Chapter 7, murder at the Fargo family home.

Currently, Shirou, Svin, Caules, and Flat, were in the room of the young Yggdmillennia. For his part, Flat was playing with Sieg, while Shirou was sitting on a chair, and Caules was sitting on the bed.

"So, summarizing..." said Svin, who was standing in the middle of the room. Taking the lead in the conversation, he clarified the situation, "You went to the Yggdmillennia complex meeting, and, at one point, you fought with your sister, Fiore..."

Caules nodded.

"After that, you wandered around the castle where they had gathered and came to a basement. There you discovered that the Musik were making homunculi to use as disposable batteries for some ritual."

Caules nodded again.

"You used that place to hide while you were there, and the day before you had to go back to the Clock Tower, one of the tubes broke, and he came out of there."

Once again, the Yggdmillennia nodded.

"He, Sieg, asked you for help because he didn't want to die. So, even though this would bring you thousands of problems, you decided to help him, and since you had nowhere to leave him, you ended up bringing him here. Have I been wrong about something?"

Caules shook his head.

"That's great!" Flat said.

"No, it is not!" Svin said. Then he turned to the brown hair, "Do you know what will happen if they discover you? You stole a homunculus from the Musik family!"

"Yes, they could accuse me of treason," said the young man brown-haired, looking down.

"Then, why did you do it!?"

He clenched his hands, "Because I couldn't let him die, just like that!"

Flat approached Caules and placed a hand on his shoulder as he smiled at him, "Relax, we're with you, right Shirou?"

The redhead nodded.

"Do you see it? Believe it or not, even Svin, with the angry look he has, agrees with what you did."

"¡Flat!"

"Aren't you?" The confused boy asked.

Svin tried to deny it, but, seeing his friend's gaze, he dropped his facade, "AHHH, good! I guess I am."

Flat smiled, "Do you see?"

Caules smiled, "Thank you."

Raising his arms to the sky, Flat declared, "Good! Let's take Sieg to see the city."

"Wait, Flat! What if we meet a Musik?" Svin said.

"Don't worry. We just have to hide his hair. The Musik only know how to make homunculi thanks to the Einzbern, who gave them a small part of their research. If we hide his hair, we can tell that he's an Einzbern homunculus, in case anyone asks us," Shirou said.

"Do you know them?" Caules asked.

Shirou nodded, "I investigated them a year ago."

"Did you investigate them?"

"Yes. For a job..."

"A job?" Svin asked suspiciously, "Wait, if it's for a job, then…"

Shirou shook his head, "Not that kind of work. I don't plan on doing anything against the Musik family."

"But, if Shirou is right, then Sieg is safe, truth?" asked Flat.

"Well, there is still the problem of how I am going to manage to keep it. Only students who have a recommendation are allowed to have apprentices."

"In that case, register him as your butler. Since he's a homunculus, no one will suspect," Svin said.

"That's perfect!" Flat said.

"You know we haven't asked Sieg any of his thoughts on this, right?" Shirou said.

That made all four pairs of eyes turn to the homunculus.

A little nervous at the look of the four, the boy replied, "I really don't know what to do, but if that way I can avoid going back to that tube, then I really appreciate it."

Flat smiled, "Well, he already said it, now let's show him London!"

"Hmn... I can't. Rin will come to my bedroom because we are working on a project."

This caused Svin to narrow his eyes.

"I have to register him as my butler, so I can't either."

"In that case, Svin and I will show it to you."

"W-What!? Wait, why me !?"

"Svin, can you accompany them, please? I fear what those two might do if we leave them alone," Caules asked pleadingly.

Sighing, Svin smiled resignedly, "Well, I guess that's true. Flat, Sieg, come on…"

"Okey Sieg! Raise your fist to the sky and say, Okey!" Flat said as he struck the ridiculous pose and placed a hat on the boy.

"O-Okay…!" Sieg said a little doubtfully.

With that said, Flat, Svin, and Sieg, left the bedroom.

"Shirou, before you go, there is something I want to talk to you about..." Caules spoke before the redhead also left the room.

The redhead looked at him curiously, "What?"

Caules looked down, "I didn't save Sieg because I felt bad for him."

"What do you mean?"

The boy sighed, "I was once again looked down upon by the head of the Yggdmillennia, old Darnic. Besides, my sister also criticized me after that, even though she decided to stay away from the moonlit world."

"I understand. But what does that have to do with Sieg?" The confused boy asked.

"When I saw him come out of the tube, asking me to help him… Well… I saw myself a little reflected in him. Like me, nobody expected anything from him. He was just cattle to activate a ritual, that's why... that's why I saved him."

"And…?"

"What!?" Caules asked in surprise.

The redhead smiled, "I don't know why you are saying this to me, but, I have been reading a little, in one of those books that you lent me, I think that the one that talked about the story of Francis Drake, I read a sentence that seemed to be interesting: The greatest saints can commit the worst sins, and the greatest sinners can be capable of the greatest acts of humility," Shirou placed his hand on the chestnut's shoulder, "What I mean is: it doesn't matter what reasons you rescued Sieg, nor what you think those make you. What matters is the act itself. In my eyes, you did the right thing."

Caules smiled, "Thank you. I wanted you to know because, well, we were the only ones in the class, so far, who are only talented in one area. We are not like the others ... But still, you are making a reputation for yourself," Caules smiled determinedly, "I won't be left behind. That's what I wanted to tell you."

The redhead nodded, "I'm sure you can… By the way, why is his name Sieg?"

"Oh, I got it from one of the books I read," Caules smiled a little sadly, "Sieg, he's the diminutive Siegfried, the hero who always lived up to everyone's expectations."

"Caules…"

The brown-haired young smiled, "Sieg will only live for a few years, as you said, the Musik homunculi are just a copy of the ones the Einzbern do, but I hope that as long as he lives, he can achieve whatever it is that prompted him to want to live."

"Then let's make it worthwhile," the redhead smiled.

"Yes," he nodded.

While that was happening...

Din! Don!

Altrouge had arrived at the apartment half an hour ago. Hearing the sound of the doorbell, the eclipse princess opened the door.

"Oh, you came Tohsaka."

Indeed, the Tohsaka heiress was on the other side of the door.

"Yes. Shirou still hasn't come back?" The young magus asked.

"No, but he just called me. He said he is on his way."

She nodded, "This bedroom is really different, compared to Norwich."

"Shirou makes a very good meal, so I'm not complaining about my current stay ..." The princess replied.

"Does Shirou prepare your food? Is there no kitchen at the place where you are staying?"

The princess looked at her confused, "Of course there is. Don't you see it? It's there," Altrouge pointed to the room's kitchen.

"Wait, are you staying here !?"

The princess nodded.

"But I didn't see you when I came here yesterday..."

"It's because I hadn't arrived yet. Why are you so surprised?"

"There is only a single bed... Shirou sleeps on the couch, right?"

Altrouge shook her head, "Not at all. Although he tried, however, that could be detrimental to his training, so I forced him to sleep on the bed."

Smiling uncomfortably, Rin asked, "So, do you sleep on the couch?"

"No, why would I? The bed is big enough for both of us."

Rin's awkward smile snapped, and a little blush graced her cheeks, "S-So, you have that t-kind of r-relationship?"

The princess looked at her confused, "No," then she smiled the same way she smiled when teasing her contractor, "Why? Are you worried?"

"W-Not at all!" the young heiress crossed her arms and took a firm pose. This would have worked if not out of her for her obvious nervousness, and her slight blush.

Playing with children is much more fun than playing with the elderly. She couldn't help but amused herself at the girl's expense, "Hmm... How cute."

Rin was about to reply but, at that moment...

"Fou…."

"Hmm?" said the magus upon seeing the cute creature.

"Oh, this is Fou, my fierce hound," the princess boasted.

The Tohsaka heiress couldn't contain herself, "How cute…" Rin tried to grab him, but Fou dodged her by jumping towards Altrouge.

"He doesn't like to be treated like a helpless little dog. In fact, it annoys him," Altrouge turned towards the door, "Looks like he's here."

"Hmm?" Rin said.

"Fou, Rouge, I'm here. Has Rin already come?" Shirou said, opening the door.

Rin turned to the redhead with a mixture of embarrassment and anger, "I've come, Emiya-kun."

"Emiya-kun?" Shirou said confused. Ohhhh, I know that look. What did Altrouge do to anger her? Shirou smiled nervously, "R-Rin, are you okay?"

She gave him a too sweet and tender look, "Of course Emiya-kun, why do you ask?"

"W-Well, you're addressing me by my last name…"

Rin looked at him intensely, "I just decided that for today I will call you that, Emiya-kun. No problem, right?"

Listening to his instincts for self-preservation, Shirou nodded.

I'll go to sleep. Wake me up for dinner.

You're good? Shirou asked.

She nodded slightly. We, the ancestors, sleep for long periods of time to evade our vampiric urges.

I understand. I'll wake you up later.

"Well, shall we start, Emiya-kun?"

"H-Hai."

Rin unwrapped the plans.

The drawing of a sword whose blade had, within its structure, the shape of a kaleidoscope was shown in front of the two.

"Well, let's get started…"

For several hours, the two young magi were trying to understand the blueprints of the sword. In the end, they did not understand even half of it, but it was not an afternoon without results...

Shirou returned to where Rin was sitting. He was carrying two cans of orange juice from the refrigerator.

"Thank you ..." Rin said, accepting it.

"You're welcome," Shirou replied, taking the one he had brought for him.

"So how about we summarize our progress for today? So we can be sure of what we've accomplished."

Shirou nodded, "Sure."

"First and foremost, the sword must be made with various jewels," Rin said.

"Yes. Also, it must be an alloy strong enough to withstand the large amount of mana it uses. Also, due to its shape, it must be an alloy with a certain degree of malleability."

Rin nodded, "Also, the sword uses a magic square. This is a kind of special magic circle, complex enough to be able to absorb mana from other worlds and reflect it on ours."

"So, what do we do now?"

After thinking about it for a bit, Rin declared, "Well, I'll take care of deciphering and understanding the magic square. Things like: how it is used, what it implies, the magic theory behind it, and all that kind of stuff. And, on the other hand, you will have to discover which alloy the sword uses."

"And then we will start creating prototypes?"

She nodded, "We have no choice but to make it through trial and error," Rin stretched her arms, letting them fall on the furniture, then, she closed her eyes and seemed to release the stress as she drank from the orange juice can.

It was still summer, although that would change in a week, so they were both quite heated.

Shirou couldn't help but look at the girl in front of him: her beautiful golden hair falling on her shoulders and sliding over the couch, the small beads of sweat were sliding down her thin skin and, being stretched back, he could see how her chest rose and fell with each throb. He blushed. Maybe Rin did not have the same type of figure as her rival, but, in his eyes, to say that she was not attractive would be a huge lie.

Furthermore, the Tohsaka heiress was not only attractive in a physical sense. He had known her for a whole year and had been able to observe the girl's behavior. She was a monster like a magus. She had such a talent for magecraft that he had only seen it equaled by Luvia's, but, despite that, she was quite diligent when it came to working. She did not simply trust her talent, and although she pretended to be elegant and perfectionist, which, if she was to some degree, she was also a person with a short and explosive fuse. It was difficult for her to admit some things, but she was kind when she wanted to be. She also valued the effort of others, unlike certain traditional magi.

So absorbed was he in his thoughts that he didn't realize that the girl had opened her eyes a while ago and was looking directly at him, and he at her.

"Shirou?" She asked, making him react.

"Huh? Is something wrong, Rin?"

She smiled. It was the same smile she gave each time she managed to defeat the heiress of the Edelfelt. With a simple, graceful wave of the hand, she fixed her hair as she smiled, "Nothing, Shirou. It was you who worried me."

Now Shirou? Does it mean that she's not angry anymore? I really don't understand it… He thought the apprentice blacksmith, confused.

"Well, it's getting late. I'd better go back to my bedroom."

"Don't you want to stay for dinner? Taking advantage of the fact that it's almost time," the redhead politely offered.

Rin almost politely declined, but, remembering Rouge's words, she decided to accept his offer. After that day, Rin stayed for dinner every time she went to the boy's bedroom.

Two days had passed since the beginning of classes...

At this moment, Shirou was in his room. He was sitting with Fou on his lap, and Altrouge was right in front of them. The apprentice blacksmith had received half of the Emiya crest just over a day ago, and his chest burned with pain.

"Well, what do you know about reality marbles?"

"Only what they taught me in the Clock Tower:

It is the magecraft that allows the materialization and projection of the inner world of a person on the outside. Through the thaumaturgical theory of the world within the egg. As such, reality marbles represent the pinnacle of all bounded fields where the boundary becomes space itself," Shirou recited what had been passed down to him in his General Fundamentals classes.

Altrouge nodded, "The theory, although basic, is correct. But tell me, Shirou, why are those who develop a reality marble automatically receive a sealing designation?"

"That is because the creation of a reality marble cannot be achieved by studying magecraft, can it?"

The princess nodded, "In part, that's how it is. But, what the Association cares about most is the way you get a reality marble. A big change in world view, you could call it that ..."

"A big change in world view?"

"So is. In most cases, those who obtain a reality marble do not see the world in the same way as other people and, this is generally not achieved naturally. For example: Because we live for thousands of years, my species, the dead apostles, we do not see the world in the same way as an ordinary human, do you understand?"

He nodded.

"You also changed because of something, right? Some event that changed the way you see the world..."

Shirou remembered for a few moments, the fire of Fuyuki, that fiery hell, the implantation of Avalon inside him, the sea of curses, all that happened at the same time, "Yes. You see, I…"

After a few minutes…

Altrouge nodded, "I see, a traumatic event like that would certainly change the way you see the world… And that's what the association is concerned about as well."

"Hmm?"

"They are concerned that, by being different, they will endanger the existence of the moonlit world."

Shirou made a face, "I see… Going against the grain of general thinking can certainly be dangerous for the Association."

She smiled, "But that is precisely what is needed to develop a reality marble. To achieve this, the reality marble changes Being, which is your way of seeing the world, for The World, which is the outside, while maintaining the same limit. At that moment, the Being and The World change places, and the New World is enclosed in a small container. This small and new world is called: The world within the egg. And, hence, the name of the theory.

At that moment, Shirou realized, "I see! That is why your view of the world must differ, for the change between the Being and The World to take effect."

"Exactly, if you see the world in the same way as other people, then there would be no change, to begin with."

"For most of the 27 dead apostles, creating a reality marble is simple. But, for humans, creating it must be more complicated. This is due to the change in point of view and the large amount of mana it spends. As well as the effect of Gaia on it."

"That's why you use an incantation to be able to mentalize yourself, right?"

"An incantation?"

The princess nodded, "Yes. When you used your reality marble to seal your wounds, you said an incantation," making a gesture where she seemed to be remembering the moment, the princess said, "I think it was like this:

I am the bone of my sword,

Steel is my body and fire is my blood"

Shirou felt his heart ignite upon hearing those words.

"Your reality marble will probably be complete when you finish your incantation."

"And what should I do to develop it?"

Altrouge raised two fingers, "The first thing you should do is polish your way of seeing the world. You have to be very clear about what you want to achieve: what your goal is, and how you see the world to get there. In a few words, shape your heart and connect with your origin."

"I am… the bone of my sword."

Shirou closed his eyes and, for a few moments, managed to connect with the depths of his being. He was fuzzy, not yet completely defined, but there he was: a land of steel covered by the fire of a great forge, and he was at the top of a hill of metal. In the distance, he could see things as simple as the knives he had used for cooking.

CLINK!

A great crash was heard. The redhead turned and could see how Neocaliburn was nailed to the slope.

CLINK! Clank!

The mountainside began to be adorned by the blades he had seen, forged, and projected. How close they were to him seemed to depend on the power of the sword. The original Caliburn was further away than its updated version. A degraded version of Merodach was closer than the previous two swords, like a sword used by a God, Marduk, probably was a divine construction, and Shirou was not able to fully understand it. The Monohoshi Zao was further away than the previous ones. And the Vorpal sword was between it and Caliburn.

"Steel is my body and fire is my blood."

At the top of this hill, he was, and like the rest of the world, Shirou was also not completely defined. His being was half translucent, like glass. And suddenly…

"Huh?"

He went back to the real world.

Altrouge was smiling, "You saw it, right?"

The redhead nodded smiling, "A world of swords," curious, he asked, "What is the second thing I should do?"

"To live."

"What?"

She laughed, seeing her contractor's incredulous expression, "You have to live experiences. Only then will your world be complete," Altrouge got up from her seat and started to train the boy, "Let's train."

"How?"

"You have to be able to focus in the middle of a battle if you want to use your reality marble in the middle of it. I have prepared certain spells, most courtesy of Kaleido, for this apartment to serve as a training ground for us, without someone like Barthomeloi can find us. Now, let's get started… "

If training with Kiritsugu was difficult, training with Altrouge was insane. She put him in life and death situations. So that, in this way, he would have experiences where his life was in constant danger. All this as long as he developed faster.

Thus, two days later, Shirou was sitting at one of the tables of that small bakery where Luvia and he had met for the first time. A delimited field prevented someone from interrupting them.

"Well, the main clauses are:

Until we deem it necessary, we will keep our alliance a secret. So that we can catch other families off guard if necessary.

We will inform each other of the jobs our families will take before accepting them so that we never find ourselves on opposite sides of the same job.

If necessary, help can be requested among our families to fulfill jobs that exceed us. This help cannot be denied if it is the family heirs who request it.

Any intention to stab us in the back. Any type of conspiracy that is made with the knowledge of the family's heirs. It will cause the contract to be broken. If they are made without their knowledge, compensation will be required from the affected family.

Finally, the only way to cancel the contract will be under the approval of both heirs.

And the cost of breaking the contract will be..."

"The destruction of our ridges. That is the function of an auto-geis scroll, truth?"

Crests are the most important element for any family of magi. Representing your research and your story.

The Edelfelt heiress nodded, "Do you agree to these clauses, Emiya?" Luvia offered him a vellum scroll, as well as a needle, where the entire contract was written.

The redhead took the needle and the parchment. Luvia had sent it to him two days ago, and he had met Kiritsugu on the outskirts of London, and they both inspected the contents of it. After verifying that there was no cheating and everything was correct, they had come to this conclusion. Shirou took the needle, pricked his finger, and, with his blood, signed the contract. Repeating his actions, Luvia also signed the contract with her blood.

Blood was imprinted on the contract, and their crests gleamed for a few moments.

"Well, it's done, from now on, Emiya and Edelfelt will be allies."

"It will be a pleasure working with you, Edelfelt."

"Luvia. Since we are now partners, call me by my name. You still haven't regained all my confidence, but I will make an exception and call you back as before."

"In that case, it will be my pleasure, Luvia," he smiled as he extended his hand.

The girl smiled placidly, "Anyway, Shero," she said, accepting the handshake.

"By the way, Shero?"

"Yes?"

The girl finished eating the cake she had ordered, "Are you going to the Fargo's house tomorrow?"

Shirou nodded, "That's right. The teacher asked me to go with him."

"In that case, be careful. The murderer is most likely within the family."

This surprised the boy, "What do you mean?"

"Nothing specific, but it's not uncommon for there to be betrayals between members of a magi family. So, be careful."

He nodded, "I understand. Thank you."

After this, they both amicably parted, and each went to their respective destinations.

"I'm here."

Altrouge greeted him, "Was the alliance formed correctly?"

Shirou nodded as he made his way to a certain part of his workshop.

"Are you going to continue with your other projects before Rin comes?"

Shirou nodded, "Yes, I have to work as hard as I can to reach them. Now that I'm deep inside this world, I need to be prepared."

On the table were some drawings, one of the eastern arches, a modified version of the Black Barrel, and a drawing of a series of delimited fields.

Altrouge held one of Shirou's scheme and asked, "What are these?"

"Those are two swords that I am planning to forge. One of them is for Sieg."

"The homunculus from the Yggdmillennia?"

He nodded, "It's so you can defend yourself in case none of us are present."

"And the other?"

"It's for, well, it doesn't matter, it's a sword that I'm still far from being able to forge…"

"Are you planning to talk to the gravedigger tomorrow?"

"Gray?"

The princess nodded.

Shirou nodded, "Yes, I'll try to talk to her tomorrow."

Thus, the day passed, and the week was almost over. The next day…

Shirou was walking calmly towards Mystile, where he would wait for his teacher. There, in front of the fair of the Mining City of the Magi, Gray was waiting for her master.

"Good morning, Gray."

"Good morning, Shirou."

They both waited for the young Lord…

…

…

"Will the teacher be long in coming?"

"I think ... a bit, the teacher lives in an apartment and not in the El-Melloi house."

This surprised the apprentice magus, "Really?"

Gray nodded, "That's right. He says it's a way to pay off his debt to the El-Melloi family."

The boy looked at her confused, "I had heard that the teacher was occupying the position of Lord El-Melloi on his sister's whim; however, I did not know that he owed a debt to the El-Melloi family."

The gravedigger nodded, "That's right, but…" Gray looked down, "I haven't been able to find out much about that so far."

In the distance, they could see a car.

"It must be the teacher."

Seeing that he was not going to have time to ask her about the reason for her relationship with Avalon and that he had not been able to do so throughout the week, he was forced to take other measures...

Although a bit embarrassed, the boy had no choice, "G-Gray!"

"Hmm? Yes?"

"I need to talk to you about something, but it's a bit of a long topic to talk about now. Would you mind if next week we went somewhere where we can talk quietly?"

For a moment, a slight blush graced her cheeks, "S-sure. I-It's okay."

"Then…"

However, they were both interrupted by the young Lord.

"I see you two have already arrived. Okay, in that case, get in, we'll go to the Fargo's house."

The boy looked at the girl, "Shall we talk about this later?"

She nodded, "S-Sure."

So, the two got into the car, and the young Lord drove to Fargo's mansion. After just over half an hour...

"Wow… that's a huge house," said the apprentice blacksmith, amazed.

Lord El-Melloi II nodded, "Yes, its shape was probably considered at the time of its construction so that it could be of use to the Fargo family magecraft."

"The Fargo family magecraft?" asked Gray, "It has to do with astrology, doesn't it, master?"

The young lord nodded, "Yes. The Fargo family is part of the astrology faculty run by the Animusphere family, as well as a family affiliated with it; they follow the old way of thinking about magic."

"The old way of thinking about magic?" asked the redhead.

"Are you referring to that ancient belief that the earth was the center of the universe, master?" Gray asked.

El-Melloi II agreed: "Since the belief that the earth is the center of the universe was refuted, astrology has been divided into two thought-forms: the ancient, followed by the Animusphere family and the Fargo family, and the new one, which follows the principles of the new astrology. "

The young Lord stopped the car in front of the Fargo's mansion.

Waver analyzed the building, "Hmm… The rotunda represents the sky, and the building represents the earth. Come on…"

The three entered the house and were greeted by the Fargo family's maid, Claire. She wore a traditional maid outfit, her hair was black, and her eyes were slightly yellow. She looked exhausted.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Claire, and I will serve you during your stay."

The three of them bowed slightly in recognition.

Quickly, the maid called the lady of the house.

Mary lir Fargo. She entered the room where they were meeting and almost collapsed in front of the lord. The girl was a beautiful lady with blond hair and blue eyes. She was wearing an elegant blue blouse and a white skirt.

Later, two people entered:

Fernando Lee. He was an investigator and friend of the deceased. And, he had the appearance of an older man, wearing a classic black suit and glasses.

And Alec, nephew of the former head of the Fargo family. He was a relatively young man, blond, just like his cousin. He wore some gold accessories and called himself a third-rate magus.

The two argued over who had killed Mr. Ernest, the deceased. Alec, for his part, declared that, with his uncle killed by him, Fernando's investigation would benefit. However, Claire intervened, favoring the investigator. She stated that Alec owed Mr. Ernest large amounts of money. Fortunately, Mary stepped in as well and avoided a fight between the two.

"Can we see the room where the murder occurred?"

Mary nodded and led the trio. Before entering the room...

"Seven body parts were found, weren't they?"

Young Fargo nodded.

"5 in this room, and another 2 in other parts of the house."

"That's right," confirmed Fernando.

"Then it must be the spell of the 7 planets," the young Lord deduced.

"The one who relates the parts of the body with the positions of the planets of the solar system?" asked Gray, "You said it in the last class..."

Lord El-Melloi II nodded, "It must be astronomical magecraft. The building is built to maximize this type of magecraft. If we look at the positions in which the body parts were placed, we can discover the assassin's intentions."

"Ha! Is this all you can think of lord?" Alec said, "Even a third-rate magus could have easily come to that conclusion."

"I am a third-rate magus, but I did not reach that conclusion. Astrology is not my thing…" Thought the young blacksmith apprentice, but kept it to himself.

"What do you mean?" asked the young Lord.

In a slightly chatty way, Alec replied, "See for yourself."

Alec undid the barrier that protected the room where the murder occurred and the young lord, as well as his two students, entered.

"This is… I see. I understand why you are confused."

"Professor. Please help us find out who the murderer is."

Waver nodded, "Allow me some more time to uncover the culprit."

The three of them were taken to a room where they could think...

"This place feels like a prison…" Gray whispered.

"Lady, prison is the right word..."

After settling into the room, Waver and Gray began to argue who the killer might be.

"All four were at the night where the murder took place. So, anyone could be the killer..."

The young lord nodded, "That's right. Magi can create inexplicable phenomena through magecraft, so asking how they did it will get us nowhere."

"But asking why they did it, yes it will, right?"

Waver nodded, "On the one hand, Fernando wanted Mr. Ernest's results. On the other hand, Alec owed the Lord a lot of money by assassinating him, he would get part of the inheritance, and thus he could pay off his debts... Also, Mary would get both if Mr. Fargo died."

This surprised Gray, "You are also suspicious of Miss Mary!?"

The young lord lit a cigar, "It is a possibility... When Alec went to attack Claire, she acted somewhat slowly. These were the movements of a person who has been injured. So, it is possible that she was abused by Ernest..."

"Eh!?" This time it was the redhead who was surprised.

Breathing out the smoke, the Lord spoke, "So, at last, you came back."

"What do you mean, teacher?" Gray asked, confused.

Shirou smiled sheepishly, "He means I've been spaced out since we arrived, right?"

Waver nodded, "I guess you discovered something?"

"Yes. But I'm not sure what. . Since we arrived, I have smelled a different magical energy signature…"

"Smell? Or yes! Shirou, you replaced your sense of smell to be able to distinguish magic energy. Didn't you?" asked the young gravedigger.

"You're like a hound, in a nutshell…" Waver said.

"Well, I guess that term is not entirely wrong…" said the boy, somewhat uncomfortable at the term used to describe him, "However, it is exactly that. Since we arrived, I have felt a strange magical energy signature, and it does not belong to anyone inside the workshop. And it doesn't belong to the corpse either. This signature permeates the area where the body pieces were found."

"Someone from outside came?" Gray asked.

"In most cases of dismemberment murder, magecraft is not the most widely used tool. It must have been a very specific magecraft to kill Mr. Fargo off guard."

Shirou shook his head, "I don't think so, teacher."

"Hmm?"

"As you have suggested, I don't think magecraft has anything to do with this murder. The magic signature is very weak. I don't think the person who came used magecraft ..."

This attracted the Lord's attention, "If magecraft was not used, and the position of the body parts ..." Waver rose from his seat, "I will speak to Mary."

Waver left the room.

"Shirou, do you think Mary knew that Claire was being abused?" Gray asked.

"It's likely..." Then Shirou looked down, "But it wouldn't matter much, within a traditional family of magi, the word of the head of the family is practically the law. Children have no say in the decisions of the family issues. For them to reveal themselves is impossible from the beginning."

"That's terrible. They don't treat them like humans."

Shirou nodded, "The reason why you see us so free in the Clock Tower has to do with the fact that the heads of our families are not present at the time. If they were, I would assure you that most of the heirs would behave very differently. Well, I lie. People like Rin or me are the exception. In her case, because she is already the head of her family. And, in mine, it is because Kiritsugu is not a conventional magus. He does not demand of me, in the same way, that other parents do with the rest of the magi..."

"I see…" Although Gray's gaze showed doubt and sorrow for a moment, then she spoke with determination, "Let's follow the teacher. We have to solve this case!"

Shirou nodded.

They both followed the Lord and found him interviewing lady Mary.

"My father always talked about eternity. He seemed to be obsessed with it. He thought that through it he could reach it..."

"The Root, the Akashic Records..."

Mary nodded, "The dream of every magus ... But, it is as you taught me, in this world nothing is eternal, not the light of the stars, not our world. Reaching eternity for yourself is nonsense."

Waver nodded, "Gather all the residents of the house. I think I have discovered this mystery."

Mary nodded, and along with Claire, they both went out to find the other two.

"Do you know who the murderer is, master?"

The Lord nodded, "You see, there is a detail in the placement of the body parts. The heart is in the center of the room."

"And the heart can't be there?" Gray asked.

"It's not that it can't be. However, in the old school of astrology, in the center of where the ritual takes place, is where the magus is placed. However, in this case, what was at the center of the ritual was the heart of Mr. Fargo."

Both Shirou and Gray approached where Lord El-Melloi was drawing a scheme with the body parts...

"Huh?" Shirou exclaimed, "There is nothing in the place on earth..."

Lord El-Melloi managed a small smile, "Exactly. Come everyone, please…"

"AHHHHH!"

"That was!?"

"Mr. Alec!"

The three of them ran to where they had heard the scream and what they found was Alec's bled corpse. Mary arrived shortly after, followed by Fernando and Claire.

"A-A second murder?" Mary asked, scared.

"It looks like a mystery novel," said Fernando.

"Hmm? Hey Gray, I smell something!" Add spoke.

"I see. If Add reacted like this, it means my theory is correct."

"Your theory, professor?"

Waver nodded, "Yes. Come on. We have to go to the main room. I'll explain it to you there. And we better do it before the killer performs again."

"What does it mean that Add reacted, Gray?"

"Add is a specialized mystical code for fighting spirits. If he reacted, it means there is a spirit in the area."

"A spirit?"

The gravedigger nodded.

Everyone present went to the room where most of the body parts were located.

"Well, Lord? Why have you brought us?"

"As you can see, there are errors in the placement of the body parts."

Mary and Fernando nodded.

"But that interpretation is only correct if we judge it from the old way of thinking of magic, geocentrism. It's not like that?"

"Of course. As part of the Animusphere faculty, we would never use modern magic with so little history."

"Maybe you guys wouldn't give up your pride, but there was someone who did."

This confused those present.

"What do you mean, professor?"

"The person who gave up his pride to reach eternity… was none other than Ernest Fargo!"

"What!?" Both Mary and Fernando asked.

"And the proof that I'm correct must be here!" Bending down, Waver removed one of the floor tiles. There was a small blue sphere in a small compartment.

"That's…?"

"A container for a soul!"

Waver nodded, "His soul was just where the earth should be."

Suddenly, the spell began to activate. In the center of the room, a spectral being with the appearance of an old man emerged. But it was not complete, his entire stomach was open, and bones were coming out from within.

"Master, he no longer..."

Waver nodded, "I'll let you take care of he, Gray. Everybody back off!"

As the Lord had instructed, they all fell back.

Shirou stayed a bit ahead of the others, was between Gray and the others. He really didn't know if his swords would work against spirits.

Vorpal was a sword that had a weakening effect on phantasmal species, and it had shown such an effect on the dead apostles. But he had no idea if it could be used against spirits.

On the other hand, Neocaliburn was a holy sword it should affect evil spirits. However, Shirou decided not to participate for three reasons:

The first is that Gray had a mystical code specialized in defeating spirits, and he thought that she was more than enough to defeat Mr. Fargo. The second was because facing the spirit required revealing its mysteries. In short, he would have to show them his sword. And, although he trusted Gray and his teacher, he completely mistrusted the residents of the workshop. After all, for a magus, hiding his mysteries from potential enemies was crucial...

For a moment, he realized something: he was thinking like a magus, living in the Clock Tower was really getting to him, which he worried about.

Finally, the last reason was the most important, even with the defeated spirit, this would not end...

"My daughter! GIVE ME YOUR LIFEEEE!"

The spirit's hands turned into blades, swiftly heading toward Mary, but Gray got in the way. Using Add's cage, she stopped the attack.

"Hey! That's dangerous!" Screamed the mystical code.

The blades fell back, and Gray took advantage...

"Add, cancel the limit! First level!"

"Understood!"

Suddenly Add's form changed. The mystical code was released from its seal and took the form of a scythe.

"That is an incredible scythe," Shirou said.

"It's not a powerful mystical code for nothing…" Muramasa said.

"HA! HA! HA! Of course, I am! And this is an open bar feast for me!"

Ernest's spirit attempted to attack Gray with spectral leech-like creatures. These came from inside the spectrum to Gray, but she cut them very quickly. With agile and accurate movements, she destroyed every little specter he threw at her. Using the columns in the room, she took the opportunity to rise and cut a cloud of leeches coming towards her.

"Gray… Rave…"

Everyone looked impressed as the girl destroyed every spirit that approached her.

"What a powerful mystical anti-spirit code!" Fernando exclaimed.

"Teacher! Who is your student !?" asked Mary.

However, the young Lord did not reply.

At some point, her hood had fallen away, revealing her face. Her eyes glowed orange while, with each spirit she devoured, Add's form increased even more.

"Deprave…"

Shirou was enthralled seeing how agile and graceful the Gray fought with. For a moment, the image of another woman fighting with the same sublimity overlapped with his, but he rejected it. Although they were physically alike, the two were completely different people. Even their way of fighting was different from each other. And, for him, both shone with their own light.

The spirit threw its blades at Gray once more, she jumped to avoid them, and they ended up destroying the floor where they collided.

The gravedigger rushed in to finish off the spirit, "Grave for me ..."

"Boy!" His ancestor caught his attention, pulling him out of his fascination.

He shook his head, "I know, I must be prepared for when shows up."

"I… I WILL BE ETERNAL!"

"Grave for you…"

With a vertical downward motion, Gray split the spirit in two...

"Stopppp!" The soul of Ernest was devoured by Add.

Lord El-Melloi II closed his eyes, "With this, it was all over..."

Shirou shook his head, "No, you are wrong, professor."

"Huh? What do you mean, Shirou?"

The young magus apprentice looked towards the roundabout, "Although it is true that, in an investigation related to magic, it is more important to ask why it happened than how it happened. That does not mean that how it all happened should be ignored," Shirou drew his holy sword, Hey! How long are you going to be there!? Now that the spell of the 7 planets is undone, I can smell your magical signature with ease.

"Looks like I was discovered," with a leap, a mysterious hooded figure rushed from above towards the redhead.

Shirou managed to block the hooded person's short sword with his own sword and pushed her back.

"So, a boy and a girl playing at being warriors..."

"Who are you?" Lord El-Melloi asked.

"She is the person who helped with the dismemberment. She was probably also the person who convinced Mr. Fargo to use the spell of the 7 planets."

"What!?" The lord asked, confused.

The hooded woman smiled, "Even in a world of magic, obvious questions like, how things happen, should not be ignored, brat," taking an offensive position, the woman prepares to fight, "I was just coming to deliver a message, but I think I'll play a bit... "

She darted toward Gray. The girl tried to stop her, but the woman surpassed her in speed, throwing her several meters away.

"Gray!" Shirou and the Lord both yelled.

"Don't be careless!" The woman lunged at the redhead and attacked him off guard.

Shit. Shirou tried to dodge his sword, "Time alter, double accel."

Thanks to the time acceleration magecraft, the apprentice magus was able to dodge the woman's sword. After this, he threw himself at the woman...

"You seem to keep some tricks, alright! As warriors, let's dance on the battlefield!"

For moments, both of them quickly exchanged attacks. The woman was good, but compared to surviving a fight with Altrouge, it was nothing he couldn't handle. He might match her in speed and agility, but she surpassed him in strength and experience. Both were stalled in a fight without changes, until...

CRASH!

Gray tried to attack the woman unawares; however, she managed to dodge her.

Not bad! But, unlike the boy, you didn't attack me to kill me. If you come to the battlefield, you have to be willing to take lives!

Gray positioned himself next to the redhead, "That's not my style."

"You have to attack her together. Otherwise, you won't get anywhere," Muramasa said.

Both Shirou and Gray threw themselves at the hooded woman, and, thanks to the combination of both, they managed to keep her at bay.

"Hmm! Both are not bad at all, but they still need to improve."

The woman stepped back, and her eyes suddenly sparkled.

"What!?"

"I can't move!"

"Shirou, Gray, watch out, it's a mystic eye!"

The woman laughed, "It's a belated warning. Both of them are already under my control."

Lord El-Melloi clenched his hands helplessly. Waver knew that he and the Fargo family magi weren't capable of defeating the hooded woman.

"You may calm down, magus. As I said, I have only come to deliver a message," with that said, the woman pulled a small scroll from her suit and tossed it to the Lord.

Afterward, she smiled at the two young men, "Let's face each other again when both of them have matured," after speaking, the woman jumped using the columns and broke the glass in the upper window, fleeing the scene.

When the woman disappeared, so did the effect of her mystic eye.

"What was that?" asked the boy.

"And who was she?" The girl asked.

Waver was holding the scroll the woman had thrown at him, "I don't know, but I think we'll find out ..."

Shirou wanted to say something but kept quiet until the three of them were alone.

After helping the Fargo family, Mary and Lord El-Melloi said their goodbyes. There he was able to confirm another of his deductions. Mary had sabotaged the ritual of her father that, from the beginning, was already imperfect. For in this way, she could free herself from the bonds that her father imposed on her.

Thus, the three got into the car.

"Nothing is eternal in this world," the Lord whispered.

"Seeking eternity like that is dangerous. He's the second person I know of that ends badly ..." Shirou said.

"The second?" Gray asked.

He nodded, "I never met the old man's father, but he told me a little about him…"

"Emiya Norikata, right? He ended up dead and receiving a sealing designation. That's what I found while investigating," the Lord said.

Shirou nodded, "Kiritsugu told me that he ended up like that by pursuing immortality uncontrollably."

"That is why the magi create the magic crests, to bequeath their work ..." said the professor.

"I wonder who that woman was? She gave him something, right?"

Waver looked at the small scroll. As he was driving, he asked Gray to open it. She did and...

"What does it say?"

Gray proceeded to read it, "Just one sentence: Clue number 1, the great ritual will happen again, the winter tree marks the place."

This confused all three.

"The great ritual? What do you mean?" asked the boy.

"There are many great rituals that occur throughout the world. Yet again and, winter tree? I don't understand it either..."

"Master, there is a kind of symbol, is it… A hole inside a heart with wings like a dragonfly?" Gray spoke.

"That's strange. I've never seen that symbol..."

Thoughtfully, Shirou stated, "What seemed the strangest to me was that woman. It should be impossible…"

"What do you mean?"

He looked at the professor and explained, "The person we are up against should not exist. Because she is… A person from the past."

"What?" They both said.

Shirou sighed, "My structural grasp is different from the others. As long as it is melee weapons, shields, or not very complicated weaponry, I can analyze it at a higher level and, by doing so, I can see: its history, abilities, and other stuff…"

Can a structural grip be brought to such a degree? Waver thought, "That's surprising, but what does that have to do with what you just said?" asked the Lord.

"When I analyzed her sword, the information I got was: That it was the weapon of Hephaestio's younger twin sister. She was a member of the army of the king of conquerors, Iskandar."

Waver stopped the car abruptly, "What did you say!?"

Shirou nodded, "I don't understand it either, but that's the information I received..."

This disturbed the young lord, "But that's impossible! Because if she belongs to his army, then ... No, it's impossible to summon heroic spirits without the grail ritual," this made the young lord open his eyes, "The ritual …? Couldn't it be that…?"

"The grail ritual? What do you mean, master?" Gray asked.

Seeing his apprentice's confused look, the young lord had no choice but to reply, "I mean the holy grail war. A ritual performed in Japan. You must know it, right Shirou?" Waver said.

Shirou nodded.

"I entered the ritual eight years ago when I was young, inexperienced, and foolish."

"What does the ritual consist of? What does it have to do with the woman we face?"

"The woman we face is possibly a heroic spirit. They are legendary heroes, figures who left their mark on human history. The only way to invoke them today is through the holy grail war. In this, 7 magi summon 7 heroic spirits and fight until 6 of them are destroyed. The last magus gets the holy grail."

"The Holy Grail?"

Lord El-Melloi nodded, "It is not the original holy grail. However, it is a powerful magical artifact, to the point that it is said to grant a wish."

"A desire!?" They both asked.

This reaction on the part of both of them surprised the lord a little. Even so, he decided to continue with his explanation, "That's right. Heroic spirits are called servants. They are invoked through 7 classes. Although in the war in which I participated, an eighth servant was summoned. This servant was summoned by the will of the grail to act as an overseer, the servant of the extra class, ruler. I was the master of the rider class servant, a heroic spirit who uses a mount to fight. In my case, I invoked Iskandar, the king of conquerors."

"Iskandar? The same one who created the army that Hephaestio's sister belonged to?" Shirou asked.

The Lord nodded, "Your father was the master of the saber-class servant, as you must know. Some members of the families, Tohsaka, Makiri, Einzbern, also participated. Also, my master, the former Lord El-Melloi, was involved. And, finally, a man from the church."

"Really? Is it true, Shirou?" Gray asked, fascinated that such a fantastic scenario could occur. Legendary heroes facing each other.

Shirou was speechless, looking at his classmate and his teacher.

"Shirou?" Gray asked.

"Ah, yes! I'm sorry, I was lost in my thoughts."

They both looked at him confused and, in the Lord's case, somewhat curious.

Shirou tried to act normal, but, in the back of his mind, everything was chaos.

What!? But Kiritsugu had told me that he came to Japan to retire! And, if the ritual happened eight years ago, ¡then...!

However, his train of thought was stopped by the words of his teacher:

"The ritual ended up causing a great disaster in the city of Fuyuki, and the thaumaturgical lines of that city weakened so much that it was impossible to perform it again."

A great disaster in Fuyuki, and it was eight years ago… Shirou thought.

That is why I do not understand how that woman is a heroic spirit. Since the ritual was canceled, it is impossible to summon one.

"What if someone managed to replicate the ritual?" Gray asked.

Waver thought about it for a moment, "It's not impossible, but… it's unlikely. It was a ritual where the marshal magician himself participated at the time of its creation."

The conversation continued, but Shirou could no longer hear anything. The words were repeated over and over...

Eight years ago ... Holy Grail War ... Kiritsugu ... The great fire...

The trip ended and, Shirou didn't even notice when he said goodbye to Gray and his teacher. The next day, on the last day of the week, Shirou spoke to Altrouge, hoping that she would have some answer on this. However, she could only confirm that Zelretch participated in the creation of the ritual, only as another means of entertainment for himself.

On the first day of the week ...

Shirou had barely been able to refocus on something other than the grail war. So much so that he investigated them; however, he only found information on the subcategories of the war, the so-called false holy grail wars.

Right now, he was in his last class. The class was already over, and most of the students had already left. Just when he was going to retire too...

"Shirou, Svin! Come both a moment."

The two mentioned went in front of the teacher, and he told them:

"I need your help."

"In what, master?" Svin asked.

"A place that I go to almost daily has run into some problems. I offered to help them, but when I started to investigate the problem, I realized the magecraft might be involved."

"Do you want us to help you in case there are any magi involved?" Shirou asked.

The young Lord nodded.

"Excuse me, professor but, does it have to be us?" Svin asked.

"I called you here, precisely because it's you two."

"Huh?" They both exclaimed.

"Over the past year, the two of you didn't do a single job together. Even Rin and Luvia have been forced to work together a few times. Although, we better not talk about it... "

"I don't mind helping, professor," said the redhead.

"I guess neither do I ..." The blonde said reluctantly.

Then we will meet tomorrow after class to solve the problem.

Right at that moment, Gray approached.

"Are you ready, master?"

Waver nodded, "Yes. We can go now, Gray."

She nodded. Taking advantage of the fact that the redhead was present, she said, "Shirou…?"

"Yes?"

"Remember when you told me you wanted to go somewhere where we could talk quietly?"

The boy nodded.

"I spoke with Luvia, and she recommended that we go to the Camac. Is it okay for us to go during this week?"

Shirou smiled and nodded, "Sure, it would be perfect."

For those two, that conversation was normal. But, for Waver, they were the gates of the underworld. Because at that moment Svin was behind both of them, hearing everything they had said and, to his misfortune, he had chosen these two to help him in his task tomorrow...

Waver looked at Svin, he was about to ask him if he was okay, but then, he saw his gaze... When he was heading towards Gray, it seemed to be empty, almost emotionless. On the other hand, when his gaze was directed towards Shirou, he seemed to be a volcano about to erupt. Only contained by the presence of the girl.

And he would have to deal with the two of them together tomorrow, oh yeah, fate was a bitch...