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

However, as if in response to the absurd question in Yu Jin's mind, the night sky over Fuyuki City in the distance was suddenly torn apart! Boom—!!!

A deafening roar suddenly erupted from the city center! In an instant, blinding fireballs and billowing smoke shot into the sky, as if the gates of hell had been opened!

The raging flames and shockwaves devoured the neon-lit city at a visible speed, turning the cold night into a destructive crimson!

Yu Jin and his companions could hardly believe what they were witnessing—the city was being instantly set ablaze and destroyed right before their eyes!

Just as everyone's gaze was firmly fixed on the hellish flames in the distance—the figure that had been facing away from them finally slowly turned around.

His movements carried an indescribable rhythm, as if the surrounding clamor and destruction were irrelevant to him.

Just as his face was about to be revealed, a voice, calm to the point of being indifferent, clearly pierced through the night wind and the distant roar, echoing on the silent platform of Ryudong Temple:

"It's night." The voice was calm and even.

"The Holy Grail War has officially begun." His deep gaze swept over the group of visitors before him.

"O outsiders from another world, what you bring is either the dawn of a new era or the light of annihilation? I will watch over you silently from here until the end."

Ember shifted his gaze from the burning city ruins and stared abruptly at the being, a profound sense of absurdity gripping his heart.

There's an absolutely huge problem in this Holy Grail War!

The timeline of this world is absolutely out of control.

-

Meanwhile, in the shadows of a city far from Ryudong Temple, torn apart by explosions and fire.

Sakura Matou stood quietly, her expression flickering in the distant firelight, like a shattered porcelain doll. Her voice was soft, carrying a chilling sweetness, as if she were recounting a trivial matter:

"That's so mean... Big sister... that's really too much..."

Fragments of the day flashed through her mind: her sister's bright smile in the morning light, her affectionate words when she left school, those moments that once made her heart flutter and gave her a sense of warmth and hope.

“She clearly said I was her favorite little sister…” Sakura’s lips curled into a cold smile, but there was no hint of a smile in her eyes. “But… I can’t feel the slightest change in her heart.”

Those radiant smiles, those gentle words that briefly captivated her...

"It was... fake." She uttered the word softly, as if savoring a bitter candy.

A strange, chilling smile slowly appeared on her face, replacing the previous coldness.

"But... it's okay." Sakura's voice became unusually gentle, even carrying a strange longing.

She raised her head, her gaze passing over the raging city flames, and landing on the figure before her, who, despite being covered in wounds, still stood tall and resilient—the Holy Swordsman wielding the Holy Sword.

“It’s fake…” Sakura looked at her, her smile growing brighter and brighter, but also more and more insane.

"It can become real, can't it?"

She seemed to be seeking validation, or perhaps declaring an unwavering resolve.

“For my love…” Sakura’s voice suddenly rose.

"Everyone! Please... return to the embrace of the Holy Grail!!"

The Holy Swordsman, leaning on his holy sword, his armor cracked and scorched, looked at the girl before him and said, "Girl...it's not too late. As long as you're willing to accept help and drive away the beast that's attached to you, you still have a chance to return to your original life!"

“...Turn around?” Sakura tilted her head, her movements as innocent as a child’s.

The next second, the corners of her mouth suddenly stretched upwards, forming an exaggerated, almost torn, malicious smile.

"It's all my sister's fault, I didn't do anything wrong..."

Her voice lowered, carrying a morbid obsession and a sense of entitlement. "I'm just... doing this for my love."

Looking at the girl in front of him who had already devoured four Servants, the Holy Sword Wielder gripped his Holy Sword tightly. He couldn't win. Even he wanted to believe he could win, but the difference in strength made him realize the reality.

After all… the Holy Sword Wielder’s gaze pierced through Sakura’s twisted smile and stared at the phantom behind her.

That's a beast!

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Volume 1: Chapter 96 Embers: Holy crap, the old sword

There is a setting in the Type-Moon universe.

In the course of human civilization's development, branches will emerge, leading to worlds that operate simultaneously in the same universe but with deviations in various aspects—that is, parallel worlds.

Since the universe itself has a finite capacity, it will not use energy for obvious outcomes. Therefore, parallel worlds are divided into [edited events] and [cut events].

[Compiled Events] is a stable group of parallel worlds that is full of possibilities and will develop into more branches.

The [cut-off item] is an exception that has deviated too far from the main route, losing the possibility of most branches. It is judged to have ended there, losing the need to continue to observe its ending, and is about to be taken into account in the parallel world group.

Once a parallel world is determined, its operation will be stopped, its possibility of development will be cut off, and everything in the world will be completely destroyed.

"They believe that this world has lost its meaning, that its end and its fate have been confirmed, unless... someone can break this predetermined ending and fate, and start the cycle of this stopped ending and fate again. You are the accident, and also part of the creation of fate. Will you become the dawn of a new day, or the light of ruin and annihilation? All the answers are in your hands, and I am just a witness."

-

Ember didn't know where this world was headed that would cause such a huge event, but he and everyone else knew one thing: that ending must not be allowed to come to pass. The Holy Grail War was the key, or more accurately, the people in the Holy Grail War were the key.

Flames relentlessly burned the earth, and thick smoke obscured the sky.

As the group stepped into the heart of Fuyuki City, all they could see were twisted steel skeletons, broken concrete debris, and flowing molten matter, a scene resembling a painting of hell.

The once neon-lit city has been reduced to scorched earth and ruins.

Looking at the scene before him, the doctor was puzzled: "Something's not right, it's...too quiet."

Despite having just experienced a devastating impact, apart from the crackling of the burning flames and the lingering sounds of collapsing buildings, there was no other sound in the entire ruins—no cries of survivors, no clamor of rescue efforts, not even any noise other than the sound of the wind.

A chilling, deathly silence enveloped the burning land.

An invisible ripple of magical energy spread out instantly from the center of Sajou Aika, like a sophisticated radar scanning the spiritual veins and spatial structure of the entire Fuyuki City.

Just seconds later, she opened her eyes, and a rare look of seriousness appeared on her usually calm face: "...This is not the original Fuyuki City."

She paused, then corrected herself: "No... to be more precise, this is a... reconstructed, near-perfect magic workshop! The entire ruins of Fuyuki City have been incorporated into the private domain of some individual!"

Almost the instant she finished speaking, a cheerful and pleasant voice immediately took over her words.

"As expected of my older sister~ When you get serious, nothing can be hidden from you!"

The owner of the voice seemed to be everywhere, yet also very close.

“That’s right!” the cheerful voice continued to proclaim.

"This is Sakura's territory, and also the final stage of this special Holy Grail War!"

Saya Aika's gaze drifted in a certain direction, where there was nothing, yet she spoke towards that direction: "Sakura, so you're the one behind all of this, aren't you?"

"Is my sister angry? Is she angry with Sakura?"

Sajou Aika just stood there quietly, saying nothing, with only the sound of flames burning around her.

"That's so mean... so mean!" Sakura's voice suddenly turned resentful.

"It's clearly my sister's fault! She keeps saying she loves Sakura the most, but she doesn't have a single genuine feeling for Sakura in her heart! That hypocritical sister broke Sakura's heart! And yet she still gets angry with Sakura... My sister is such a bad sister!"

"But... even with such a bad older sister... Sakura will always, always, always love you! Because you're Sakura's angel! Even if your heart is fake... Sakura's love is absolutely real! Because—"

The voice suddenly rose in pitch: "I love you so much!!!"

“…I think she has a problem, and you might have one too,” Yu Jin said softly.

"I thought Prismus was invincible..." The Doctor wiped away non-existent cold sweat from his forehead, feeling a chill run down his spine.

"I never expected there would be even higher-level players here..."

“This isn’t the time to talk about this. Let’s think about how to solve this problem,” Kevin said.

"I guess we still have to fight." Xing started to stretch his body.

“At this point, no matter what great hardship or twisted love the other party may have,” Raiden’s eyes sharpened, and tiny purple arcs of electricity began to leap around his body.

"Anyway, let's get her to a sense of clarity first, right?"

Saya Aika sighed: "Sakura, get ready, I'll show you that your sister will always be your sister."

"Hehehe..." Sakura's soft laughter echoed through the ruins, carrying an unsettling excitement. "Sister is really full of confidence... Just imagining sister's expression after failure... Sakura is so excited she's practically trembling!"

“If you can do it.” Aika Sajou’s voice was calm and even.

"Of course I can do it! It's easy!"

Sakura's tone was resolute: "Because—love! Is all-powerful! Hahahahaha—!"

"One day... I only have one day. If I can't find Sakura within one day... then I'll stay obediently by Sakura's side from now on. Don't worry, sister, Sakura will definitely take care of you as before. Oh, and as your cute little sister, I also want to tell you something..."

"Go for it, sister... Sakura, we're waiting for you..."

As the sound faded, everyone's gaze turned to Ayaka Sajou, whose face was now...smiling.

Sajo Aika is laughing.

Yu Jin cautiously asked, "Um...Ai Ge, are you...alright?"

"I'm fine, I'm great. Hello, or rather, very good." Aika Sajo gently brushed the hair from her forehead.

"It's just that I haven't seen my 'cute' little sister for a while, and she thinks she's all grown up and can do whatever she wants in front of me, her older sister..."

Her voice suddenly turned cold: "Fine, very well."

Seeing the worry on her companions' faces, Ayaka Sajou's smile widened even more: "Don't worry, everyone. I'll take care of these household matters quickly. Just wait for me a moment..."

Before she finished speaking, a ripple, barely perceptible to the naked eye, spread through the space around her.

Under the astonished gazes of the crowd, Ayaka Sajou's figure vanished instantly into the backdrop of the raging ruins, like a reflection merging into water.

"This guy... he actually charged through all by himself?!" Xing was the first to exclaim in surprise.

"After all, she's very proud. Her younger sister caused this mess, so she definitely wants to handle everything herself." The doctor said as he opened the map of the chat group and immediately found the other person's location.

"Found the location, but it's still a bit far from here. Let's hurry up and set off."

Just as everyone was about to head out immediately, a voice called out to them.

"Could you please stop and let me explain the situation?"

When everyone turned around, they saw a white-haired magician slowly waving his staff in the otherwise empty arena, revealing himself, along with two Servants and four Masters behind him.

When Ember saw the person behind the other person, he exclaimed, "Holy crap, Old Sword!"

The sound of Ember made a handsome, blond holy swordsman blink in confusion.

Volume 1: Chapter 97 Now's the time to unleash your cheat codes!

"What the heck? A beast!"

"Calm down, calm down, let me finish. There's no point in going up like this!" Merlin, who was a magician but had great arm strength, pulled back Ember, who was about to charge forward.

"What's the point of staying calm? With Aika's inflated ego, she'll probably be tricked to death without even knowing how she died!"

This guy is incredibly strong! I can barely hold him back!

While complaining inwardly, Merlin quickly said, "Don't worry, it's not a complete beast. With that princess's abilities, she shouldn't lose so quickly. In fact, theoretically, her chances of winning are quite high."

"Don't try to mess with me, the practitioner, if you're a theorist."

"Let me finish speaking! Going there now won't do you any good, considering the battle there..."

A terrifying explosion erupted from another direction of the city, engulfing everything in its path.

Merlin then said, "It's not something just anyone can easily join."

Merlin breathed a sigh of relief after sensing that the person in front of him had calmed down.

"Please listen to my plan now, since it seems like we're the only ones we can really rely on here."

The doctor swallowed hard as he watched the commotion, then immediately turned to Merlin: "Tell me your plan first."

It's not that he's a coward with his PhD; it's just that he feels blindly pursuing this is useless. Yes, that's it.

Merlin released his arm around Yu Jin's waist: "I believe everyone understands now after the brief explanation. Let me explain the plan for what's to come."