Chapter 360

Chapter 360: Chapter 360

Matou Residence — Basement

A boy with an unmistakable mop of blue, seaweed-like hair was waving his arms around as he delivered an impassioned complaint.

"That’s what I’m saying, Grandpa! Why are you letting her be Rider’s Master? I, Shinji Matou, am the eldest grandson of the Matou bloodline. That woman is nothing but an outsider!"

Shinji pointed contemptuously toward the girl standing nearby.

She had long purple hair and matching eyes, with features beautiful enough to draw attention wherever she went.

At school, a girl like her should have been the center of everyone’s gaze, almost a celebrity in her own right. At home, she should have been cherished by her family.

Yet in Shinji’s eyes, she was nothing more than a weak and easily bullied doll.

"She’s a coward, timid, and completely useless. Sending someone like her into the Holy Grail War is the same as sending her to die!"

Shinji’s voice grew increasingly shrill.

"Of course, if she dies, who cares? She’s useless anyway. But if we lose our chance at the Holy Grail because of her, that would be an enormous loss for the Matou family. Grandpa, are you really willing to take that risk?"

The word useless rolled off Shinji’s tongue with practiced ease, making it obvious that belittling and insulting Sakura was hardly unusual for him.

The girl named Sakura Matou showed no reaction.

Her expression remained numb, her eyes hollow, as though she had long since become accustomed to hearing such things.

Standing opposite Shinji was an old man.

He was bald, short, and hunched, with limbs so thin they resembled those of a dried corpse.

A foul odor clung to him, reminiscent of a coffin that had been left sealed in damp earth for far too long. Everything about his appearance felt unnatural.

This was the nominal grandfather of Shinji and Sakura and the head of the Matou family—

Zouken Matou.

His true identity was Makiri Zolgen, a Magus who had lived five hundred years ago and the final descendant of the European Makiri line.

He had also been one of the founders of the Holy Grail War.

Together with Nagato Tohsaka and the "Saint of Winter," Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern, he had constructed the ritual known as Heaven’s Feel in Fuyuki City, hoping to use it to reach the Root and ultimately eliminate all evil.

Unfortunately, the Holy Grail War had failed again and again.

Desperate to prolong his life long enough to eventually claim the ritual’s fruits, Zouken began using Crest Worms to steal and replace human flesh, extending his existence in a manner more befitting a rat hiding in a sewer than a Magus.

Once, he had been an idealistic young man with grand ambitions.

But centuries of unnatural life had corroded both his soul and sanity.

His original dream gradually twisted into an obsession with immortality until almost nothing remained of the Magus once known as Makiri Zolgen.

What remained was Zouken Matou—

a worm-user willing to employ any method necessary to continue living.

"Grandpa, what exactly are you going to do? At least give me an answer!"

Shinji had spent so long ranting that Zouken’s silence was beginning to irritate him, and his voice rose impatiently.

"Hehehe... Shinji, you really have grown up."

A sinister smile spread across Zouken’s skeletal face.

"To think you still remember the honor and responsibilities of our family so clearly."

He chuckled softly.

"Since you care so deeply, this old man has no reason to ignore your wishes. Very well. You may command Rider in this Holy Grail War."

"Do your best. I have high expectations for you."

Using one of Sakura’s Command Spells, Zouken created a Book of the False Attendant and handed it to Shinji.

Shinji possessed no proper Magic Circuits and almost no aptitude for Magecraft whatsoever.

Without a tool like the Book of the False Attendant, he would have been incapable of exercising any control over Rider.

Sakura obeyed every instruction without protest.

There was no objection.

In fact, there was barely any emotion at all.

Her passivity only deepened Shinji’s contempt.

With the Book of the False Attendant finally in his hands and Zouken’s carefully chosen encouragement still ringing in his ears, Shinji trembled with excitement.

"Just watch me, Grandpa! I’ll make a name for myself in this war and win the Holy Grail for the Matou family!"

His actual thoughts, however, were considerably less loyal.

’What an idiot. Something as valuable as the Holy Grail, and you think I’d hand it over to some ancient freak who already has one foot in the grave?’

’Once I win it, I’ll immediately wish to become the greatest Magus alive. Then we’ll see who dares look down on me!’

’You, that miserable Tohsaka woman... every last one of you will end up beneath my feet.’

Just imagining that future made Shinji shake with excitement.

Lost in his fantasies, he completely failed to notice the deep mockery hidden in Zouken’s eyes.

’Hehehe... foolish child. With talent like yours, you truly believe you can win the Holy Grail War?’

’You’ve never understood your own place.’

’Still, this works well enough. If you stand out in front, you can draw attention away from Sakura and keep her safer.’

’The Lesser Grail has reached a critical stage of preparation. Nothing can be allowed to interfere now.’

Old man and teenager stood facing one another, both hiding their own schemes behind equally unpleasant smiles.

...

’Are you really going to accept this?’

Rider’s cold voice echoed inside Sakura’s mind.

’You have the power to resist them.’

’...It’s all right, Rider. If they want it, they can have it.’

A gentle smile appeared on Sakura’s face.

There was still no light in her eyes.

"Sakura, come here. It’s time for your training."

Zouken smiled with an imitation of grandfatherly warmth, but the words caused Sakura’s body to tremble almost imperceptibly.

Even then, she did not refuse.

She silently walked toward the pit at the center of the basement.

Rustle... rustle...

Countless tiny sounds rose from below, as though innumerable creatures were crawling over one another in the darkness.

When Sakura looked down, she saw the pit filled with writhing Crest Worms.

Their grotesque forms and overwhelming numbers would have been enough to make almost anyone recoil in horror.

Sakura had been subjected to this place for years.

By now, terror had long since given way to numbness.

She quietly prepared herself for the ritual and stepped into the pit, disappearing beneath the mass of Crest Worms.

"..."

Hidden nearby, Rider desperately wanted to intervene and pull the girl away.

But she couldn’t.

Sakura herself was rejecting salvation.

Years of conditioning had taught her to endure whatever happened without resistance, leaving almost no will to fight back.

’Am I really supposed to stand here and keep watching?’

Rider found it impossible to calm herself.

Something about Sakura’s suffering constantly reminded her of her own past.

She did not want to see another girl meet the same kind of fate.

She wanted Sakura to be saved.

Yet with that old monster controlling everything, Rider could see no way to make it happen.

BOOOOM—!

Suddenly, the front entrance of the Matou residence exploded inward.

The violent crash immediately drew the attention of everyone in the basement.

A moment later, an outrageously loud and arrogant voice echoed throughout the entire mansion.

"HEY, OLD BASTARD! YOU HOME? COMMUNITY OUTREACH IS HERE TO SPREAD SOME WARMTH!"

---------

Read 40 Chapters ahead and support me on patreon.

patreon (.)com/Newbietranslator