Why are all the people in my chat group rumored to be from the outside world?

"I...of course I haven't forgotten!" Sakura quickly shook her head, her cheeks slightly flushed.

“I always remember! It’s just… it’s just that my sister seems to have… rarely gone into the kitchen anymore, so I was… that’s why I was so surprised. Why is she here so early today? And why has she prepared such a sumptuous breakfast…”

"Haven't we been sitting together and having a proper meal in a long time? My dearest sister, come on, sit down and eat... What's wrong, Sakura?"

"N-nothing!" Sakura immediately gave a slightly hasty smile, subconsciously covering her chest with her hand. "Maybe... I stayed up too late last night?"

She tried to make her voice sound calm.

My heart was pounding wildly in my chest cavity at an unprecedented speed and force.

My dearest... sister? My older sister just said... I'm her dearest?

Even after obediently sitting down at the table, Sakura still felt a little lightheaded, as if she were walking on clouds.

She felt that her older sister was acting a little strange today, but... she liked her so much!

Sakura was trying hard to purse her lips, attempting to suppress the joy that was about to overflow.

Just then—a fair hand, holding a delicate pastry, unexpectedly brought it to her lips.

Sakura was stunned again.

She stared blankly at the familiar pastry in front of her, her gaze fixed on it.

"What's wrong?" Saya Aika tilted her head, her question perfectly timed. "Is it not to your liking? I remember... you used to love this pastry that I made for you the most."

"...Because it was the first pastry my sister made for me, I really liked it."

Aika's smile deepened: "If you like it, then open your mouth, ah~"

Sakura slowly opened her mouth and took a bite of the pastry, inadvertently touching Aika.

Looking at the older sister in front of me, the food in my mouth tasted even softer, sweeter, and more delicious.

Sakura, I wish time could stand still at this moment.

But just then...

"Sakura, your body... how did it get like this?" Aika Sajou frowned slightly.

She was so focused on memorizing her lines that she didn't notice for a moment. It was the earlier touch that made her realize that something was wrong with the other person's body.

Magic and spirit are like two halves separated. Although it's not a big deal, everything was fine yesterday.

Seeing Ayaka Sajou like this, Sakura snapped out of her happiness and shook her head with a smile.

"It's alright, sister. I just made a deal with the Servant I summoned."

Looking at her younger sister whom she hadn't seen in a long time, Aika Sajou said softly, "Sakura, do you really want to win this Holy Grail War? Is there some wish you absolutely must fulfill?"

Sakura nodded, without denying it.

Just then, a pair of hands covered her hands, and under Sakura's astonished gaze, Sajou Aika's expression turned serious.

"If Sakura has a wish that she wants to fulfill, I can help her. If Sakura wants this Holy Grail War, I can also help her win this Holy Grail War."

"...Thank you, sister."

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Aigo's serious expression melted away instantly, replaced by her angelic smile.

"I'm your older sister. You're my... dearest younger sister."

Looking at that smile so close to her, radiating boundless affection and acceptance, Sakura's heart seemed to be instantly filled with immense happiness, even experiencing a dizzying, exhausting feeling.

The Holy Grail War... wishes... costs... none of it matters anymore... as long as I have a smile like yours, sister... even if I give up... it doesn't matter, right?

She didn't even know how she left the house.

As she stood outside the door and looked back, Aika Sajou was standing at the door, smiling and waving goodbye to her.

The sunlight shone on my sister, making her look almost unreal.

Sakura could no longer suppress the smile on her face.

Filled with a happiness that almost melted her soul, she lightly stepped onto the road to school.

They managed to hide it.

A voice, like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, resounded deep within her consciousness.

Sakura's smile remained unwavering, even growing brighter.

"...Yes, we managed to keep it a secret."

[You hesitated.]

"..."

When Ying arrived at the school gate, a familiar figure passed her by.

Their eyes met briefly, and Sakura gave him a smile before walking briskly into the campus.

Shinji Matou stopped in his tracks, frowning in confusion as he watched Sakura's retreating figure, muttering to himself, "What's going on? That guy... he seems a bit strange today?"

Just then, a vibrant voice rang out from behind: "Yo! Shinji, good morning!"

Shinji Matou turned around irritably and looked at the red-haired boy running towards him: "Hmph, I didn't expect you to be later than me, Emiya."

"It's hard to describe in words."

Volume 1: Chapter 95 Beast

"Um... is it really okay for us to do this?"

Mei hesitated for a moment, then finally said, "Trying to win over your own sister is just too..."

The professor glanced at her sideways. "Weren't you the one who shouted the loudest when you told her to hold her hand?"

Mei immediately turned her face away, her ears turning red, her voice tinged with embarrassment: "--because the atmosphere was so right then, it would have felt like a shame not to hold hands."

"The effect is indeed outstanding, I approve of your tactics." Hoshi's lips curled into a smile, and he gave Mei a thumbs up. "When Aika's sister walked out just now, she was swaying and staggering, like she was drunk. She was obviously quite shaken! It seems our special training was worthwhile."

That's right, Sajou Aika's series of actions just now were all performed under the watchful eyes of the chat group.

Many of the key words and actions were directly directed by group members.

Reflecting on her actions this morning, Aika Sajou found it... rather novel.

Winning over a younger sister? Hmm...that's interesting.

"How about... after we finish with Sakura, we add Ayaka to our list of targets?" This thought quietly crossed her mind, but she turned to the Doctor and the others with just the right amount of doubt on her face: "Speaking of which, where are Ember and Kevin?"

The professor spread his hands: "He's probably just wandering around Fuyuki City, gathering intelligence or something, in his words."

......

The "Daredevil Group" only needs to focus on figuring out how to be suicidal.

But the things that Ember has to consider are much more complicated.

On the rooftop of Suigunhara Academy, Yu Jin looked down at the students exuding youthful hormones on the playground below and sighed deeply, "Youth, ah, how dazzling."

Kevin, standing to the side, crossed his arms and rolled his eyes without any politeness: "I mean, you didn't come all this way just to write this kind of student essay-style reflection, did you?"

Yu Jin held up a finger and waved it, feigning mystery: "Don't underestimate my intelligence network. Although there's a lot of unofficial history going on right now, as for the subsequent developments... well, maybe, perhaps, they won't be too far off?" Even he himself sounded a bit uncertain at the end.

To be honest, Ember doesn't seem very reliable when it comes to his intelligence network.

His gaze was fixed on a spot not far away: a blue-haired, slightly frivolous-looking boy and a red-haired, spiky-haired man, sitting very close together, whispering to each other. Yu Jin's lips twitched slightly: "Tsk, reality always manages to precisely surpass the limits of my imagination."

As early as when he heard that the mini-boss that Fuyuki had to fight was taken down by Ayaka Sajou in his childhood, Ember predicted that Shinji Matou's growth trajectory would go astray.

Now it seems that this is clearly a combination of Shinji without the old bug's torment and the unawakened giant swordsman, Emiya Shirou.

He shook his head, his gaze sweeping across the campus once more.

Soon, a figure with striking twin ponytails, a quiet girl with black hair, and a teacher who stepped into the teaching building as the school bell rang all came into his view.

"This school is really outrageous..." Yu Jin muttered under his breath.

"The Masters in the Holy Grail War are almost all piled up. If this lineup had existed during the Fourth Holy Grail War, Kiritsugu Emiya would probably be laughing in his sleep."

"So, what are you planning to do this time?" Kevin asked, leaning against the wall.

Ember turned around and looked at Kevin: "The goal is the Greater Grail, but a purified, uncontaminated one. That will require the power of Aegean."

Yu Jin looked in a certain direction: "I made an appointment with her to go to Ryudoji Temple tonight. If we can get it done, great. If not... destroying it will be the best way to cut our losses. The evil of this world contained in that thing is no joke."

Kevin frowned slightly: "The evil of this world?"

"Yes, the root cause is the Third Holy Grail War. The Einzbern family summoned the Avenger Angra Mainyu. After that guy was defeated, he was absorbed by the Holy Grail. His evil nature polluted the source of magic, turning the wish-granting machine into a seed-planting machine of destruction," Ember explained succinctly.

"So what are you doing standing here like this?"

"Let's see if any wild heroic spirits will jump out here tonight."

As the sun sets, the school bell rings to signal the end of the day.

Yu Jin looked at the report in the group chat. Sajou Aika was strolling outside the school with her little Sakura, and after a few words, she had coaxed Sakura into a daze before taking her home.

After that, everything in the academy was calm and peaceful. There was no battle between heroic spirits, and not even a decent fluctuation of magic power.

Fuyuki City was peaceful and harmonious, but... the more peaceful and harmonious it was, the more Ember felt that something was wrong.

A sense of impending doom welled up in his heart.

night.

The group walked along the quiet mountain path.

“Actually, you don’t need to worry too much…” Walking on the stone steps of Ryudouji Temple, Sajou Aika stood with her hands behind her back, smiling as she looked at Yujin beside her, whose brows were furrowed.

"As a companion, you should have some faith in me, right? You've been looking so sullen; I thought I hadn't treated you well enough."

Ember stroked his chin, lost in thought: "Something feels off. Even if it's different from the plot I know, there should still be some similarities. But none of the people I've met are familiar. And most importantly, this is already the second night of the Holy Grail War..."

He turned to look directly at Ayaka Sajou: "Don't you think everything is too quiet? Is this really the peaceful Higashiki City I know?"

Even setting aside gas explosions, at least the natural gas pipelines should be blown up.

Kevin chimed in, "Judging from your tone, it sounds like this city is constantly plagued by disasters?"

Yu Jin spread his hands: "More or less."

Sajou Aika chuckled: "If you're really worried, I can be a little more serious and see what the future we're about to face looks like."

Ember nodded: "Okay, let's do it this way, but we need to deal with the Holy Grail first. By the way, are you really capable of handling that thing?"

"Who do you think I am?" Ayaka Sajou smiled with unwavering confidence and made a gesture of easy control towards Ember.

Seeing this, Yu Jin laughed and said, "That's true, I was overthinking it."

"By the way... don't you guys think it's a little too quiet here?" the professor asked, sounding puzzled.

Mei listened to the sounds around her and replied, "It's late at night, so it's normal for it to be quiet."

"No!" Xing suddenly frowned, interrupting them.

"There were some faint sounds just now, but in an instant, all the sounds disappeared."

Xing spoke with certainty, her gaze fixed on the top of the stone steps.

Everyone immediately followed her gaze.

The problem lies above.

Ember took the lead and walked at the very front of the group.

"It seems my doubts will be confirmed tonight."

The crowd followed closely behind. When they finally stepped onto the wide platform of Ryudoji Temple, a figure with its back to them instantly caught everyone's attention.

If nothing unexpected happens, the other party is the source of the surrounding silence.

Just as everyone was wondering who that figure was?

Ember's doubts were many times greater than theirs!

Even if there's some deviation, it shouldn't be this bad, right? Why?

Why would even something like this appear?!