Fūma's question had indeed struck at one of Shirou's blind spots.
He knew plenty of oddities about Heroic Spirit summoning—like Flat, who managed to summon Jack the Ripper without a summoning circle or chant, just by waving around a random toy knife he'd been given.
Or Tohsaka Rin, who on the summoning night used no Catalyst at all, simply stepping into the circle herself and using her own body as the "Holy Widow" to summon Red A…
But as for stacking multiple Catalysts like piling on buffs to increase the odds of summoning a particular Servant—he'd never seen that before.
After all, Catalysts were expensive, often one-of-a-kind items won in fierce bidding wars at elite auctions. Who would prepare a whole collection of them just to slightly boost their chances?
The answer: these outrageously wealthy Eight Snake family heads. To them, such costs were nothing. If they were going to prepare, they would prepare the best.
Shirou gave them a thumbs up. For families this rich, such stockpiles were no surprise. Since he was only working for pay and not truly allied with them, whether they succeeded or not didn't affect him. He analyzed their idea with a detached practicality—
First and foremost:
A Heroic Spirit summon required a link. Without a Catalyst, summoning was impossible. The link could be a relic or, failing that, the "connection" between the summoner and the Heroic Spirit, leading to a compatibility-based summon.
Multiple Catalysts meant multiple links, and thus more potential Servants. The more items, the more the "banner pool" got diluted with other candidates, making a targeted summon harder.
For example, Raikou's famed blade Oni-Cutter, originally named Higekiri, had been gifted to her by her father Minamoto no Mitsunaka. This sword and Spider-Cutter were a pair, but Oni-Cutter ended up with one of Raikou's Four Heavenly Kings, Watanabe no Tsuna.
Tsuna used it at Gojo Bridge to sever the arm of the oni Ibaraki Dōji—thus the name "Oni-Cutter."
Using Oni-Cutter as a Catalyst would increase the chances of summoning Watanabe no Tsuna.
As for the "Tatenashi no Yoroi," it was indeed a Minamoto heirloom, said to have been gifted by the god Sumiyoshi Myōjin after a shrine visit. The "Hoshikabuto" helmet was also a divine gift.
But it was the later Takeda clan—especially "Tiger of Kai" Takeda Shingen—that made the armor famous. The Takeda family crest, the "Takeda Rhombus," came from the cut-rhombus pattern on the Tatenashi.
Thus, using it might increase the odds of summoning Takeda Shingen.
Still, Genji Asama's situation was unusual. As a direct Minamoto descendant, his "connection" was locked to the Minamoto lineage. Shirou doubted another clan's Servant would be summoned.
In fact, with so many Minamoto-linked Catalysts, and the summoner being a blood descendant, not summoning Raikou would be the real anomaly.
After some thought, Shirou said slowly:
"Fūma-dono, your strategy is indeed clever. Using multiple Catalysts will certainly make it easier for Gen-san to summon Minamoto no Raikou."
"Really?"
Genji Asama frowned slightly. It all sounded unnecessarily complicated, but neither he nor the other family heads were experts in Holy Grail matters, so it was best to leave such details to those who were.
"…Fine. I'll have people search the vault for Oni-Cutter and the armor and helmet. The vault's massive, so it may take time, and the last two might not even be there. But Oni-Cutter should definitely still be in storage."
He recalled reviewing the sword list for a recent exhibition—Oni-Cutter had been on it.
He took out his phone, tapped out a message with the task details, and sent it to his assistant Yabuki Sakura.
The meeting moved on—to plans against the Ghost Faction, monitoring recent foreign arrivals in Tokyo, preemptively relocating family businesses… topics falling into place like stones on a game board.
As the meeting wound toward its end, Fūma Kotarō and Inuyama Gai exchanged a knowing glance. They were relieved not to have to voice the buried truth—that Genji Asama likely wasn't a Minamoto at all. That secret had to stay buried deep.
Fūma hadn't expected his improvisation to actually boost the odds, but it had—and that was a blessing in disguise.
For once, the cold-faced old man felt a flicker of satisfaction and gratitude toward Shirou. When the final agenda item closed, Fūma approached him.
"Thank you for your efforts, Shirou-dono. Here's a small token from the Fūma family—please, take it."
With a magician's sleight of hand, he drew a prewritten check from his sleeve and slipped it into Shirou's hand with the practiced skill of an elder handing out red envelopes at New Year.
"Eh? How can I accept this? Gen-san already paid the agreed fee…" Shirou still held another check from Genji Asama himself.
"You must not attend many family gatherings. Think of it as the Fūma clan's greeting gift. Come visit us during the New Year gatherings sometime!"
Yeah, right. I'm not your relative.
"Exactly," came Inuyama Gai's voice, as if reading his mind, his smile like a kindly neighbor's.
"But we're just old men now. You and the young master probably have more in common… Speaking of visiting, here's a VIP gold card to our club. Young men should enjoy themselves!"
"Enjoy myself?" Shirou caught a strange undercurrent in his tone—like the whisper of a decadent night.
Flipping the card, he saw the golden fox mask and the name "Tamamo-no-Mae" in bold letters.
Memories of a certain private club with the same name surfaced—along with some vivid impressions.
"Ha ha, there are many young, beautiful girls at the club. Have fun while you can!"
Wow, this old man really does run the red-light business.
Just then, Shirou felt a sharp pinch at his waist. Nono's nails dug in like a cat's claws. He could almost picture her pouting behind him, silently warning him not to go.
"I wasn't planning on it anyway."
Her grip slowly eased.
By then, Fūma and Inuyama had walked away. Their figures stretched long in the corridor's light, blending with the still-busy Genji Asama, their hushed conversation fading into the shuffle of the departing crowd.
———
After the meeting, Genji Asama's phone screen glowed coldly in the dim conference room.
He made several calls before setting the warm device down. Thoughts of the coming Holy Grail War and its foreign participants weighed on him like frost that wouldn't melt.
Through the window, his eyes found his sister's silhouette. "Erii" still sat quietly beside Shirou.
Two thoughts pulled at him—"Maybe Erii can keep making friends" and "Erii's bloodline is unknown, contact with outsiders is dangerous, she should return to her room."
Just then, Fūma Kotarō and Inuyama Gai approached. Fūma's black kimono bore a subtle spider pattern, while Inuyama's deep purple haori gleamed with the gold-red crest of a red oni.
"You have business?"
Fūma's voice was low, all warmth gone. "Young master, the patriarch's absence from today's meeting—was there a reason? If possible, could you tell us?"
Inuyama nodded slightly, a sharp glint in his eye. "Today's agenda concerned the very survival of the Eight Snake Families, yet the patriarch did not appear. That is… puzzling."
What could be more important than today's matters?
Both men had long harbored doubts about Tachibana Masamune's identity. His face bore obvious foreign features, yet he claimed Tachibana blood…
It was only his decade of loyal service—and the fact he had brought them Genji Asama, the "Emperor," and Uesugi Erii, their weapon—that had earned their reluctant public acceptance.
For if they pushed too hard, the Eight Snake Families' inner three houses would be empty. Uesugi Koshin was never coming back. And if the Shadow Emperor seat vanished from history, future generations would see it as a disgrace.
So their acceptance of Tachibana Masamune was really an acceptance of his adopted son, Genji Asama. And if Tachibana was truly compromised, elevating Genji directly was still an option.
(End of Chapter)
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