In the worm pit, countless insects crawled wantonly in this lightless underground. Here, even turning one's neck was an incredibly difficult and painful act; the young girl could only stare blankly at the dim ceiling.
Insects crawled over her body, the strange sensation making her feel uncomfortable. However, in this home, no one cared about her feelings; only when she entered the worm pit would Grandfather remember her.
What is Big Sister doing at this time?
Occasionally, she would also think of her perfect, flawless sister whom she admired. However, the physical pain dragged her from her fantasy world back to the cruel reality again and again.
Being poisoned during meals, being thrown into the worm pit whenever there was a chance, and even having unknown things crawling all over her while she slept.
She opened her eyes.
Her soul, which had fallen into a dream, gradually returned to her body. Dazzling sunlight met her eyes, and at the same time, the slight, soft mound against her face made her feel very comfortable.
It seemed like she hadn't seen the sun or had a good night's sleep in a long time... Grandfather didn't like the light of the sun, so the atmosphere of the entire Matou Family was quite gloomy. From the moment she entered the Matou Family, she was mostly thrown into the worm pit during the day, and at night, she had to undergo various adjustments from Grandfather.
On the few occasions she passed by a window, she saw the moon through the glass. She heard from Big Sister that the moon was so bright because it reflected sunlight, but compared to the sun, the moon's light was still too weak, insufficient to illuminate the entire Matou Family.
Akatsuki was sleeping soundly. Last night, she had killed Matou Zouken and razed the Matou Family to the ground. After Matou Sakura fell asleep, Akatsuki felt that with Matou Sakura's aptitude, she still had to learn magecraft, mostly because she wanted Matou Sakura to have the ability to protect herself.
So, Akatsuki personally dug out the Matou Family home from beneath the replica of the Ye Family's ancestral residence she had created, piecing together all of Matou Zouken's magecraft research.
It had to be said, that Old Maggot Matou Zouken was truly wicked! Without the help of the World's Consciousness to translate, Akatsuki couldn't understand a single sentence of the magecraft-related things he wrote.
Even though she recognized the characters and could understand them when linked together, she couldn't for the life of her find what those words had to do with magecraft. Using the "World Card Translator," Akatsuki forced herself to plow through the machine translation of all the relevant classics written by Matou Zouken before Matou Kariya returned to the Matou Family.
Summary: Completely useless.
After all, she really had no way of dealing with papers that used a large number of cryptic terms, classics, and ancient literature. Even now, as a True Ancestor, she would get a headache just looking at those densely packed words.
Feeling Matou Sakura wake up in her arms, Akatsuki also opened her eyes.
Their eyes met, and time seemed to stand still at that moment.
"Good morning, Sakura."
"Good morning, Lady Akatsuki."
Akatsuki was the first to break the silence. There was no other reason; if they didn't get up now, they would probably only be able to eat lunch. Matou Sakura was still at the age where she was growing. It didn't matter if she hadn't eaten her fill in the Matou Family before, but now that she was in Akatsuki's hands, Akatsuki would definitely raise her to be plump and healthy.
As for the magecraft classics she had organized last night, Akatsuki didn't plan on touching them herself. However, there was a suitable candidate in Fuyuki City right now; she would just catch him later to give Matou Sakura some tutoring.
"Achoo!"
In the room, Waver suddenly sneezed. Rider, lying nearby, looked at Waver in confusion and asked, "Boy, your constitution is a bit weak. A true king must not only have excellent strategies but also a strong physique!"
"None of your business! I'm not a king!"
Facing Waver's retort, Rider shook his head helplessly. Then, thinking of something, he picked up Waver, who was sitting in a chair, with two fingers.
"Aaaaah!! What are you doing, Rider!!!"
"Boy! A famous person once said that life lies in movement! For your strong physique! Go shed some sweat!"
"Huh?"
Waver, forced into running gear, looked at Rider in disbelief, as if doubting that this was all a hallucination.
With a "smack," Rider's huge palm slapped Waver's back. "Boy, I heard that exercise helps promote growth. If you keep exercising, you might not need the Holy Grail to fulfill your wish of 'making yourself twenty centimeters taller'!"
Waver, who almost fell after being slapped by Rider, looked at him angrily.
"When did I ever say my wish was to grow twenty centimeters taller! And aren't you afraid the enemy Servant will come to ambush us after I'm exhausted from exercising!"
Rider picked his ear and grabbed a handful of cookies from a plate on the table, stuffing them into his mouth. "Boy, your vision is a bit narrow. With me, Iskandar the King of Conquerors, here, who would dare to ambush you! Now, start running!"
"Eek!"
On the other side, inside the Fuyuki City park.
Matou Sakura, now wearing a top-tier Mystic Code—a small purple dress—created by Akatsuki using Marble Phantasm, was holding Akatsuki's hand and standing next to a park bench.
The lush green grass, white marble floors and stone steps, laughing children chasing each other in games, and housewives sitting on benches chatting about daily life.
This warm scene formed a sharp contrast with the nights in Fuyuki City.
"Sakura-chan!"
At this moment, a rowly child nearby seemed to recognize Matou Sakura, who hadn't appeared for a long time, and waved at her excitedly. Hearing her name, Matou Sakura subconsciously glanced in that direction and then moved a bit closer to Akatsuki.
"Go ahead." Akatsuki patted Matou Sakura's head; the hair she had meticulously cared for felt great to the touch. In her memory, she had only been this attentive to Ye Keer. "A child's main task is to play lightheartedly. Just play to your heart's content before becoming an adult, otherwise, you'll regret it when you look back and find your childhood had no color."
"Sakura, hold out your hands."
Matou Sakura obediently held out both hands, and Akatsuki placed a wooden key into her palm. "This is the key to our home. When you are lost, it will show you the way forward. Don't go to dangerous places, and remember to come home early."
"Lady Akatsuki..."
Matou Sakura tightly gripped the key and walked toward her former companions under Akatsuki's gaze. This was a sign of her closed emotions gradually opening up, though it was only directed toward Akatsuki.
"Vampire, my teacher requests your presence."
A voice so filled with 'pleasure' it was unsettling sounded from behind. Kirei Kotomine had come to find Akatsuki alone, without bringing Assassin.
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