"Even so… I still won't forgive you," Illya said sharply. "You took my father from me."
Shirou had just asked Rowan to save her.
The same boy she had ordered killed minutes earlier.
It left Illya's emotions tangled and raw.
She had expected Shirou to be just like Kiritsugu.
Cold. Distant. Willing to discard people.
Instead, the boy in front of her was painfully sincere. The kind who always put others before himself. A fool, in the purest sense.
Of course, she wasn't going to admit any of that out loud.
Shirou scratched his cheek.
"Ten years ago, there was a huge fire. Everyone in my family died. Kiritsugu pulled me out of the rubble and raised me."
"He was kind. He cared about justice. I don't believe he abandoned you without a reason."
Shirou hesitated.
"Sometimes, late at night… I'd see him sitting on the roof, staring northwest. Crying."
Illya froze.
Northwest from Japan meant Europe.
Germany.
The location of the Einzbern family.
Tears welled up before she could stop them.
"Then why…" she whispered. "Why didn't you come back for me?"
Rowan stepped in.
"Why don't you come with us for now? We're heading to meet someone who survived the previous Grail War. He might know what happened to your father."
With a flick of his hand, the mirror space dissolved.
The real world returned.
Rowan wasn't in a rush to transfer Command Seals yet. He was still refining the spell.
Better to keep Illya close than risk losing track of her.
By his count, most of the Masters were already accounted for.
Saber belonged to him.
Archer belonged to Rin.
Berserker was Illya.
Lancer belonged to the Church's overseer.
Rider belonged to Sakura Matou, currently bound to Shinji Matou.
Only Caster and Assassin remained unconfirmed.
And the overseer would know.
So the group heading toward the church grew by one more.
To ordinary eyes, it looked like four teenagers walking through the outskirts of the city.
The Servants had all shifted into spirit form.
Rin stopped in front of a tall, imposing church.
"This is it. He asked me to meet him here tonight."
Rowan's gaze swept the building.
"He's inside."
Rin kicked the doors open.
The echo thundered through the sanctuary.
A man closed the Bible in his hands and turned around.
"Kicking in church doors isn't very respectful, Rin."
Kirei Kotomine's eyes flicked over Shirou, Rowan, and Illya.
"You've brought some unusual guests."
Rin's crest flared to life.
"Fake priest. Answer me."
"Did you kill my father?"
For the first time, Kirei looked mildly disappointed.
"So you found out already. I was hoping to tell you later. You would've lived a few days longer."
His right hand ignited with Command Seals.
"It doesn't matter. You're a Master now anyway."
"And how convenient."
"The Grail's vessel is here too."
"In one place. Saves me the trouble."
Kirei assessed the group.
Rin posed no real threat.
Her Archer had already been tested by Lancer.
As for Shirou…
Barely more than a civilian.
And Rowan Mercer…
Kirei sensed nothing from him.
No mana.
No magical circuits.
Nothing.
A normal man.
Which made Rin bringing him here incomprehensible.
The only genuine complication was Illya and her Berserker.
But that problem had already been accounted for.
Kirei smiled faintly.
"Let's get this over with."