*So this auburn-haired boy is Kiritsugu's son?*
Saber looked at the scene before her, her thoughts in a temporary tangle. During the previous Holy Grail War, the Heroic Spirit summoned by Kiritsugu Emiya was none other than Saber. Yet, at the final moment when it was time to make a wish, he had consecutively consumed two Command Spells to force Saber to destroy the Holy Grail.
Command Spells were contracts that forcibly twisted a Servant's actions when they refused to obey an order. Even though Saber had desperately resisted at the time, she couldn't control her own body, ultimately unleashing her Noble Phantasm to strike down the Holy Grail.
Did she have regrets? Of course she did. Did she harbor resentment? Perhaps not. After all, she was Artoria, King Arthur, a ruler who truly possessed the magnanimity of a king.
"So, I have to destroy the Holy Grail again?"
Through their brief conversation, she had grasped a general idea of what her Master intended to do this time. Ending the Holy Grail War was a truly remarkable wish. With that monster-like mana of his, he might actually succeed.
"Not necessarily. I might just be able to handle it myself."
Shirou Emiya went to cook. Zenith thought for a moment, made an excuse to step away temporarily, and returned to the Minecraft Overworld.
In the magic mod, there was an item called the Sword in the Stone. Although its acquisition method was similar to the legendary gift from the Lady of the Lake—both being obtained from a lake—this weapon was undoubtedly the Sword in the Stone.
It was the Sword of Selection that had changed Saber's entire life. During the Fourth Holy Grail War, Saber's wish had been to prevent her past self from drawing the Sword of Selection, believing that perhaps this would save Britain from ruin.
That sword had long since shattered. Zenith planned to give this Sword in the Stone to Saber as a gift.
"How is it? Is dinner ready?"
Naturally, he couldn't just give her the gift right now. Giving presents required the right timing. He was currently scheming to coax Saber into traveling with him.
Strong, reliable, and highly attractive—as a teammate, Saber was absolutely SSR-tier. Logically speaking, Iggy was also this kind of dependable teammate, but unfortunately, Iggy was currently drowning in a den of soft comforts, unable to extricate himself.
This world was different from the JoJo universe. It possessed the so-called Counter Force: Gaia, representing the will of the Earth, and Alaya, representing the collective unconscious of mankind.
Because of this, once he finished his journey in the Fate universe, it definitely wouldn't be as easy for Saber to return with him as it was for the people in the JoJo universe. Furthermore, Zenith felt rather uneasy about rashly establishing a long-term connection between the Minecraft Overworld and this place.
The main reason he could mess around so casually here was that he could run away at any time. But if he were discovered by those "god-tier" entities, he might just end up dying and respawning back home.
Dropping his gear upon death was a minor issue, but he really couldn't bear to lose his five-thousand-plus levels of experience. Moreover, while ordinary lifeforms couldn't invade his Overworld, who knew if these planetary-level big shots could? Playing it safe, Zenith had no intention of taking that risk.
Therefore, he needed to plan this out carefully.
Of course, dinner was already ready. At some point, that kid Shirou Emiya had quietly prepared hot pot. The table was covered with plenty of common hot pot ingredients: meat rolls, meatballs, beef tripe, shrimp paste...
Many of these items were not easy to find in Japan during this era.
"Since Uncle mentioned wanting to eat Chinese cuisine earlier, I looked up some information. It seems this is the only thing I could learn how to make on short notice."
It really was hard to dislike this brat. He had taken a casual, offhand remark so seriously. Everyone raised their colas for a toast; no one could resist the charm of hot pot.
"I'm the only elder Shirou has around here. Rin, since this is your first time visiting our home, according to the customs where I'm from, I should give you a gift. I don't have anything particularly amazing, but I heard you burn through gems pretty quickly. Take these and use them."
He couldn't help it; Shirou Emiya was just too sensible, making it hard for Zenith not to actively help him. *These two should just get married already.* As long as Shirou got married, this world would absolutely never reach the timeline where Shirou, Rin Tohsaka, and Saber all lived happily together.
Rin Tohsaka accepted the small pouch Zenith handed her, initially not paying it much mind. After all, Zenith was wealthy, and her Tohsaka family wasn't lacking either. Although it sounded a bit embarrassing to say, exchanging small gifts like this was very common among prominent families.
The moment she took it, Rin knew she was wrong. This plain-looking leather pouch was actually a Mystic Code.
In reality, it was just a very ordinary Minecraft bundle, a crossover item from the Baubles mod. In Minecraft, this pouch had twenty-seven inventory slots. Placed in this world, it was undeniably a piece of spatial equipment.
Inside the pouch, Zenith had placed many gems produced from the vanilla game and the Baubles mod. Diamonds, emeralds, rubies, aquamarines, topazes—he had stuffed them inside stack by stack. In terms of economic value, this single bag could buy a sizable island!
"This is too precious, um, Uncle Zenith."
*What a terrible form of address.* Zenith choked slightly. Although there was nothing technically wrong with the title, it just sounded incredibly weird. "Just treat it as an engagement token. There's still a betrothal gift coming later. It would be a blessing for our Shirou to marry you."
Shirou Emiya raised his hand to speak. "Uncle, you don't seem to have asked for my opinion yet."
Zenith and Rin Tohsaka's gazes landed on him simultaneously. It was murderous intent—murderous intent radiating from Rin Tohsaka. Shirou gulped. "I have no objections."
The murderous intent instantly dissipated. It was all so sudden that Rin still looked a little bashful. "I know about betrothal gifts; it's a custom from China. Our Tohsaka family will respond with a dowry of equal value."
In terms of assets, Rin definitely couldn't produce enough money to match this bag of gems. Furthermore, spatial equipment alone wasn't something that could be bought with conventional wealth.
She planned to bring out the blueprints for the Jeweled Sword. It was the blueprint for a Mystic Code passed down through generations of the Tohsaka family, containing the "Second Magic" capable of connecting parallel worlds.
The Jeweled Sword originated from a true Magician of this world, Zelretch, the master of the Second Magic. Although the Jeweled Sword was merely a "simple craft" he casually taught to the Tohsaka family's ancestors, it was still a genuine artifact capable of channeling the power of parallel worlds.
Compared to the unreasonable Stand abilities of the JoJo universe, this was true knowledge. Although Zenith also possessed many abilities that he could use simply by unlocking mods, he only knew how to use them without understanding the underlying principles.
There was nothing wrong with relying on his own abilities, but mastering the knowledge itself was perhaps even more tempting.
The meal ended on a happy note for everyone. While establishing Shirou Emiya and Rin Tohsaka's marriage arrangement, it also finalized the plan to subject Shirou to a hellish special training regimen.
EMIYA felt that this world was too terrifying. His plan to kill Shirou Emiya and put an end to his own ideals seemed incredibly difficult to achieve now. His Master and his target were getting married—how was he supposed to fight that?
Although the two were still high school students, getting married right after graduation was a very common occurrence. EMIYA was on the verge of depression. *Alaya, please do something about this! Where the hell did this guy even come from?*
Want more chapters? 50+ extra chapters are available on my Patreon :
<< patreon.com/Aragai_Sama >>