A classic European manor, its grey, scale-like towers standing proudly, seemingly narrating the long history of the Matou family.
As for why it wasn't a Japanese shrine, the Matou family wasn't native to Japan to begin with. The founder of the Matou family, Zouken Matou, was originally named Makiri Zolgen.
It was precisely because of the Holy Grail War that he chose to settle here to realize his wish, taking on the alias Zouken Matou based on a similar phonetic pronunciation.
"Quite grand, but not as big as my house."
Zenith clapped his hands and stepped out of the driver's seat. He sniffed the air, a look of utter disgust crossing his face. "Smells like moldy bugs. This old geezer must be rotting away himself."
Pausing, he glanced back at Sakura Matou, who had just gotten out of the car. "Of course, I don't mean you, Sakura. You know humans are visual creatures. The difference between a monster and a monster girl is bigger than the difference between carbon-based and silicon-based lifeforms."
"Uncle!!"
Shirou Emiya interrupted just in time, terrified that Zenith was about to spout more unhinged nonsense, and quickly dragged the topic back on track.
"I've been here many times, but I've never felt any mana or magical presence?"
"If you're a noob, talk less, otherwise it makes me look like I'm on your level, which is embarrassing."
Zenith irritably tapped him on the head with his index finger. "Watch."
He pulled out an enchanted bow. The moment the arrow struck the building's outer wall, a transparent curtain of light rapidly materialized out of nowhere, instantly deflecting the projectile.
"That was too reckless, Master. What if a sudden attack triggers a counterattack from the Bounded Field?"
Saber was ever the rational one, instantly dropping into a combat stance.
The white frosted windows on the tower were pushed open from the inside. An ancient voice reached everyone before the speaker's face—which looked like dead wood—even appeared.
"As a guest, this method of greeting is far too impolite. Perhaps you feel you already have victory in your grasp, to act so unbridled and ill-bred?"
Zouken Matou.
His upper body was visible from the window, clad in a kimono, his limbs as thin and withered as a mummy's. He was bald, with sunken eye sockets. A single white speck in his pitch-black eyeballs revealed a terrifying gleam—that was his pupil.
This great magus, over five hundred years old, exuded a sense of historical decay from head to toe. An old relic who should have been buried in the forgotten corners of history, he was merely lingering on by draining the lives of others and turning his body into a hive of worms.
"Upbringing and politeness are concepts that only exist in relationships between humans. Back in my hometown, we never bother with those two words when dealing with livestock and beasts."
Zenith's retort was razor-sharp, not giving the old man a single ounce of face.
"Heh heh."
Being a scheming old bastard after all, Zouken Matou naturally wouldn't be angered by a few mere words from Zenith. "That Assassin was killed so easily... it truly exceeded my expectations. However, he was still useful. Saber's Master, the young magus, Zenith."
Zouken Matou leaned on his cane, his voice sounding like tearing leather, making it incredibly uncomfortable to listen to.
"Fortunately, I don't need to explain the story of a mantis trying to stop a chariot to a Chinese person. What you are trying to do is far too absurd. This is a noble contract established jointly by the Three Great Families, spanning hundreds of years. Completely ending the Holy Grail War? Heh, foolish beyond belief."
Zenith naturally knew the origins of the Holy Grail War.
Hundreds of years ago, the Einzberns, in pursuit of the Third Magic, sought out fellow travelers with noble characters and ideals.
The Third Magic was a miracle capable of materializing the soul, thereby achieving absolute immortality—a miracle that could bring salvation to humanity.
Through the incomplete Third Magic, the "Heaven's Feel," the Einzberns constructed the Greater Grail located in Fuyuki City. They hoped to use the power of Heroic Spirits returning to the Throne of Heroes to punch a hole in the world, thereby peeking into the Root to perfect the Third Magic.
The ancestors of the Tohsaka family dreamed of reaching the Root through the power of the Greater Grail, which was also the long-cherished wish pursued by all magi.
And then, there was Makiri Zolgen.
In the past, he hoped to eradicate all evil and extinguish the "karma" harbored by humanity.
Unfortunately, Makiri, who possessed such a grand vow, lost his original heart over the long passage of time, turning into a monster madly pursuing immortality.
"Makiri."
Zenith uttered this name that was almost buried in the dust of time.
"No matter what schemes or words you have, they are meaningless. I'm not here to negotiate, and you don't need to spout so much nonsense. Just obediently accept your death—that is what you should do."
"Is that so? Then that's truly a pity."
Zouken Matou originally wanted to say something more, but at this moment he seemed to lose interest. One could vaguely see a trace of regret slipping through his expression.
"What a perfect body. If it could be made into a worm bed, it might extend my life by a hundred years."
Answering him was Zenith's RPG.
The area-of-effect damage of his magic wand was far too exaggerated. Although this was the Matou family's magecraft workshop, there were still many innocent civilians nearby.
Zouken Matou secretly kidnapped people every year to extend his life, killing quite a few in the process. But if Zenith unleashed his magic wand here, his kill count would probably instantly surpass the old man's.
Zenith's RPG could deal damage to Stands because Minecraft's attack hit registration had a higher priority, but fundamentally, it was still a physical attack.
A massive flash of fire mixed with the smoke and dust of the explosion bombarded the protective Bounded Field of the magecraft workshop, rippling with dreamlike waves.
Zenith lowered the RPG launcher and waved his hand. Dealing with this magic-side stuff using tech-side items yielded half the result for twice the effort. Professional matters had to be left to professionals.
"Saber, finish him off. A full-power liberation of the holy sword! I want to see just how hard this Matou family tortoise shell really is!"
Following Shirou Emiya, Saber's mana bar was routinely empty, basically relying on scarfing down food to replenish her mana. In certain worldlines, the method of mana transfer wouldn't even pass censorship.
Following Zenith was different. Crafting a mana storage item from the Mahou Tsukai mod, the "Attuned Diamond," granted a mana pool of 10,000 points, enough to support a full twenty Noble Phantasm liberations.
Although these items couldn't be stacked, they still worked when placed in a storage bag. So it was equivalent to Zenith having an external mana pool of up to 270,000 points strapped to him, on top of his own total mana.
He could use Noble Phantasm liberations like basic attacks!
Saber raised the holy sword high. The Invisible Air that had been wrapping the blade dissipated, revealing the true form of the Sword of Promised Victory.
"Ex—calibur!!!"
A golden beam of light shot straight into the sky, as if it could cleave the entire heavens apart. An Anti-Fortress Noble Phantasm of A++ rank, with a maximum capture of 1,000 targets, its slashing power was strong enough to tear open a citadel.
As the pillar of light slashed down, the protective Bounded Field of the Matou family's magecraft workshop shattered under the overwhelming pressure, letting out an ear-piercing screech like claws on a chalkboard.
Saber had deliberately controlled the attack range and enhanced the attack intensity. Her own power was definitely much easier to control and retract than Zenith's magic wand.
The ancient European architecture was cleaved in half right down the middle, the powerful mana impact reducing its internal structure to a sprawling field of ruins.
Countless bugs crawled out of the rubble, swarming around the decaying man. Zouken Matou's expression was as gloomy as ever. The destruction of his magecraft workshop had affected his half-finished immortality, and his body was rapidly approaching its limit.
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