a heroic spirit, so I have no more desires..."

After saying this, Archer transformed into a spirit and disappeared.

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Emiya residence, kendo practice room.

"Shirou, you promised me that you would be back before sunset."

Saber, who was sitting upright in casual clothes, was a little dissatisfied with Shirou Emiya's late return.

This was natural, because Shirou Emiya had broken his promise to return home on time, causing Saber to worry about his safety.

"I'm sorry, Saber, it's natural that you're angry, but could you please listen to my future course of action?"

"……Um."

"There are other Masters besides me and Toosaka in the school. Until we find out their true identities, I will temporarily cease fighting with Toosaka."

Saber frowned upon hearing that Emiya Shirou and Toosaka Rin had called a truce.

Emiya Shirou noticed the change in Saber's expression and asked:

"Saber, do you object to my cooperation with Tousaka?"

"No, but before making such an important decision, I hope you will discuss it with me first."

"Um...sorry."

Emiya Shirou admitted that this was indeed a bit hasty.

"Just to confirm, as long as you defeat all the other Masters in the school, the truce agreement between you and Rin will be invalidated. Is that correct?"

"Yep."

"Since you've made up your mind, I have no objection. Just think of it as cooperating with Rin to gain combat experience."

Because of the previous communication with Archer, Shirou Emiya remembered another question:

"Saber, you need the Holy Grail, right?"

"Yes."

Saber confirmed this question without hesitation.

"But...what was that for?"

Saber did not answer this question immediately, but threw the question back:

"Does this question have anything to do with your future policy?"

"No...that..."

Shirou Emiya's eyes wandered.

"What happened, Shirou?"

"No, it's nothing..."

Although Saber could see that Shirou Emiya was worried, she would not force him since he did not want to talk about it.

"I also have a proposal. We should accumulate combat experience through practice in the future."

Saber stood up and raised the bamboo sword.

"Yes, that's right. Please give me your guidance then."

Emiya Shirou nodded, picked up his bamboo sword and stood up.

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Late at night, Emiya residence, warehouse.

"Really? Saber, when it comes to a serious fight, she really doesn't show any mercy..."

Emiya Shirou complained while covering his left upper arm that was hit by the bamboo sword.

Although he complained like this, Shirou Emiya was actually quite grateful to Saber for training him. After all, when the battle really came, what would greet him was not a bamboo sword but the enemy's sharp blade.

Shirou Emiya calmed down, picked up the wooden stick in front of him, and began to practice strengthening magic.

"Trace On."

A faint green light covered the wooden stick in his hand, strengthening it.

But the next second, the structure of the wooden stick could not withstand the reinforcement and exploded from the inside.

Perhaps it was because Shirou Emiya was not focused enough and failed to control the power of magic, which directly destroyed the wooden stick.

"Shirou?"

Shirou Emiya looked in the direction of the voice and saw the blonde girl at the door of the warehouse looking inside curiously.

"What's wrong, Saber?"