Disclaimer: I don't own Fate/Stay Night or Campione. They belong to their writers Kinoko Nasu & Takedzuki Jou

Being reborn in another world can be a very confusing experience.

Imagine your mind trapped in a body of an infant who was just born and having to experience being a toddler for a few years. This of course includes being smothered by your various relatives, breast-fed and your diapers changed regularly.

Yeah, it's that awkward.

Not only that, you have to actually pretend being a toddler. Meaning you have to pretend to cry sometimes, pretend that you don't know how to walk yet (so you have to crawl all over the place), pretend that you are curious about everything around you and other things you could think of that toddlers actually do. If not, you'll end up in some kind of research institute or something like that and being experimented on.

Okay. So that last part might be a bit exaggerated when you're just a toddler but it's still a frightening thought.

And the worst part?

All of this is still not as bad as some of the other experiences I had when Zelretch thought it would be funny to chuck me into a random world with the Kaleidoscope and sticking me with the Kaleidostick so that I could find my way back home myself!

The problem was - like its creator - the Kaleidostick really likes to chuck me into other random worlds to amuse itself!

I've been put into situations that are awkward, embarrassing and dangerous more times than I can count (and the Kaleidostick's penchant to turn me into a Mahou Shoujo doesn't help either).

Well, at least I was able to get my eyes on blades that can't be found in my original world.

Fortunately (or unfortunately depending on how you view it), I was able to return after about one and a half century of wandering the Kaleidoscope to find that only a month had passed in my world and my physical age was very much the same as when I left. Though mentally, I was about roughly 180 years old already. I've lost count.

Thanks to my experiences in wandering the Kaleidoscope, my view of the world has become a bit more warped than it already has.

Well, I guess it's good thing since I no longer had any problem trying to add more women to my har- family. And to tell the truth, those were the best decisions I've made my entire life. Nothing could ever make me regret having them as my wives.

Sure, I would end up having used up all my stamina most nights relieving three or four of my wives at once, but they were nights that were well spent if the amount of kids in the mansion is any proof.

Anyway, back to my situation in this world.

My mother died giving birth to me (after naming me Shirou) and I was adopted almost immediately after. Apparently, she was an illegal immigrant who found herself pregnant after being raped. Despite that, she still carried me in her for the whole 9 months with tender loving and care if what I was told is true and I believe them.

This isn't because it's my hope or anything like that. I believe it's true because the only photo I have of her is during her pregnancy, sitting on a small chair rubbing her growing belly with such a happy and peaceful smile.

She had long red hair that reached her waist, beautiful golden eyes and seems to be quite tall compared to average Japanese women. She was also quite beautiful with a heart shaped face which was enhanced with her smile that reminded me very much of Sakura after we saved her from Zouken and the Grail.

The people who adopted me were the Kusanagis. They found my mother lying on the street in labour one night and helped her to the hospital. After finding out that she was an illegal immigrant without any shred of identifications and was pregnant from being raped (which they found out from their short conversations with her to the hospital) they decided to take me in.

I will forever be indebted to this family for raising me and my mother for loving me despite the circumstances of her pregnancy.

I was raised by Kusanagi Ichirou, who from the family hierarchy is the grandfather in the house, along with my adoptive brother Godou and my adoptive younger sister Shizuka. Grandpa Ichirou seems to be quite the traveller and playboy in his youth. I can say this with the utmost certainty because whenever he brought me and Godou travelling with him; there will always be some women who would recognize him and start to flirt with him, which he flirts back.

This always causes Grandmother Chiyo no end of worry and headache.

Still, he taught me and Godou how to take care of ourselves when travelling to unknown lands. Not that I needed it since I'm already used to it, but it was an interesting experience nonetheless. The problem was, Godou had started to pick up ways to woo girls without him even knowing it. In other words, he's attracting girls left and right and he's completely oblivious about it.

I'm starting to have feelings of deja vu here.

Despite his...playboy tendencies, Godou really does mean well with every girl he has (unintentionally) attracted. In fact, finding out about Grandpa Ichirou's ability to attract women made him swear not to be like him although it's already too late since everything Grandpa has taught him has been engraved in his psych.

The proof?

His acting upon everything Grandpa has taught him about treating girls without him seeing anything wrong with it, though it's not his fault either as even I can agree that what Grandpa has taught him isn't anything bad. Like treating them politely, support them when they require it; be gentle with them when chastising them and other conducts that should be watched when interacting with girls.

The problem is these acts are supposed to be done when trying to attract the opposite gender while Godou thinks of it as the general guideline to interact with them regardless of time or place. It doesn't help that he seems to think that the only way to attract girls involves flirting with them of which he is definitely not doing.

As a result, girls gravitate towards him like moths to flames.

I can only hope that he doesn't end up breaking a girl's heart too badly. Thankfully, that hasn't happened yet thanks to him always making it clear that he only thinks of the girls as his friends despite his being oblivious to their attraction to him.

I can't even chastise him on his behaviour because it'll make me a hypocrite. I already have more than a dozen wives back in my original world. Not only that, I have my own set of 'fan girls' in this world too (I'm no longer that oblivious thanks to almost 200 years of experience in handling girls), so I'm not really the right person to 'rehabilitate' him. The only thing I could probably do is to advise him how to treat his girls right when he eventually (yes, 'eventually' and not 'if') amasses his own harem.

I wonder if I should teach him the various techniques Matsu used to teach my wives back in my original world...I can't believe I'm contemplating about teaching my adoptive brother 'bedding' techniques. I really am distorted.

As for my Magecraft, when I first tried to access my circuits and found that I can't, I almost panicked thinking that I don't have any circuits in this world. That is, until I realized the familiar sensation of my od flowing through me, minus the heat and pain that always accompanies the activation of Magic Circuits. Turns out, this world's rules in conjunction with Magecraft are a little different in terms of how to accumulate prana. Thankfully, I can still use Tracing and have access to my Reality Marble.

After some experimenting, I found out that this world does not try to limit my Magecraft like my original world. Meaning, that Gaia does not exist in this world to interfere with my Magecraft. I find Tracing to be easier to use with the prana cost cut to almost a fifth of what I'm used to which is quite the bonus and my Projections lasts until I want it to. In addition to that, some of my sword's Mysteries have become a lot stronger too. If my calculations are correct, they range from 3 to 5 times stronger.

Even Avalon's healing powers are stronger here. It's almost as strong as when Saber is the one supplying the prana to Avalon instead of me. Thinking about some of my Noble Phantasm's powers like Excalibur being amplified sent shivers down my spine.

Fortunately - after Tracing some of the weaker Noble Phantasms - I discovered that their abilities only increased by a whole rank instead of amplified many times over like I originally thought. Perhaps Gaia isn't as proficient in limiting the Mysteries of Noble Phantasms. That makes sense I guess. Noble Phantasms aren't like normal Mysteries; they are crystallized legends of heroes.

Thanks to this, I don't have to worry too much about accidentally sinking a small island from using Broken Phantasms. All I need to do is to adjust their current power levels with my future strategies.

Actually, Tracing a Noble Phantasm degrades their abilities by a whole rank. Since my Tracing can now rival the originals, does that mean I'm no longer a Faker?

...Nah, if the originals were here they would most likely also receive the same kind of boost so in the end my Projections are still inferior in overall ability (thinking about Ea getting stronger despite it already being classified as EX rank gave me nightmares). Still, it seems Gaia does not just force magi to use more prana to enact Mysteries but also limit their powers when it is even enacted successfully.

The Magi in my world will be salivating at the prospect of their Mysteries not being limited by Gaia. I know I am.

Further research on this world's prana revealed that I could now convert mana in the air into my own prana several times faster too. It is still not as fast as od but it is close enough that if I ever end up in battle of attrition, I most probably can hold out for a whole day instead of of half a day when relying solely on my od levels. Though I still need to be conservative to last that long.

Chucking Broken Phantasms left and right without holding back will probably deplete my prana reserves in about twenty minutes, maybe thirty if I use the lower ranking Noble Phantasms for it.

Still, most enemies shouldn't be able to withstand that kind of barrage, especially since I've already mastered the art of 'Altering' and 'Breaking' Noble Phantasms mid-Tracing (this requires an additional step to be added between step 6 and 7 of Tracing which is 'Altering basic structure and composition', something I was able to complete after two decades of research with all of my wives help) and chucking them at speeds of Mach 4, 10 if I use my bow.

And with this world's amount of mana - which abundant doesn't even begin to describe it - I can do this without having to worry about depleting the surrounding mana completely.

Speaking of my prana reserves, unlike Magic Circuits of which you are born with a predetermined number and cannot be changed (except the quality though it requires constant training and would still see very few improvements even after decades of training), my current prana reserves can be increased much faster through training, but still takes a lot of time to do so. I'm not complaining though, it is still a good thing for me.

My Reinforcement can also be done almost instantaneously now and it lasts for hours on end until finally the prana I pumped into all the imperfections in my body will start to dissipate slowly. This takes another few hours for them to fully disappear and that's only when I don't consciously try to manage it.

Consciously trying to do so results in my reinforcement lasting indefinitely until I either let it dissipate naturally or end the Reinforcement myself. The increase in stats is three times stronger than in my original world. This and not having to deplete my prana reserves to maintain my Reinforcement is one less thing for me to worry about in a fight though I'm going to have to watch out when using it against normal people.

Gaia's influence to my Structural Analysis is also evident when I find it to be easier to structurally analyze any objects other than swords since being reborn in this world. This is to the point that I can even start to Trace firearms, albeit only simpler ones like small pistols and Revolvers. I still can't Trace rifles or machine guns or more complicated firearms, unfortunately. That would have been really cool though.

The draw back is that it takes longer for me to Trace them. I can Trace the bullets easy enough, but the gun itself takes about ten seconds of deep concentration for me to do so. Not surprising as the complicated mechanism of a gun is what prevented me from being able to Trace them before this. Just being able to Trace them now, tells how much my ability have been held back thanks to Gaia. Fortunately, this little drawback can be circumvented if I just Trace the gun beforehand.

I've started to modify these guns with runes to increase their effectiveness (thank you Rin and Bazett for the various lessons). Guns are after all less conspicuous than swords and now that I can Trace father's Thompson Contender with the Origin Bullets, I have one more Anti-Magi Ace up my sleeves, though further research is still needed to find out the exact effects on Magi in this world since they don't have Magic Circuits if my current lack of them is any indication. I still suspect that it will render any Magi to lose their ability to enact Mysteries though.

I've also discovered that I can actually Trace the skills of the various owners of the blades in Unlimited Blade Works without actually Tracing the weapons themselves as long as I follow all the steps of Tracing except the last one. Very useful if I want to keep my Magecraft a secret when I require a specific set of skills while using mundane set of blades. My experiment with mixing these skills together astounded even me.

Mixing Saber's and Sasaki Kojirou's swordsmanship allowed me to beat up a whole gang of armed delinquents that had more than 30 members without even using Reinforcement or any other Magecraft (though using the Torashinai to intimidate them might have also been a factor) and I was only seven back then. That incident became a sort of legend in the town. Thankfully, I was wearing a helmet I Traced and lived in a different prefecture so they never found out it was me.

And finally, my Reality Marble. After finding some time for myself, I finally found a place secluded enough to test out the effects this world has on it when I try to deploy it. The result, although not amazing was still significant. In my original world, the strain on using my Reality Marble on my prana reserves is enormous. I could probably deploy it for a few minutes before burning out. In this world, my Reality Marble still consumes a lot of prana, but I could most likely maintain it for fifteen minutes at least, twenty at most if my calculation isn't too far off. And since I can increase my reserves after more training, I can make it last longer in the future.

Honestly speaking, I'm a bit surprised that I still retain my Reality Marble. I originally gained it after having forced to discard pieces of myself in that hell on earth known as the Fuyuki Fire. My memories and emotions were all discarded in exchange for my survival. Love, empathy, hate, sorrow, grief, courage, fear, sadness, despair, anger, happiness, sympathy and finally, even hope. All were discarded in that fire so that the me back then could keep moving on in order to survive but even after all that, it still wasn't enough.

As a five-year-old child, there's a limit to how much I could endure until my very legs could no longer support me and I fell to the ground. Having exhausted every single thing I have to give, all that was left of me was an empty shell of a human. No memories, no emotions, no regrets or even hope I had accepted my death, but it never came for me. Kiritsugu was able to find me in that hellhole before it claimed me.

The way he looked so happy - the pure unadulterated joy he had looked back then for even having saved just one person in this fire that consumed everything in its path as if he was the one saved despite the one being saved was actually me - stuck with me ever since.

That event had distorted my very soul and the way I view the world to this very day. It is the very reason I gained a Reality Marble.

Ever since that day, the only thing I could think of was how I could become that happy and so, I aspired to become a Superhero. Someone who saves others. I never could find a value to my life in conjunction with others. I still can't. The only reason I lived for so long was for the sake of my family as I couldn't just die and leave them all behind in my quest to save others. In the end, it was love that kept me alive all those years.

It kept me from sacrificing my life to save someone else who I didn't even know.

It kept me from taking huge risks just so I could save one more life.

It kept me from falling into despair for being unable to save everyone in front of my eyes.

And it kept me from becoming a Counter Guardian - which would have been a hell of my own making - just like what happened to Archer.

Anyway, the reason I'm a bit surprised that I still retain my Reality Marble is because I had thought my soul would have already been healed when I was reborn into this world. Perhaps having memories of that hell is what keeps my soul from healing. I'll never know and I don't intend to find out by experimenting on others. There is no way I'll subject anyone to that hell if I have anything to say about it even if it's just the memories themselves.

All my preparation and training in Magecraft was NOT to prepare myself for the upcoming Holy Grail War (which is a relief. I've had to go through the fourth and fifth Holy Grail Wars dozens of times already during my wandering through the Kaleidoscope). After some poking around in the internet, I found that in this world, Fuyuki City doesn't even exist much less a secret tournament between seven Magi and seven Heroic Spirits.

But I still don't know what kind of dark secrets are lurking in this world and if there wasn't any I'm still aspiring to be a Superhero, so keeping up with my training is a must.

On a side note, I'm glad that my culinary skills haven't been rusty after not being able to enter the kitchen for 5 years (that's how long it took for me to give Grandpa the 'slip' to get inside the kitchen alone) and having a body and strength of a child didn't help matters. After cooking my first dish though, the whole family now thinks I'm a cooking prodigy.

I felt a little guilty about that, since this was a skill I mastered in almost two centuries (most of it spent in random parallel or alternate dimensions) and not because I'm some sort of prodigy, but seeing their happy faces while eating the food I cooked myself I decided to just take pride in it if it makes them happy. And being able to teach Shizuka the wonders of cooking reminds me of the happier times I had when I was able to cook in the kitchen with Sakura.

When she reached 5 years old, I started teaching Shizuka how to cook. Just like I did with Sakura, we began with onigiri. After that, I increased the difficulty of the dishes bit by bit. After 3 years of her tutelage under me, she's started to try to develop her own recipes. Granted, most of them have been failures but she has been getting better at it and the number of failures she's had have dwindled after every mistake.

Sometimes I feel so proud of her when I see her in the kitchen - with a cute pink apron on - experimenting with the various spices in the house.

If only Godou has the same kind of passion for cooking, I would've taught him too. Unfortunately, although he does like eating good food, when the time comes for his turn to cook his thought process becomes something like 'as long as it doesn't taste bad and is nutritious then it's fine'. As a result, although his cooking isn't exactly bad, it's not worth praising either.

I feel like smacking his head for his mentality that is an insult to all aspiring chefs in the world whenever it's his turn to cook. It's bad enough that I have to sacrifice my time in the kitchen by agreeing to take turns with my adoptive siblings so that they can slowly learn how to cook as well but his disregard for the art of culinary is just infuriating. Still, when I compare his ability in the kitchen with Kiritsugu's (both of them), I realised Godou wasn't that bad since he could actually cook.

No one's perfect, so I'll just have to endure it. I'm still gonna try to convince Grandpa to give me Godou's slot in the kitchen though.

In the mean time, I'll keep bestowing Shizuka with all the culinary knowledge I possess. Of course, I don't think she'll be able to learn everything I know. My knowledge of the culinary arts is something that I accumulated for around 200 years after all and it even includes recipes from other worlds that can't be recreated in this world due to the ingredients not existing in this world. Still, I'll keep teaching her everything I can until she finds her own path in mastering the culinary arts.

As for my aspiration to be a Superhero, it is actually going quite well. As soon as I was sure my physical capabilities are good enough, I started to patrol the town I live in at night regularly. You won't believe how many criminals are loose in this town despite it being quite peaceful. I manage to catch criminals almost every week and send them to the police.

Covering my tracks has become second nature to me and thanks to two decades of tutoring from Matsu - who can even hack through firewalls on the encryption levels of the Pentagon - hacking through the security cameras and alarms of a small town like this isn't even a challenge. Having an outfit with runes engraved that gives me a C rank Presence Concealment also doesn't hurt.

The outfit was one of the three that my wives researched, trying to imitate the Servants of the Holy Grail War. This one tries to imitate an Assassin while the other two tries to imitate a Saber and Archer. Unfortunately, the high prana consumption and the given stats that are comparable to only some of the weaker Servants with E to D rank stats made the trade off impractical. Just in case though, I kept a copy for myself if I ever need them. And boy I'm glad that I did.

Gaia's absence should have given these outfits the stat boost that can rival the mid level Servants in the Holy Grail War. I still haven't tried the Saber and Archer outfits yet but it should be about that much given all the increase in the power of my other Mysteries in this world.

For now, the Presence Concealment of the Assassin outfit is a lot more useful for my vigilante purposes. Before this, it was only able to bestow an E rank Presence Concealment - just enough for people to ignore me if they aren't consciously trying to look for me - but now, it was enough for me to knock out a whole group of 'evildoers' without them even noticing me. I still wouldn't hold a candle to a real Assassin class Servant in Presence Concealment though.

Not like it matters much. No matter what, I will definitely become a Superhero. That has never changed whether back in my original world or this world.

And so, my new journey begins.

xxx Two Years Later xxx

Life went on peacefully until I reached the second last year of my elementary school (that is, if you don't count the times I went on a crusade as a vigilante capturing criminals and decimating gangs, mobs, mafias and yakuzas lurking in the town while still keeping it a secret from my family).

It was during Golden Week.

I was visiting some of the temples and shrines around the town to try to pinpoint any signs of the magical community since if I'm lucky; they might station some of their magi there. Temples and shrines are after all historically built on leylines. If not, I had planned on travelling the world to do it. Unfortunately, I haven't had much luck since all the places I've visited so far hasn't exuded any traces of Magecraft or even prana.

The shrine I'm currently searching for is supposed to be quite old and didn't receive visits from many worshipers except the older generation due to its location. The shrine was that supposedly quite old since it was built around the Sengoku Era - at least that was what I was told - had my hopes up a little. It's usually the case that the older the temple or shrine is, the higher the chance it is authentic in its business of dealing with the supernatural.

The moment my feet landed on the first set of stairs, my nose started to pick up the traces of prana. Excited, I immediately ran up the stairs to identify where the prana was coming from. Finally, a clue to the supernatural aspects of the world, I was starting to think that I should really travel the world to even find any traces of it. Once I reached the top, I turned my head left and right to see if I can find anything that's emitting the prana I smelled.

There.

Just beside a cherry tree to the side of the shrine grounds, there was a small girl wearing priestess robes sweeping the leaves on the shrine grounds. She looked around my age with chestnut shoulder-length hair and a cute face. If she was 3 years older she might become what Japanese people like to call a Yamato Nadeshiko. Since she's still young, she's probably still an apprentice priestess.

Perfect.

Immediately, I pretended to ignore her and went straight to the offering box in front of the shrine in a relaxed manner. Once there, I did what all the visitors of any shrine would usually do. I gave some offerings and prayed. At least, I pretended to do so. I was actually paying attention to the apprentice priestess still sweeping the grounds. It seems she only paid attention to me for a single moment and ignored me once I started praying.

Good.

I still don't want my existence to be known yet. Who knows what could happen if I don't tread carefully. The worst-case scenario is that I'd be captured and turned into a human experiment subject.

Not a pleasant thought.

Focusing on my more supernatural senses, I confirmed that she was the one who was emitting that prana my nose detected. Not only that, she was quite powerful too. Her reserves should be about four times more than mine if my guess was correct. I wasn't sure of what my nose was telling me about her powers though since my mind wasn't able to register what is it my nose is sensing.

At the very least I'm sure that her powers wasn't in the elemental category since I would be able to tell easily if they were. The closest thing my mind could translate the smell my nose was picking up was clairvoyance though I'm sure that wasn't it either. How the heck I am able to smell something like clairvoyance that has no physical form at all, I have no idea. It's just how my mind is, trying to translate what my nose is sensing.

Once I'm sure I've collected enough information, I decided to leave so as to not arouse suspicion to myself. I still have to do some reconnaissance but this time, from a bit farther away. Not a problem since I'm sure there is a tall building in the city that's just far enough for my reinforced eyes to watch the shrine unhindered.

I'll have to call home later to say that I'll be late because I'm helping someone though. Since that's usually the reason I come home late most of the time, it shouldn't cause too much worry for my adoptive family. Over the years of living with the Kusanagis, I've proven that I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself. It doesn't stop them from worrying about me but it does alleviate it.

Like I thought, there was a highrise hotel in the city that's just in the right position for me to spy on the shrine. Once I found a comfortable enough place on the roof, I prepared for one of the most boring moments when spying on a target.

A stakeout.

Well, I'll just have to endure the boredom right now. It's for the sake of gathering information after all.

xxx 1 Month Later xxx

It's been a month since I've started spying on the shrine and what I've found was quite heartening.

The apprentice priestess's name is Mariya Yuri. She is what the people in the shrine call a Hime-Miko. I've never heard of the term before and I wasn't able to find out what the title entails but I was able to tell that she possessed an ability known as Spirit Vision although what that ability does I have no idea except that it has something to do with clairvoyance.

She also seems to have very good instincts as I'm sure she has realised I've been stalking her albeit from a far away distance that I'm sure she can't even see me. The reason I know this is because she always became wary of her surroundings the instant I start spying on her. Every time I came onto the roof of the highrise hotel and started my daily stakeout, she starts to watch her surroundings more as if she can feel me watching her but isn't able to tell where I'm watching her from.

There were a few times that some men in suits had come onto the roof, but wasn't able to find me. Good thing I put up some subtle bounded fields using some runes that erase themselves once they detect anyone heading in this direction on the stairs. So far, they haven't been able to discover it. Just in case though, before I start my daily stakeout I would always quickly use Structural Analysis to try and find anything that doesn't originally belong on the roof.

Good thing I did, because they have started to plant small cameras to try and catch me in the action. My current hacking skills came in handy during these moments. I'd hack into their system - without them noticing of course - and find blind spots in their surveillance and when there wasn't any, I made them. There were times that they used analog cameras to avoid hacking, but I circumnavigated them as well.

When I detected that they tried using mystical means instead, I put out some bounded fields to cloak my presence. All their scrying would show is an empty roof. If my earlier bounded fields are any indication, they don't seem to know how to detect the bounded fields. I've also been using my Assassin outfit for insurance. I avoided from hypnotizing people though, because they might be able to detect it.

All in all, I was completely sure they weren't able to track me or even knew I existed. Still, it seems the magi in this world are more in touch with technology. That might be a bit troublesome but it's nothing I can't handle.

So far at least.

It is a bit disheartening that the magi of this world seems to have more influence on the government if all the resources that are at their disposal from the history I gleaned from the cameras are anything to go by.

What is heartening though, was the Mariya family's approach to Magecraft. They still keep Magecraft a secret of course but they weren't as strict as the magi back in my original world. All the people in the shrine know about it despite most of them not being magi themselves. The Mariya family was also quite a normal family as well.

As far as I can tell, they don't seem to practice some of the more loathsome practices the magi I know does, like giving away their children to other magi families or focusing on their magi duties more than their families or some of the political back stabbing I've seen magi in my original world do. The Mariya family is quite a loving one actually if the intimate relationship I've seen between them is any indication.

They also don't seem to have the usual arrogance I'm used to seeing in magi from old families. In fact, they seem to take their priestess duties seriously and treat people kindly and fairly, especially to the older generation, although that might be because their bloodline is also not that old yet. Which also means that they might not have a lot of influence in the magical community.

Still, as far as magi go, they are the best I can hope for when I want to find a way into the magical community. It's high time I make contact with them.

xxx Scene Break xxx

That night, I made my way to the house the Mariya family lived in near the shrine while wearing my Assassin outfit. I first made sure that there are no unexpected visitors inside the house and they aren't expecting anyone else either. Those factors can sometimes mess up any operation really bad. I was planning to meet Mariya Yuri in her room once everyone else inside was asleep. I hadn't expected her to come out the front door and head straight inside the shrine.

What is she doing inside the shrine in the middle of the night?

Curiosity and worry for her safety made me follow her. After a few turns, she went inside a huge empty room. It was probably the place where the monks usually meditate or pray. Once she arrived inside the room, she went to the middle of the room and started looking around. It looked like she was waiting for someone. She looked nervous too.

"W-Whoever you are, I know you're there. Y-You're the one who's been w-watching me for the last month r-right? S-Show yourself!" She said in a nervous voice despite trying to show a brave front.

I raised an eyebrow and frowned a little. So she was waiting for me. How did she found out though? I was sure there was nothing like an ambush waiting for me inside the shrine, so she hasn't told anyone yet. I wonder what she's planning.

While I was contemplating this, a few minutes had passed and Mariya Yuri just stood there waiting. Eventually, tears started collecting in her eyes and she looked like she was close to crying though she kept holding it back.

Damn. It's always the tears isn't it?

Why is it that after 200 years of living experience I still can't bring myself to stand idly by when a small girl is crying? Well, I guess it's just in my nature. Deciding not to scare her more than she already is, I decided to show myself while making sure to shut off the runes for my Presence Concealment. I also made sure to disguise my voice, just in case.

"I wasn't expecting that you were waiting for me. How did you know?" I opened one of the shoji doors to the room and entered.

"I-I felt that you were going to come see me tonight a-and if I wanted answers, I should m-meet you here." She said while stuttering. She's clearly scared even though she's still trying to put up a brave front. "I-I didn't expect you to be so..."

"What?" I prompted her to continue.

"...young." She finally concluded.

I almost sniggered at that. She's one to talk. She's confronting someone who she knew has been watching her for the past month without knowing anything about them, alone and scared. She's got some steel in her for someone who's clearly terrified. I really should punish myself later for scaring her this much.

"Yeah. Sorry for disappointing you. Were you expecting some scary mysterious person to show up? And what do you mean that you felt me coming?"

"Not really, I never felt any hostile intent. It felt more like curiosity than any ill intention. That's why I came here alone. I was sure that I'd be fine." She's stopped stuttering so that means she's not that scared anymore. That's a relief; I didn't come here to threaten her after all. "As for what I meant about feeling that you were coming, my instinct as a Hime-Miko is quite strong. Thus, when my instinct tells me something, it is usually correct."

I knew it! So her powers are something similar to clairvoyance. Better ask about that later though, for now I'd better explain myself to her. First on the list is that I have to apologize to her, I don't want her to think I'm a bad person.

"Sorry about scaring you. I was just trying to gather information."

"What were you trying to find out? I don't think I have any huge secrets."

"Well, I'll have to explain my situation before I get to that. Let's sit down, this might take a while." I was already in a seiza position when I finished my sentence. After seeing that I didn't mean her any harm, she also sat in a seiza in front of me.

"Now, I still don't want to reveal who I am so you can just call me Archer. Nice to meet you."

"Hello Archer. I am Mariya Yuri. Please just call me Yuri." Following my lead, she also introduced herself while bowing slightly in a manner appropriate to a shrine priestess.

And thus, I began to explain to Yuri about my situation and the reason I've been stalking her for the past month. Of course I made it clear I wasn't threatening her. I told her that I was a self taught Magus and that I 'discovered' my abilities at a very young age. As I was learning Magecraft by myself all this time, I never knew what the magical community was like and that she was the first Magus I've ever met in this world.

It was partly true, since I did taught myself Tracing and she really was the first Magus I've ever met in this world. I told her that I was curious of this world's magical community and wanted to know more about them before revealing myself since I knew next to nothing about them and it made me a little paranoid.

Yuri at first didn't believe me. Why would she? My Magecraft was very different to the magic that she's learned all her life but after demonstrating my Tracing Magecraft by Tracing a few household items nonchalantly, she decided to withhold her judgement.

After some more explanation on the experiments I've been doing since my 'discovery' of my abilities (of course I didn't reveal everything, just the general outline), she finally believed my explanation and agreed to reveal everything that I might need to know about the current magical community (at least, everything she was allowed to divulge anyway) as long as I swear that I will not use any of the information she will be revealing for any kind of ill intentions. I easily agreed, as I'm not planning on doing those things anyway.

Before she started her explanation however, I stopped her. Tomorrow was a school day and it was already very late. We'll only get a few hours of good sleep if we go to sleep now, no sense in making it shorter. I told her that I'll come visit some other time and we can continue where we left off, I also asked her to keep my existence a secret to which she agreed. After walking her back to her house and setting up a suitable time to meet, I went straight home. I'll be visiting Yuri again tomorrow and I'll finally get some answers about this world's magical community.

I just hope this world's magical community is more accommodating than the one in my original world.

xxx Scene Break xxx

Over the past few months, Yuri and I have started to develop a strange friendship of sorts. I would keep visiting her in the shrine grounds in the weekends or during the public holidays and we would exchange information. Finding out how the History Compilation Committee operate set me at ease since they use mostly hypnosis and information black outs without harming the innocent, making them far better than the Clocktower in my book.

She also explained some of the basic mechanics of this world's 'magic' system. It seems that this world's Mysteries required invoking the blessings of the deities that even now exists in order to enact them. I was able to ask Yuri to teach me some basic spells called Spell Words that is similar to my Reinforcement. The result however, was quite disappointing.

The increase in stats granted by the Spell Words doesn't seem to be as effective as Reinforcement. I had first thought that it could be used in conjunction with Reinforcement to further increase my base stats but as it turns out, my Magecraft and the Spell Words Yuri taught me don't seem to mesh well together as they seem to cancel each other out.

The reason is because filling one's body with prana is an act that is usually used by magi of this world to dispel magic that is affecting the body and since Reinforcement requires me to fill the imperfections in my body with prana it is effectively the same as me dispelling the effects of the Spell Words.

However, I decided keep the knowledge of how to cast these Spell Words in case I can't use Reinforcement somehow. You never know. It's better to 'have it and not need it than need it but not have it'.

As for the existence of deities, it was something that I had already considered since this world seems to still be in the Age of Gods. There were some similarities of this world and some of the alternate worlds I've blundered into during my 'youth'. Most of the Gods I've met share one trait however. That is to say they were complete assholes. There were some benevolent ones but there were very few of them.

In exchange for her explanations, I explained to Yuri about my Magecraft. She seemed afraid at first when I suddenly Traced a mundane broadsword in front of her but she recovered quickly when she sensed I had no ill intentions whatsoever. Of course I kept the information about my Reality Marble to myself. Who knows how she'd react to it. If there's anything I learned about Reality Marbles is that you should always keep the information about them under lock and key.

Despite the magi in this world not being as loathsome as the ones in my original world, I still think they might make me their human experiment subject if they ever find out about my Reality Marble.

Seriously, I've been in enough alternate worlds to know that.

I just hope I won't be in a situation where I'll ever have to use it or bar that, have no other witness present when I do end up being forced to use it.

Anyway, Yuri also seemed interested when I didn't invoke any deities to enact my Mystery. She says that my Magecraft is a revolutionary find among all the current school of magic since all of them use Spell Words one way or another. Not invoking any deities when enacting a Mystery is a completely alien concept to the magi of this world.

As exciting as this news is, I was able to convince Yuri to keep this information to herself. There's no telling what the magi of this world would do to get their hands on it and that's not even as bad as being on the radar of some politically influential people who might try to use me for their own ends.

I really hate politics. I'll say it again.

I.

HATE.

POLITICS.

Other than that, Yuri and I also frequently exchange cooking recipes. When she first found out that I'm a really good cook she was quite happy since she also has a degree of passion for cooking. After tasting my heavenly cooking however, I've somehow ignited the fire of rivalry in her in terms of cooking.

Perhaps she thought that she will be able to instruct me in the culinary arts but instead, my ability surpassed hers by a wide margin. She's been challenging me every time she thought of a new recipe ever since. I'm not complaining though, I enjoy seeing her defeated face that was somehow filled with happiness (it's contradictory I know, but that's just how it happened) whenever she gets a taste of my desserts.

It seems that me being a man who is very good at cooking is a bit wrong in her eyes or maybe she just thinks of me as a rival she has to defeat, I don't know. Either way her passion for cooking is in full force and I'm very glad for it. It's unfortunate that I haven't shown my full capabilities yet. If I did I might crush her passion, which is something I want to avoid. The other reason is because of the reaction people get when I go all out in my cooking.

To think those who ate my cooking could get orgasms from every bite. I haven't gone all out in my cooking ever since.

Besides that, Yuri also reminds me a lot of Sakura. A timid Yamato Nadeshiko who actually has a strong heart and quite a good cook too with a passion for it to match. Fortunately she wasn't abused from her family like what Sakura experienced (I was very relieved at that. I might have murdered her family if that was the case. No way I'm going to turn a blind eye to something like that ever again).

Not everything went as I had originally hoped with my regular visits to the shrine but in a way I'm glad it went the way it did. I'm talking about the two new additions to mine and Yuri's rendezvous.

In the numerous times I've visited Yuri - although she did her best to keep my visits a secret - I was still found out by Yuri's younger sister, Hikari and Yuri's friend, Seishuuin Ena who visits the Mariyas from time to time. Both times happened the same way, much to my dismay.

They walked in on us when we least expected it.

It was Hikari who found out about us first. When we first met, she thought that I was some kind of Phantom Thief, here to kidnap her sister and take her as my bride. Where she got that idea I will never know, though I suspect my disguise played a part in it (A black shroud covering my face and head with a black coat, black pants, black shirt and black shoes. Clothes that emphasize on stealth).

Remembering that time always seem to make me want to chuckle because of how comical it was if I look at it differently.

xxx Flashback Start xxx

I was rendezvousing with Yuri as usual for our scheduled meetings. She was just starting to explain to me some of the duties that Hime-Mikos are burdened with when suddenly, the shoji door opened revealing an eight year old girl in her pajamas who was rubbing her eyes while still carrying a pillow that is almost the same size she is. Clearly she was just out of bed judging from her state of sleepiness.

In any other situations I would have tried to tuck her in bed like I usually did with Shizuka. Unfortunately, right now she has somehow trespassed on the Ground Zero of my meeting with Yuri.

Me and my E rank luck. Can this get any worse?

...

...

Please tell me I did not just think that.

"Onee-chan, what are you doin-" She cut her sentence short once she saw me sitting in seiza - like I usually do during my visits - in front of Yuri. Then her sleepiness seems to vanish entirely as her eyes became wide open.

"THERE'S A PHANTOM THIEF TRYING TO KIDNAP ONEE-CHAN!" Before she was able to start screaming I had already subtly activated a Bounded Field that would muffle any light or voices coming from this room just in case something like this happened. I had originally constructed it so that I could handle any ambush that might happen in a silent manner. Well, I guess this can also be considered an ambush.

"Hikari! Not so loud!" Yuri whispered with a low voice just loud enough for Hikari to hear. Unfortunately Hikari seems to be too excited to hear it.

"Oh, my god! You're here to take onee-chan as your bride aren't you?" It seems that Hikari's imagination is starting to run wild, as her 'accusations' got more and more absurd.

Yuri tried to placate her sister before she causes a scene but she wasn't having much luck. Hikari just kept on with her excited ramblings, not even bothering to pause for a moment to catch her breath.

Seriously, where the hell does she get all these ideas? Do I look like a Demon King? And who the hell is Kaito Kid? In an act of desperation I used a technique that most times would work on quieting little girls who have a sweet tooth.

I decided to shove a mochi in her mouth.

The effect was instantaneous. She immediately stopped being so excited and started to have a look filled with bliss on her while chewing on the mochi. The mochi was something I made during dinner for Yuri and I brought it that night for our regular dessert battle. Thankfully, I still have two more of them with me so I can still win tonight's battle once I present it to Yuri. I knew I made the right choice to bring more of them when I saw Yuri had a look of sad jealousy watching her sister finish the mochi.

xxx Flashback End xxx

After some lengthy explanation on Yuri's part, Hikari decided to join her sister with her excursions with me. She told me to bring more of the mochi when I come visit though.

Kids. So predictable.

Hikari easily reminds me of Yukari without her violent tendencies. I sure hope Hikari doesn't grow up to be as violent as Yukari though. I don't think I can take it.

As for Ena, she was more relaxed when she barged in on us unannounced and found out about me. Although she looked relaxed, from her stance I could tell she was ready to pounce on me and beat me up if I tried anything to hurt any of them. Fortunately, after both Yuri and Hikari explained the current situation to her she decided to join us. She warmed up to me pretty quickly considering we've only just met. Her personality reminded me a bit of Musubi.

In other words, she's a cheerful airhead who likes to fight strong people.

Instead of a bear like Musubi however, Ena was more like a monkey. When she found out that I was good with swords we sparred with each other every time we meet. It's one of the reasons I've started coming to the shrine in the afternoon as well as in the night, though the meeting had to be convened in the woods behind the shrine when meeting in the afternoon in this case.

The other reason is because we can extend the length of the meeting if it is in the afternoon unlike during the night. The night meetings had to be short so that everyone can have enough sleep for school the next morning.

Anyway, my spars with Ena usually ends with a draw, mostly because I was holding back on my Magecraft and relied solely on my sword skills and the skills of the owners of the various blades in Unlimited Blade Works. Ena also mainly focuses on her natural body strength and agility. She never used any Spell Words in our spars.

Although I was never serious in our spars, I'll admit that trying to fend off Ena was quite challenging. She had an amazingly flexible and agile body not to mention good battle instincts and reflexes. It was a good experience.

And like Hikari, Ena also fell in love with my desserts. She would gobble them all up in a matter of minutes. I'm pretty sure she's gonna have an amazing rack once she hits puberty. There were already small lumps on her chest this early in her teens. I don't even want to think about what she would look like once she fully matures.

And so, time flew by. I kept coming to visit Yuri and Hikari sometimes just to chat, other times to exchange more cooking recipe. Most of the time however, I came discuss about the magical community's culture.

All was right with the world as I was able to balance my time spending them with Godou and Shizuka while regularly visiting the Mariya siblings Yuri and Hikari. Even the regular spars with Ena was quite fun. Truth be told, these peaceful days was actually quite fun for me. The only violence during this period is during my vigilante moments.

I should have known it wouldn't last forever.

xxx Scene Break xxx

It's been almost a year since I became friends with Yuri. It was a Saturday night. My last visit to the shrine was last Sunday.

I headed to the shrine like I usually did at night, timing my arrival so that I would arrive at the shrine at the agreed time. Since it was determined beforehand, I was surprised that the lights were still turned on in the house. That would mean that the residents of the house are still awake.

That's odd.

I'm pretty sure that Yuri's parents would have gone to sleep by now. Since they are still awake, that must mean something had happened. There was also an aura of gloominess around the house. Although the house didn't seem to be in a state of alarm, it had a resigned feeling around it.

Something definitely happened.

Worry for the Mariya siblings plagued my thoughts so I went to the window of their rooms - I knew where their rooms are thanks to my one-month surveillance of the house - to check up on them. Yuri's room was empty but since there were no signs of a struggle she wasn't taken by force. At least, not from her room. I decided to check up on Hikari next, since I was just as worried for her as I did for Yuri.

The lights were still on when arrived at Hikari's window. Peering inside, I saw Hikari sitting on her bed with a haunted look on her eyes.

This can't be good.

I was conflicted. Should I interrogate her now or wait after she's calmed down? The former gives me more time to react to whatever that has happened while the latter made sure Hikari wasn't as distraught as she is now when I press her for information.

What should I do?

After some contemplation, I decided that time isn't a luxury that I have at the moment especially since I don't even know what is going on right now.

I need information - badly - if I'm going to decide what to do.

Firming my resolve, I lightly knocked on the window to Hikari's room. Hikari jolted out of her bed in a panic but calmed down immediately once she saw me. She then made sure to lock the door to her room before opening the window to let me in.

"Archer-nii, what are you doing here?" Apparently she forgot about our meeting after whatever it is that has happened.

Gently now, I don't want to distraught her anymore than she already is. "It was past the time for our meeting. Since your light was still on I decided to check up on you."

"OH! I-I'm sorry. I-I completely forgot about our meeting!" She looked real sad at this.

Not wanting her to feel guilty, I pat her head softly and used a soothing tone to assure her. "It's okay, I'm not angry. Can you tell me what's happened? I couldn't find Yuri anywhere. Is she alright?"

She started sobbing before answering. "They *sob* took onee-chan for a ritual *sob*. The Campione, Marquis Voban is *sob* gathering all the Hime-Miko he can to conduct a ritual to *sob* force a Heretic God to descend *sob*." Hikari answered me while sobbing and trying to hold her tears in.

"Sorry Hikari, but what's a Campione and a Heretic God?" Damn, my studies into the magical community haven't gone that far yet. Are these Campione some kind of influential people? What did she mean that he's trying to force a Heretic God to descend?

At my prompt, Hikari then started to explain about the Heretic Gods, those who rebelled against their own myth that descend on the world and the Campione, Devil Kings who usurped the Authority of the Heretic Gods they defeated. No matter the Heretic Gods or the Campiones, it seems that they almost always cause destruction on the level of natural disasters wherever and whenever they appear.

It felt like I was in the Grail wars again when it reminded me of battles between Servants.

It was when I found out that Yuri was taken by one of the Campiones for a ritual to force a Heretic God to descend, my worry turned to stone cold fury.

These Heretic Gods cause natural disasters to occur just from them existing in the mortal plane and now the one who the people has 'assigned' the responsibility of defeating them, who was supposed to defend the populace from these Heretic Gods is trying to force one to descend?

How many people will suffer before the Heretic God is finally vanquished?

Will the Hime-Mikos gathered by the Campione even survive the ritual?

Considering the sheer amount of prana needed to summon even a fraction of a Heroic Spirit, summoning a Heretic God will most likely kill the Hime-Mikos.

The sheer disregard for those around him that this Campione, Sasha Dejanstahl Voban, is committing made me seethe with anger. How many innocent lives is he putting in jeopardy with this...selfishness, of his just so that he can duke it out with a Heretic God?

I may understand the selfishness born from valuing the lives of those you care about above the unknown masses. This self-serving action however, is akin to tyrants of old whom forces hardship on their people for no better reason than for their own enjoyment instead of necessity. This person is the kind of tyrant I loathe from the bottom of my heart.

There were Kings in the past that were hated by his own people simply because they had to make the hard decisions despite those decisions were what saved the whole kingdom from ruin.

There were Kings who waged wars across the land for a dream that was shared by him and his men.

There were also Kings who was lucky enough to rule during times of peace and decided to match his rule with the current age using wisdom instead of a sword and brought prosperity to his kingdom.

These are the kind of rulers that I could admire from the bottom of my heart for their devotion to their duty, their charisma and their love for the people of their kingdom.

Sasha Dejanstahl Voban, the Devil King of Balkan is not one of them. In fact, he is at the polar opposite of the admiration I had for the said past Kings. The very existence of someone like him is an anathema to me. The very knowledge that someone like him still breathes is what made me want to enter the battlefield just so that I can put an end to their tyranny.

All these emotions went through my mind and could likely be felt by Hikari too, which is probably the reason she became frantic.

"No, Archer-nii! Please don't do something like going after onee-chan or the Marquis! It's already too late, they have already departed just this morning from Japan and should already be in Balkan! Please, Archer-nii!" Hikari was almost hysterical to try and persuade me.

It seems Hikari has figured out that I might go do something stupid to bring Yuri back. I wanted to assure her, but I don't know how. Hikari kept begging me not to go while sobbing the whole time trying to hold in her tears that is clearly leaking from her eyes. In front of her desperate pleas, I wasn't able to say no.

I also acquiesced because I have no idea how to even start looking for Yuri. Even if I somehow got on a plane right now and go straight to Balkan, I still don't know where exactly they are in Balkan. My current network of information is too thin for me to be able to try to pinpoint Yuri's location and my status, as a 12-year-old child doesn't help either.

The only thing I could do now was pray for her safe return while cursing myself for my own uselessness.

After promising to Hikari that I won't do something that will incur the wrath of the Campione, I gently tucked Hikari in bed and held her hand until she fell asleep.

She never stopped calling out for Yuri in her sleep.

xxx One Week Later xxx

I became more active in my vigilante activities to vent my frustrations for the past week.

Of course I made sure I didn't do anything that will reveal my identity despite my current unstable emotions. I know it was reckless to be doing this while my ability to make clear judgements are hindered but it was something that I need to do before my emotions got the better of me and I decided to do something completely stupid.

Like storming the History Compilation Committee Headquarters to find something that could help me bring Yuri back.

The idea forms in my mind every time I start thinking about Yuri, which is the reason I went for my patrols in the town with more fervor. It helps that once I'm in my 'battle mode' my mind clears and I start to logically form strategies and tactics to take down the criminals without leaving any traces that might expose me. It's a state of mind I was able to achieve after countless battles.

I also kept visiting Hikari every night for the past week to comfort her while she sobbed herself to sleep. She never cried in front of me, most likely because she felt that I might go after Voban to try and bring Yuri back if she did. There was no trace of the energetic little girl that I've come to know.

I swear, if anything happens to Yuri I'm gonna hunt down that sorry excuse of a Devil King even if it's the last thing I do.

To hell with him being a Supreme Ruler, Devil King, God Slayer, Rakshasa Raja, Campione or whatever. I'll shove down Gae Bolg so far up his ass his alternates are going to feel it. I couldn't be bothered to use something majestic like Caliburn or Excalibur for this. Something so steeped in curse and violence is the perfect tool for this job.

I know these emotions are because of the hormones that have started to surface now that I've reached my teen years, but I couldn't be bothered to hold them in check right now because they are justified.

That night, I was heading to the shrine like I've been doing the past week to comfort Hikari again. The thought of the small girl crying herself to sleep calling for her onee-chan makes my heart ache.

When I arrived however, I noticed that light was pouring out of the window of Yuri's room.

It can't be. I-Is she back?

I wasted no time pondering on that thought and just went straight to the window of Yuri's room. I was able to calm myself down enough to consider being cautious when peering inside the window and there, on the bed was Yuri and Hikari sleeping together while hugging each other tightly.

I almost burst into the room when I saw Yuri. Fortunately, I had enough tact to know when it's not yet time for me to show myself to her tonight. She needs rest and she rightly deserves it. Before I left however I noticed that although asleep, Yuri doesn't seem to be at peace. It's most likely that nightmares are plaguing her dreams.

I frowned.

It seems that whatever she experienced, even in her sleep the memory haunts her. Is there nothing I can do to grant her any peace at all? Most of my Noble Phantasms are meant for destruction. Even those that are not used for such things are useless in this situation. If only I have something that exudes an aura of peace and protection I coul-

Wait. I do have something like that. And it's also perfect if I want to hide its existence while making sure that it would always be with her.

Finishing that thought, I slowly opened the window I was leaning on - looks like they forgot to lock it up. I'd better do it for them when I leave - and entered the room without making any noise. I went to the bed and stood beside it.

'"Trace... On." I whispered my incantation and prepared to Trace the only Noble Phantasm in my Reality Marble that I am able to copy perfectly. It would serve to protect Yuri as well to a small degree. Without Gaia limiting Avalon's capabilities, it's healing properties should augment Yuri's own though it would still be quite slow.

After finishing the seven steps of my Tracing, what lay in my hands is a scabbard. Avalon: The Everdistant Utopia. The sheath of Excalibur. The Noble Phantasm that granted Saber/Arturia a pseudo immortality, preserving her youth and healing most of the fatal injuries she ever sustained in her life. A gift from the fae for Arturia. It is the very embodiment of the utopia that people seeks.

Its function as a Noble Phantasm is an "absolute defense" that completely shields its user in the domain of the fae, Avalon, the everdistant utopia. It is the greatest protection in the world that goes beyond defending or reflecting, completely isolating its user in a world completely separate from the regular world.

Since Yuri is not it's true master, she would not be able to use it's defensive capabilities but right now what is needed is the aura that the scabbard exudes.

An aura of peace and protection for those that find themselves in its embrace.

It's a silly notion, even when the scabbard was inside me it didn't prevent me from having nightmares of the Fuyuki Fire, but right now this is the only Noble Phantasm that I can think of that even has a chance to liberate Yuri from her memories that are haunting her. And since I can implant it inside her, she shouldn't know of it's existence - I didn't, and I had it in me for 10 years - accomplishing my objective of not revealing any of my Noble Phantasms this early.

The moment I implanted Avalon inside Yuri, her complexion became better and whatever nightmares haunted her dreams seems to have faded as well. A small peaceful smile finally graces her lips and it set me at ease.

Looks like it's working. Maybe Gaia's absence also no longer limits the aura that Avalon exudes. I might have to experiment a bit with that theory later. For now, this is enough.

I made sure to lock the window as I went back home, finally feeling relieved after a whole week of being unsure whether one of the people precious to me will ever return. I should prepare my best dessert the next time I visit Yuri.

xxx 3 Years Later xxx

I've done it.

I finally finished all the Compulsory Education up until high school in three years. I'm now officially a high school graduate despite being only fifteen years old in the eyes of the Japan's education system.

To think that I had to hasten the completion of my education.

Well, ever since I found out about Heretic Gods and Campiones I've been itching to travel the world in order to meet all the Campiones. It was a decision I brooded on for months after Yuri returned to Japan after that ritual to summon a Heretic God.

Speaking of Yuri, I was very happy that she came back safe and sound from that dreaded ritual.

Even if she was, just physically unharmed.

I never asked what happened to her when she was 'abducted' though I knew that whatever did happen traumatized and scarred her for life. I saw the signs enough to know.

The effort she put in to force herself to smile.

Her trembling and frozen fingers when she recalled something horrible.

Her haunted eyes every time she recalled the memory of what happened.

There were other signs too though mostly small ones but basically, whatever happened was terrible.

I tried visiting more often as well and with Hikari's help; try to make her at ease. Fortunately, Avalon was also working it's magic to heal her trauma. I once asked if she was having nightmares lately to see if the scabbard was still working its miracle. She said no, instead of nightmares she told me that she was actually having very strange dreams of being in a grassy field, with a clear blue sky, white clouds and the sun hanging in the sky giving warmth to the whole place.

She somehow felt safe and protected in that place like nothing in the world will harm her when she's there.

It was one of the reasons she no longer feared to go to sleep. Before that, she always had terrible nightmares that will wake her up at night and making her feel exhausted, nauseated and scared. Now, dreaming of being in that place was one of the things she look forward to when going to sleep.

With the combined efforts of me, Hikari, Ena (sometimes) and Avalon, she soon - two whole months actually - became comfortable enough to reveal everything to us. About what happened during the ritual.

The ritual that Yuri was forced to participate in was something that was made to force the descent of a Heretic God. The Campione Sasha Dejanstahl Voban wanted to fight a powerful Heretic God and thus, gathered the Hime-Miko. He gathered dozens of Hime-Miko for the ritual. In the end - although the identity of the Heretic God that descended was not known - the ritual was successful but at the price of the sanity of the Hime-Miko present for the ritual.

As far as Yuri knows, only she and one other survived with their sanity intact.

After hearing her tale in silence, forget stone cold fury, I was murderous. Although I already knew it, hearing about the Campione's total disregard for human life from Yuri - one of the person who survived the ritual - made me want to really to kill him and apparently it showed in my aura as even Yuri and Hikari was starting to be afraid of me. Ena just looked at me with concern.

It took the combined efforts of Yuri, Hikari and Ena to calm me down, and the only reason I did so was after Yuri explained more about the adverse effects of a Campione being absent.

It seems each Campione will claim the country of their residence as their own and in these parts, they are protected from the descent of Heretic Gods in prolonged periods as it is easier for the Campione of that region to reach the place the Heretic Gods descended to defeat it.

I pointed out Voban's disregard of human life, so how is it that he can be a protector?

Yuri then reminded me that if a Heretic God descended on a place that was outside of a Campione's sphere of influence, that region would be subjected to the Heretic God's whims.

That finally gave me pause.

Seeing my hesitation, Yuri pushed through on her explanation on Campiones since it was clear that Hikari's explanation wasn't sufficient and clearly lacked some more important details. Like how few the number of Campiones is in the world, how rare the event of their birth really is and what would happen if any of them died and a Heretic God descends on the land they once claimed.

That last part was clearly an effort by Yuri for me to see reason and not do something reckless like challenging a Campione for a duel to the death.

After some more explanation on Campiones and Heretic Gods that Hikari didn't tell me - This is simply because she doesn't know them yet. She's still an apprentice Hime-Miko after all - I parted with the three girls. Of course, they made sure that I've given up on the notion of going after a Campione. Despite that though, Yuri seemed grateful that I would go so far for her sake.

It was after learning more about Campiones and Heretic Gods that I ended up sitting and brooding on that information for months, thinking about what I should do. In the end I decided that I needed to meet with the Campiones myself. Meaning that I'm going to have to start travelling the world sooner than I thought.

The only problem is that I can't ignore Japan's education system. In other words I need to finish all the compulsory education that Japan has set for everyone in the country. I didn't want to wait too long before setting off for my journey simply because I had to finish high school so I had a lengthy discussion with Grandpa Ichirou about accelerating my education.

The next morning, Grandpa met with the principle of my school - Turns out they knew each other. Figures. - to see if they have or know any program that will allow me to skip a few years of school life. Fortunately for me, although my original school doesn't offer that kind of program they know a school that does.

Jounan Academy.

After some more lengthy talk whether I'm ready for high school or if I'll be able to cope with having older classmates and other relevant issues that affect high school life, I was given the permission to enter the high school section of Jounan Academy in the Spring of next year if I can pass their high school level written tests.

Piece of cake.

I already finished my compulsory education plus a university qualification back in my original world (I really have to thank Rider for infecting me with her love of books, it really helped my studies a lot and experiencing high school life hundreds of times during my 'dimension hopping days' helped I guess) and it showed in my studies in my current world. I could probably teach high school subjects by this point but I decided to hold back in my exams to avoid too much suspicion.

The written tests that I had to take were something that Jounan had designed to determine my actual level of knowledge and competence. If I aced all the tests than than it will actually determine that I have the knowledge level of a university graduate, which was why I had to hold back a little, just enough for the test to determine that I'm around the level of a high school sophomore.

And thus in Spring, I began my three years of high school life as a Freshman (although they acknowledged me as being in the same level of a Sophomore, they were more comfortable that I start out as a Freshman), which has now come to an end as I have formally graduated from high school.

The three years of my high school life was relatively normal. Well, except that one time when Ena was bestowed with Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi or the Sword of Kusanagi. I don't know whether the name is just a coincidence or it's the Root trying to screw me over, but whatever.

It happened during my senior year.

Ena wanted to see how far my Tracing can go so she told me to try to Trace Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi. Of course I was able to Trace the sword but unlike the original, the one I Traced was an empty copy without the spirit of the deity that resided in the original which what classed the sword as a subordinate god in the first place. Still, it was still a good addition to my arsenal.

Unfortunately, it seems Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi perceived this as an insult and immediately proceeded to take control of Ena through her Divine Possession.

It's objective.

To 'utterly crush me for even daring to make a mockery of a copy of himself'.

I was forced to fight with Ena with some of my more esoteric skills, namely, launching dozens of swords and rain it on Ena who was possessed by the rampaging Heretic God. Of course, I only launched mundane swords at her. I don't want to end up accidentally killing her after all.

The rain of swords however was only a distraction so that I could get closer to Ena in order to use Rule Breaker. My gamble paid off, as I was able to stab Ena with Rule Breaker while she was busy trying to defend herself from my endless rain of swords. The fight however ended with the small hill we used as a landmark behind the shrine for our secret meetings being littered with dozens of one to two meter craters.

The fight also made Hikari, Yuri and Ena completely gobsmacked. Seriously, their expression was really comical. I should've taken a picture of it. I'm sure they'd be completely embarrassed by it.

Anyway, after recovering from their...shock, Hikari and Ena was very excited about it - because I was somehow able to face off against a Heretic God even if it was a lesser subordinate god - Yuri however, forced me to explain to her what had happened. I tried playing innocent at first but being glared by that stern expression that makes me feel like I've done something wrong made me cave in (Hey! You try getting stared at by a Yamato Nadeshiko that feels like your mother with a stern expression and see how you like it!).

She, Hikari and Ena were surprised when I revealed some of my blade Mystic Codes - I didn't show them my Noble Phantasms other than Rule Breaker. How dumb do you think I am? - though both Yuri and Hikari was more interested in Rule Breaker's dispelling ability since it seems to be enchanted with a similar but stronger version of Disaster Purification (an ability to dispel magic) that Hikari possessed.

Yuri asked me if she or the History Compilation Committee could borrow its powers if the need ever arises. I agreed, as long as it's not used for some diabolical purpose of course.

Other than the incident with Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi, the other supernatural events that occurred during my three years of high school are my visits to the shrine for my weekly study of the magical community though after two years, it became a time for me and the three girls to just chat and train in our specialty magics.

For Ena, she trained in her control of Divine Possession - Ena made sure that Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi promised that it would not try to take control like what happened before. It agreed as long as I don't Trace it's copy in front of it ever again - by sparring with me in her Possessed state. I also started to use my blade Mystic Codes against her though I still haven't revealed any other Noble Phantasms except Rule Breaker ever since.

Yuri's and Hikari's progress however wasn't very noticeable as Yuri's Spirit Vision is highly dependent on chance and Hikari's Disaster Purification takes a lot of her reserves to do and it still couldn't do much to my Traced weapons except making it a bit fragile even after she used almost all of her reserves to do it. Still, being able to 'hang out' with them was quite fun especially the dessert battles that I and Yuri compete in. She still hasn't won even once against me yet.

Before I graduated from high school, I already had a long talk with the whole family about my decision to meet the Campiones (using the 'traveling the world to experience what the world has to offer' excuse). Shizuka cried saying that I haven't taught her enough about my culinary skills, Godou gave me some moral support and Grandpa Ichirou gave me his blessings. I wasn't surprised that Grandpa Ichirou let me leave so easily. Even though I'm still fifteen, I've almost finished high school after all.

I've also already told Yuri, Hikari and Ena about it - by using the same excuse I used with my family - and they all prayed for my safe return. I told them that I'll send them postcards regularly to tell them about my travels. Hikari told me to learn how to make foreign desserts and make some for her while Ena wanted me to make her some foreign delicacies when I come back (I actually know how to make them already but I never told them that). As for Yuri, she just asked me to bring back souvenirs.

On the eve of my departure, I start to reminisce about the family I made back in my original world.

It still amazes me to this day how big my family ended up being. Marrying Rin, Saber, Caster, Jackie, Sakura, Rider, Luvia, Bazett, Caren, Gil-Ko, Lorelei, the Sekireis Musubi, Tsukiumi, Akitsu, Karasuba, Miya, Kusano, Matsu, Kazehana, Uzume, Chiho (human), the Dead Apostle Ancestor Altrouge, the True Ancestor Arcueid, the female human personification of humanity's will Alaya-ko, the Aozaki sisters Aoko and Touko had given me many children I cared for.

Remembering Gilgamesh as the nanny still gives me a warm feeling of accomplishment inside my heart.

And finally, Archer, the person who I used to hate his guts for daring to even call himself an Emiya after giving up his ideals. I was finally able to see how despairing it is to be unable to save those who you so desperately want to and that having a family of my own was what prevented me from becoming like him.

Once I considered it, he must have been forced to kill those in Fuyuki City in alternate worlds including Rin, Sakura, Fuji-nee and other people I/he knows time and time again when any of my alternates fail to destroy the Grail. I shuddered at this thought. Even during my travels through the Kaleidoscope I never had to face that kind of decision.

Not only that - after I was able to assimilate more of his memories - I discovered he never even had the chance to sort out his thoughts during his days as a Counter Guardian. He would be continually sent out by Alaya to wipe out every single trace of a threat to humanity when the Counter Force failed, and since we are talking about the existence of parallel and alternate worlds, it is never ending.

I doubt Archer ever had the time to mourn or even firm his resolve before coming back from his last assignment and was sent out again. Worst of all, he was never given any choice to either kill or spare anyone. He was just made to wipe out everything. This cycle continues on and on forever. By this point even I am not presumptuous enough that I won't give up after all that.

I start to think that among others, he also deserves a happy end.

I only hope that Rin and Aoko manage to figure out a way to combine the Second and Fifth Magic to allow him a second chance so that Counter Guardian EMIYA's existence will finally find peace. They also have to be very careful in their experiments so that they don't accidentally create a paradox and erase his existence entirely.

The theory is that if Archer can become a true Heroic Spirit and be placed in the Throne of Heroes, all the parallel worlds that required his summoning in the fifth Grail War can be achieved even if he didn't become a Counter Guardian thus his existence as a Counter Guardian will no longer be needed.

He still has to try and kill my alternate selves in the Grail Wars though, if only to put some sense into their heads.

As for me, I died on a hill of swords at age 47 (physically at least, I was more than 200 years old mentally) fighting against the Magi who was jealous of my family's power and waged war on us. I was forced to fight a whole army of undead, Dead Apostles and dozens of Enforcers. Archer and Gilgamesh were fighting somewhere else, as was everyone else.

I fought to protect my family so my only regret is that I was leaving them behind. I was glad that Takami was able to find a way for my Sekireis to not fall with me when I died. I hope they live a happy life to the very end. Of course - as soon as I'm able to - I would hurry home to their arms once I find a way to go back.

...Or Rin finds me first and starts to Gandr me to the afterlife for dying in the first place.

The next day, I departed from Japan. Shizuka cried the whole way to the airport while Godou tried to comfort her. I bid them goodbye with the biggest smile I can muster. They are also my family now; I'll definitely come back to them once I finish my quest to meet with the Campiones.

Whatever happens, I'll come back to them.

A/N: For those who don't know yet, this is the rewrite for my draft fic The Fake Campione. I didn't delete that one because I thought it might give an inspiration to other writers and some of the scenes there won't exist here.

Anyway, I'm still conflicted whether I should just replace Godou with Shirou going to Italy and fight Verethragna. Or just follow my draft and insert Shirou around after the Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi fiasco.

I'll decide after some responses to this chapter. I'll happily accept suggestions and critics. Flamers…..well, I'll accept them too.

Anyway, please review.