…
"Tokiomi!"
The instant she saw Hundred-Faced Hassan, Aoi Tohsaka immediately thought of her husband. She looked up toward Leon, but by then he had already shot forward like an arrow released from its bow.
"Leave it to me!"
Although his Observation Haki and Instinct had already shown him Tohsaka Tokiomi 's condition, Leon didn't mind putting on a display of urgency and concern. Looking every bit the righteous knight would earn him sympathy and trust.
Acting didn't cost him anything, after all.
"Wha—?!"
With Mana Burst activated, Leon charged like a golden locomotive at full speed.
The Hassan standing in his path didn't even have time to react before Leon smashed straight through him, exploding the Assassin into a rain of flesh and blood.
The remaining Hassan clones instinctively chose survival over resistance. They hesitated for only a split second, and Leon had already launched himself forward, leaving behind a spiderweb of cracks beneath his feet before crashing through the window into Tohsaka Tokiomi 's study.
The room came into view.
When Aoi finally saw what was inside, confusion briefly crossed her face.
The blood-soaked scene she had imagined wasn't there.
Tohsaka Tokiomi sat in his office chair as though nothing had happened.
His posture was immaculate, fingers interlocked beneath his chin, his head slightly lowered so that his eyes remained hidden.
At first glance, he looked as though he were simply resting with his usual elegance and composure.
Only at first glance.
"Tokiomi?"
"..."
Aoi called her husband's name.
There was no response.
Normally, even if he had merely been dozing, a single call from her would have been enough for him to awaken immediately, calm and dignified as ever.
That was the kind of man Tohsaka Tokiomi had always been.
But...
Today was different.
Far too different.
In Aoi's memory...
Something like this should never have happened.
"...Tokiomi?"
"..."
The growing sense of wrongness—and the terror of what it implied—slowly devoured what remained of her composure.
Unable to accept reality, she called out once more.
Still nothing.
She took two hesitant steps toward him before stopping.
Her entire body trembled.
Her slender hands clutched the hem of her dress so tightly that her fingertips turned white.
"Mom... what's wrong?"
Concerned by her mother's condition, Rin Tohsaka climbed down from Leon's shoulders, walked over, and gently squeezed Aoi's hand.
"I'm fine, Rin. Why don't you wait outside with your knight for a little while? Mommy needs to talk to Daddy."
Fighting back tears, Aoi forced a smile and knelt before her daughter, placing both hands on Rin's shoulders as she spoke with unusual seriousness.
"But..."
Though only six years old, Rin could already feel the overwhelming grief radiating from her mother.
She turned toward her silent father, suddenly shrugged free from Aoi's hands, and ran to his side.
"Rin!"
"D-Dad...?"
The moment Rin lightly touched Tokiomi's sleeve—
His body toppled stiffly sideways.
Rip—!
The carefully concealed wound split open.
Dark crimson blood spread across the floor beneath the desk, blooming like a spider lily that heralded death itself.
The scarlet color of life and death silently filled Rin's emerald eyes.
Her pupils contracted.
She froze.
A pair of warm hands gently covered her eyes.
"He... is already dead."
Leon spoke calmly, delivering the verdict for both mother and daughter.
"No... No! That's impossible! Tokiomi can't be dead!"
Aoi completely lost her composure.
Like a woman driven mad, she threw herself onto Tokiomi's body, desperately shaking him as if she could wake him by force.
"Tokiomi... please stop joking with us! Wake up! The Holy Grail War isn't over yet! Didn't you say you would reach the Root?!"
Her desperate cries gradually dissolved into heart-wrenching sobs.
Soon...
Aoi collapsed over her husband's body, weeping uncontrollably.
"Mom... Dad..."
Unable to see anything beneath Leon's hands, Rin nevertheless realized what had happened.
Tears quickly soaked his palms.
"..."
Leon silently watched everything unfold without saying another word.
Instead, he summoned his holy sword and drove it straight through the floor beneath his feet.
"Urgh—!"
Blood seeped through the cracks in the floorboards.
Another Hassan had died.
"My condolences... to both of you."
Leon casually pulled a black blindfold woven from Vibranium out of his Treasury of the Gods, gently tied it over Rin's eyes, then knelt beside Aoi while holding the little girl in one arm.
"Saber!"
"Mr. Knight!"
Mother and daughter called out at the same time before throwing themselves into Leon's embrace.
At that moment...
Only his presence gave them even the slightest sense of security.
"It's all right. As long as I'm here, I will protect both of you."
"As a knight."
As he spoke, Leon casually thrust his holy sword backward at an angle into the floor behind him.
Another Hassan attempting a sneak attack was instantly impaled.
Crack—!
A bolt of azure lightning suddenly split the night outside.
The next moment, Iskandar appeared through the shattered floor-to-ceiling window Leon had broken earlier, carrying Waver Velvet under one arm.
"Oh? What happened here?"
"I followed Archer's trail because his movements seemed unusual. That fellow was simply too fast. If my Gordius Wheel hadn't been destroyed, I wouldn't have fallen behind."
"You're too late, Rider."
Leon rose to face Iskandar and the young magus he was carrying.
Rin had already fallen asleep in Leon's arms, exhausted by grief.
Seeing another Servant enter the room, Aoi instinctively shrank behind Leon.
After everything that had happened, she trusted no one except Leon and Rin.
"Too late?"
"Yes."
"Because Archer's Master is already dead."
Leon stepped aside.
Only then did Iskandar see Tokiomi's corpse lying on the floor.
His eyes narrowed.
"Who did it?"
"No idea."
Leon shook his head.
"When we arrived, he was already like this. Someone had even arranged the body to make him appear alive."
"Hmph. What sick humor."
Iskandar clicked his tongue in disgust.
Then his sharp eyes noticed Tokiomi's empty right hand.
"So even the Command Seals were completely transplanted elsewhere..."
He glanced at the sleeping Rin in Leon's arms, then at the wary Aoi hiding behind him, and sighed regretfully.
"Looks like your trip was for nothing, Saber."
This...
Was the reality of the Holy Grail War.
"W-What do we do now, Rider?" Waver asked nervously, terrified that he might be the next Master to die.
"Caster must be eliminated," Iskandar replied as he drew his sword, his expression instantly turning fierce.
"But those venomous snakes hiding in the shadows and striking whenever they please are an even greater nuisance."
He looked toward Leon.
"Saber, would you mind leaving those opponents to me? You're not exactly in a position to fight while protecting them, and I happen to have a score to settle with those Assassins. Archer and Caster can wait."
"Sure."
Leon nodded without hesitation.
"Be my guest."
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