"I'll teach you magecraft unlike anything in this world and help you grow faster."
"Entering the Holy Grail War will be your quickest trial by fire—and your proof."
Rei Ao's words set Rin Tohsaka's heart racing. To protect her mother and sister, she needed strength. The Grail War was dangerous, yes—but it was also the fastest path to power and recognition. More importantly, Rei Ao would be there.
"I agree!" Rin answered without hesitation, eyes blazing. "I'll enter the Holy Grail War—and I'll win!"
"Good." Rei Ao's smile showed his satisfaction. "Then special training begins today. First, we need to choose a proper holy relic and summon the Servant who will be yours."
The way he spoke of the Grail War—and of winning—lit a fire in Rin's chest. Protect her family, prove herself… Those fierce desires tangled together, bringing a flush to her cheeks. She clenched her fists; her crimson eyes shone with resolve.
Just then, a small but clear voice sounded: "I… I want to enter the Holy Grail War too."
They turned toward the voice. Sakura Tohsaka was gripping the hem of her sister's clothes. Her face was still pale and timid, but in those violet eyes burned a determination beyond her years.
"Sakura?" Rin stared, surprised.
"I don't want to just be protected by my sister anymore." Sakura lifted her head, her gaze moving from her mother to her sister, then settling on Rei Ao. "Dad is gone, and Rin has to carry so much. I want strength too. I want to help her. I don't want to be a burden…"
Her voice was choked, yet unwavering. Witnessing her father's death, the fear of being sent away, and her sister's desperate protection had cut her to the core. Deep inside, she longed to become strong enough to stand beside her sister—not hide beneath her wings forever.
Seeing the light in Sakura's eyes—a blend of fear and courage—Rin felt a sting in her heart, followed by a wash of warmth. She squeezed Sakura's hand tight. "Sakura, you were never a burden!"
Aoi watched her younger daughter, eyes full of ache and conflict. Instinct told her not to let another child step into danger. But the resolve in Sakura's eyes said some roads must be walked together.
Rei Ao regarded Sakura with a flash of approval. An affinity for the Imaginary attribute, paired with this hardiness born in extremity—Sakura's potential in this world was far from small. He inclined his head. "You may."
"Rei Ao-nii?" Rin glanced at him, worried. She feared Sakura was too young to bear the perils of the Grail War.
"It's fine," Rei Ao said calmly. "With me here, nothing will happen to them. And sisters of one heart can cleave metal. One more Master means one more strength—and one more possibility."
He stepped before Rin and Sakura and held out his right hand, index and middle fingers together. A point of clear radiance bloomed at the tips—not mana, but something more fundamental, closer to the level of law.
"A Master's qualification in the Grail War is granted by Command Seals. Now, I will inscribe your Command Seals."
His fingertips touched Rin's smooth hand. The clear light flowed, swiftly tracing out a complex, arcane pattern: three scarlet marks like flames—or wings—forming her Command Seals, their core tinged with a thread of blue-green, Rei Ao's own primal breath.
Then he marked three Seals on Sakura's younger hand as well. Hers were gentler—twining vines and blooming violets—with a glint of blue at the center.
At the instant of inscription, both girls felt warmth on the back of their hands, as if a tenuous link had formed with some vast system. At the same time, their internal magic circuits stirred—widened and awakened.
"This…" Rin stared at the power surging within her, astonished. To be granted Command Seals without being 'chosen'—it was unheard of.
"Good. You now have Master status," Rei Ao said, withdrawing his hand. "Next comes the summoning. Normally you need a holy relic tied to the Heroic Spirit as a catalyst. For me, that's unnecessary."
He raised both hands, palms up. In his left, light gathered into a blazing orb like the sun, rippling with the authorities of the sky and the Morning Star. In his right, a deep violet sphere pooled like an underworld abyss, heavy with death and silence. At the same time, a thread of his will traced a strange sigil before him, heavy with the concepts of ancient petrification and the Earth Mother.
"As my lure, answer my call—come down into this world!"
He intoned—not any known spell, but a direct exertion of his own power, piercing the world's boundary and reaching the Throne of Heroes beyond.
In the Tohsaka manor's workshop, Rei Ao had already laid a simple barrier. Mana roared to a boil; the summoning array blazed brighter than ever.
Rin and Sakura traded a glance and began the summoning chant together:
"Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill. Repeat five times in all. And when filled, the time of abrogation. The base is silver and iron. The foundation, stone and the grand Duke of Contracts. My ancestor is Schweinorg. Let the winds descend from the vault and be walled off. Let the four cardinal gates be opened—then all be shut. From the crown, come forth, and circle along the three-forked road to the Kingdom…
"Proclaim it! Let thy body be under my command; my fate shall be with thy blade. By the summons of the Grail—if thou wouldst obey this will, this reason—then answer!
"Here do I swear: I shall accomplish all good in the world. I shall vanquish all evil in the world.
"Thou, clad in the three great words of power of the Seven Heavens— Come forth from the circle of constraint, O guardian of the Balance, thou of the Counter Force—!"
~~~
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