Ch 20

So, in reality, Tohsaka Rin is quite strapped for cash. She has even replaced all the antiques in her house with counterfeits and sold off all her valuable items. With the money she earned from those sales, she purchased a large number of gemstones to practice the gemstone magic passed down in her family.

This is also the fault of Tohsaka Rin's ancestors, who were excessively proud. They left behind only magic and grimoires related to gemstone magic in the family, neglecting other fundamental branches of magic. They even disregarded the collection of other magical disciplines.

It's no wonder, considering that gemstone magic is the specialty of the legendary Second Magic User. They reached the Root through this magic and became magi. As a disciple of such a lineage, how could one not harbor any ambitions?

Moreover, gemstone magic itself is already exceptional and doesn't require the supplementation of other magical disciplines. After all, they have already reached the Root using gemstone magic and have never even touched the boundaries of other magical branches.

For magicians, the swirling vortex of the Root, something they dream of, wouldn't it be surprising what lengths they would go to once they reached it? For example, the Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City is a large-scale magical ritual initiated by magicians aiming to reach the Root through the Holy Grail.

In reality, the magic passed down in the Tohsaka Rin family isn't very extensive. Even if Tohsaka Rin wanted to trade for additional knowledge in related magic, it would be impossible. After all, those protective magics they possess are essential for their family's survival and cannot be easily sold off. Therefore, considering these various issues, Tohsaka Rin's daily life is still quite difficult, especially in this particular period.

No hurry, because Minachi Shinya is the one stirring up various reasons, and she is currently being pursued by that detestable senior of hers. The only thing certain is that if she is found by that priest, her fate would be miserable. After all, she already knows some truths, and it's impossible for that priest to know nothing. Since she didn't resolve the leakage of those mysteries the last time, the responsibility naturally falls on Kotomine Kirei.

It's expected that Kotomine Kirei would pay attention to this matter, as well as the works uploaded on the internet. The topic shifts back to Tohsaka Rin.

"How are you considering it?"

"Right now, the two of us are in an alliance."

"In this situation, you should naturally help me."

"And I'm not the type to get something for nothing. I can provide my services to you in exchange for compensation."

"Although your self-sufficient mansion is amazing, anyone with malicious intentions towards you inside this mansion won't be able to harm you using various means."

"To some extent, it guarantees your safety."

"But as a young master like you, there should be other issues that require assistance, right?"

"After all, you only have this old butler by your side in your house."

"And he usually helps you manage the affairs of the company, especially considering how rapidly your company is developing recently."

"Especially in times like these, it's even more necessary to have an old and reliable person to manage the company."

"In summary, your house still needs the services of some servants, right?"

Tohsaka Rin, through a simple overnight period, concluded the things that Minachi Shinya currently needs the most and the best solutions to the problems she will face. Minachi Shinya also carefully thought it over and found Tohsaka Rin's words quite reasonable.

Although he usually leaves everything in the company to the old butler to handle, only making decisions on major issues and occasionally providing advanced information, there's still a lot of work due to the current state of the company. It's indeed necessary to have an old and reliable employee to be present, and this person must be someone Minachi Shinya can trust.

Minachi Shinya also thought it through and realized that the most trustworthy person who has been with him until now is the old butler. Just like himself, many things in his daily life are handled by the butler. If it were like in the past, when things were less busy, it would be fine.

However, with the current state of the company, he can't just call Sebastian anytime and anywhere. Thinking about his mansion, it's indeed necessary to recruit a group of servants. After all, his future life heavily relies on their services.

As Minachi Shinya himself doesn't have much talent in daily life, especially in cooking, he can only manage simple instant noodles. If there comes a day when the old butler suddenly leaves, Minachi Shinya would immediately become helpless.

"Considering what you just said, I suddenly feel that your words have some truth to them."

"Indeed, as you said, the situation with my company is quite busy at the moment, and the only person I can trust is Sebastian."

"So, there are many things that I rely on Sebastian to handle in my daily life."

"After all, he has raised me since I was a child and knows me the best."

"But what you said is also correct. Currently, my Minachi residence does need a group of excellent new employees."

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Minachi Shinya also carefully pondered the matter because his future self is not the same as before. Life is no longer just a normal everyday technological life but encompasses various mysterious and peculiar things.

Therefore, the servants remaining in his Minachi residence must be special enough to handle everything related to the Minachi family. The minimum requirement is that they must have some knowledge and understanding of magic and the mystical realm, so as not to panic in front of guests. However, given the current situation in the mystical realm and his own circumstances, Minachi Shinya thought that it would be quite difficult to find people who can use magic and are related to the mystical realm to serve as his servants.

It's even possible that the people he recruits could be undercover agents from other factions, posing a significant safety risk. This made Minachi Shinya uneasy, and proud magicians would certainly not become servants in the Minachi household, unless they were manipulated using methods like the Einzbern family's. Conducting large-scale cultivation using alchemy and cloning techniques, along with targeted education, to train talents according to his preferences. Unfortunately, Minachi Shinya doesn't possess such conditions, so it's relatively challenging for him to recruit new people for his Minachi household.

"It seems I have to ask myself, that omnipotent system."

"Now that my family business is growing larger and requiring more manpower."

"And I am, after all, a young master. It's not impressive to only have one butler at my disposal."

"I must have several beautiful young ladies as maids, but this matter isn't urgent. Let's resolve Tohsaka Rin's situation first!"

Soon, Minachi Shinya made up his mind. After all, if he can use cheat abilities, why should he struggle on his own?

"What you said is correct, and your conditions are acceptable."

"In your current situation, you indeed need the help of an ally like me."

"I don't lack money, and the affairs of the company are managed by Sebastian. So, the other matters in the mansion can't be solely dependent on him."

"I must find some subordinates to handle them."

"And due to the recent exposure of those mysteries, you can't reveal yourself openly, fearing being hunted by those people."

"And since you have also recognized the unique nature of my territory, I think I should provide you with some hush money."

"After all, this uniqueness is what I use to deal with those who oppose me."

"If you accidentally reveal it and make those people alert, then it would be difficult for me to go out in the future."

Minachi Shinya considered it and decided to let Tohsaka Rin stay in his mansion, not as a true maid, though. With her pride, she certainly wouldn't stay in his house as a mere maid. However, being under someone's roof requires some humility.

Before the Holy Grail War starts, the original Rin has no means to protect herself, and any faction would hold her responsible for the leakage of secrets. Furthermore, Minachi Shinya's senior also doesn't know what intentions he holds while searching for Tohsaka Rin's whereabouts. Therefore, Tohsaka Rin must absolutely not expose herself to outsiders and be found.

Staying in Minachi Shinya's mansion is the best choice, but Tohsaka Rin must pay a certain price. Moreover, due to her inability to openly appear before others, her supply of gemstones should be running low. After all, she can't openly go to jewelry stores to purchase the gemstones she needs. The gemstones she carries with her and the ones in the Tohsaka ancestral home cannot meet her current demands.

In this situation, she naturally needs some assistance. And the best candidate for that is undoubtedly Minachi Shinya. In Tohsaka Rin's eyes, Nanhong Shinya is an extremely mysterious person.

"So, you have decided to accept my offer as an ally, right?"

"Or do you have other plans?"

Tohsaka Rin's proposal was naturally approved by Minachi Shinya. However, since Tohsaka Rin initially intended to stay in Minachi Shinya's house to avoid external dangers until she gains the ability to protect herself in the Holy Grail War, she wasn't completely satisfied.

"That's right!"

"Miss, what are you thinking? I can understand some of it."

"And based on the current situation, I can deduce that your circumstances aren't great."

"And your family's magic is Gem Magic, which must consume a significant amount of gemstones."

"Although you live frugally, saving money to purchase gemstones for your family's magic, it's still insufficient. However, you have the advantage of safety. As long as you have money, you can buy the gemstones you desire from jewelry stores."

"But under the current circumstances, even if you have money, you can't buy gemstones because if you go to a jewelry store, there's a high chance that those who are searching for you will find your traces and follow them to you."

"This situation is quite unfavorable for me as well, considering that we just formed an alliance last night."

"I don't want my ally to be captured over such a small matter, leading to deviations in the Holy Grail War that I don't want."

"So, your stay in my place, under my protection, is practically guaranteed."

Minachi Shinya's analysis was rational and hit the key points accurately. However, Tohsaka Rin on the other side didn't seem to buy it.

"Do you think I ended up like this because of someone?" "Anyway, you must take responsibility, and I won't be a freeloader."

"I can help with some minor things, like cleaning your mansion, but don't come to me with more complicated matters."

"Especially warming your bed. I'm not an exclusive maid for your family."

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"I am a person of high moral standards, and I have strict requirements for my life partner."

"Although your conditions are good, I am not the type of person who would abandon everything for money."

"So, it's impossible between us."

Minachi Shinya immediately interrupted Tohsaka Rin's previous words, preventing her from continuing. Otherwise, who knows how Rin would twist his words again. It was clear that he wanted to let Rin stay in his place for refuge, but somehow, when it reached her, it became Minachi Shinya lusting after her body.

"Alright, you can stop now."

"Let's clarify the situation. It was actually you who wanted to stay in my place by taking advantage of the alliance between us."

"Why does it sound like I am forcing you to stay here?"

"If you don't want to stay with me, it's fine. I'm not forcing you."

"And what you said earlier is correct. My life has changed, and I will encounter even more mysterious things in the future."

"The people in this house are too few. Besides me, there is only the old butler."

"It's about time I found some servants to fill the gap."

Tohsaka Rin seemed to realize that her previous words were inappropriate. However, she pretended not to care and acted as if the matter wasn't significant.

"Alright, enough chitchat."

"Actually, your timing is perfect today. Yesterday, I wanted to set up some shortcuts, but you know how it ended."

"So, I started experimenting. I tried using magic inside your mansion to see if it would work."

"The result is that any magic aimed at causing damage to the mansion is ineffective, except for certain detection and restoration magic."

"But at the same time, if magic is performed here, the external world won't detect the magic fluctuations unless they are in extremely close proximity."

"So, I used some special methods from our Tohsaka family to investigate the current state of the Holy Grail War." "I discovered that all the Masters have already been chosen for the current Holy Grail War."

"And the Great Holy Grail in the underground leyline is filled with a substantial amount of magical energy."

"Based on my experience, the Holy Grail War is likely to begin soon, maybe in a day or two."

"So, the two of us need to prepare early."

"Although you didn't consider using Mystic Codes to summon outstanding Heroic Spirits."

"But as the head of the Tohsaka family, I have an obligation to win the Holy Grail War."

"So, some necessary preparations need to be made in advance."

"Unfortunately, over the past decade, everything our Tohsaka family has prepared for the Holy Grail War is still in our main mansion."

"With your current situation, you can't return home."

"That's why I need you to provide the items necessary for this Holy Grail War."

These small revelations from Tohsaka Rin surprised Minachi Shinya. After all, he knows everything about the Holy Grail War better than Tohsaka Rin. He is also well-versed in the summoning rituals of the Holy Grail War, but his knowledge is limited to the spells and materials required for summoning.

The materials Rin needs are definitely not simple, but Minachi Shinya isn't willing to satisfy Rin's demands. After all, summoning Heroic Spirits is a straightforward matter that isn't difficult at all. As long as you possess a Command Spell, the life battle, even if you don't want to summon Heroic Spirits, they will still appear by your side. The most accurate situation is when you are in danger. If you have a Command Spell, it will forcibly summon a Heroic Spirit to protect the Master.

"Don't worry, I'm more familiar with the Holy Grail War than you are."

"As for the items required for the Holy Grail War, I know much more than you."

"Although it's easier to summon Heroic Spirits if you place sufficiently valuable items in your summoning circle, such minor details are not important to me. It's enough for me to have a Command Spell, as I am destined to summon my own Heroic Spirit in this Holy Grail War."

"As for you, I can guess your thoughts. After all, your family excels in Jewel Magecraft."

"And since the Holy Grail War is presided over by the three great families, including the Tohsaka family, you must have some research on summoning circles for Heroic Spirits."

"But in the end, this kind of summoning battle is more suited for the Tohsaka family's teamwork magecraft." "For me, there are no real benefits in it."

"Although we are allies, it doesn't mean that I will help you unconditionally."

"So, when it comes to summoning Heroic Spirits in this Holy Grail War, you figure it out on your own."

"Of course, if you want to use my summoning circle, you can."

This Holy Grail War is not actually difficult since Minachi Shinya is currently using cheats. No matter what kind of Heroic Spirit he summons in this Holy Grail War, it doesn't matter to him. Because at this moment, Minachi Shinya already possesses invincible power. Unless the top forces from the mystical realm appear, there is no existence on the surface that can stop him. Summoning Heroic Spirits is just for the enjoyment of this Holy Grail War.