Shirou Muramasa temporarily ended his magic training and noticed Miyamoto Musashi staring at him from a short distance away. The look in her eyes was odd—like an ordinary girl spotting a cute animal she desperately wanted to scoop up and smother in hugs.
He frowned and raised his right hand. The Command Seals on the back of it dissolved under the overwhelming power of the [Time Wrap], and with them, his contract with Miyamoto Musashi vanished. Their connection as Master and Servant was gone.
Normally, when that bond is severed, a Servant can only remain active either by drawing on their Master's magic reserves or through the skill [Independent Action], which allows them to sustain themselves for a time.
Unfortunately, Musashi was a Berserker-class Servant. She had no such skill, and her mana consumption was far higher than average. Unless they reestablished a contract quickly, Musashi would disappear before the Holy Grail War even began.
Shirou felt awkward as he approached Doraemon and Musashi. In his current child-sized body, even Doraemon was taller than him—and Musashi, with her flamboyant beauty and flower-like presence, towered above them both.
"Master♪ What happened? Why are you so small?" Musashi crouched down in mock concern, ignoring the dignity of a Servant-Master relationship. She reached out and ruffled Shirou's red hair as though he were a doll.
Pop!
Shirou smacked her hand away, glaring."Don't touch me. My magic malfunctioned. I'll be stuck like this for a while."
Musashi chuckled. "Is that so? Funny, because I heard Doraemon say you're six years old. My, my—what a dishonest child."
"…Then—"
"Children who lie must be punished! Now, watch!"
She suddenly grabbed him, hugging him to her chest. Her slender fingers squished his cheeks mercilessly."Yosh yosh yosh yosh~! As expected of my Master—so cute, hehehe~."
Her smile radiated pure, unfiltered stupidity and joy.
"Let me go!" Shirou thrashed, but his child's strength was nothing compared to a Servant's. He caught the faint fragrance of her hair, which only made things worse.
Their bond was broken—he had no way to command her.
"Nooo~ I won't let go~." Musashi sang the words with dangerous cheer.
Meanwhile, Doraemon ignored the scene completely, happily munching away on the dorayaki Musashi had brought him. His raccoon-cat face practically glowed with bliss.
"Dora—" Shirou tried to call for help, but Musashi covered his mouth. In the next instant, they vanished.
A crackle of lightning. When his vision cleared, Musashi was carrying him through a forest in the mirror world.
"…Musashi. What are you doing?" Shirou asked cautiously.
He wasn't afraid for his life. He understood her well enough to know that, while eccentric, Musashi was a fundamentally good person who kept her word. Even without a contract, they were still bound by trust.
The real problem was that Musashi was a Berserker. With her sanity value at minus 100%, "doing something stupid" was almost guaranteed.
Setting him down, Musashi planted her hands on her hips."I heard from Doraemon that the only reason Master beat me in our duel… was because of that weird sword."
Shirou grimaced. "…Yes. So what?"
"That won't do." Musashi's expression turned serious. "A swordsman who relies on external tools will never become a true swordsman."
"…You're the last person qualified to say that," Shirou shot back.
"Hehehe." Her dazzling smile was still exactly 100% stupid.
"I wasn't complimenting you!"
"What's the difference? Anyway, I've decided! From now on, I'll be teaching you swordsmanship, Master!"
"…What?" Shirou stared at her like she'd lost her mind.
"It's perfect! Master, like me, isn't bound by the usual definition of a swordsman. You're a natural—able to do anything to claim victory. That hunger for victory is proof you can reach the highest peak of swordsmanship!"
Shirou rolled his eyes. "So you dragged me out here just to spout nonsense?"
"That's part of it. But also—Master, we need to form a new contract."
Finally—the real issue.
Shirou's face darkened. "As you've already noticed, this situation is a mess. I didn't expect not only to lose my Command Seals, but for the entire contract to collapse."
In theory, he could use [Time Wrap] to restore things. But doing so meant abandoning the current path he was walking. After weighing the pros and cons, Shirou decided to stay as he was.
Musashi nodded. "The Grail's system gave me some data on how to reestablish contracts, but none of the options suit us. Most require Command Seals, or the help of the families that designed the system. That leaves us… not many choices."
The most direct method was transplanting magic circuits. By moving a Master's circuits into a Servant's body, the mana transfer became stable and efficient, bypassing the need for a contract.
But this came at a terrible cost: once a magician lost their circuits, they were crippled. Even partial transplants crippled their potential.
For Shirou Muramasa, however, this wasn't a problem. With [Time Wrap], he could reset his body to an earlier state, restoring anything lost.
In fact, he had already planned to use the technique to transplant circuits into himself. Normally, circuit transplants were considered a fool's gamble—success rates were abysmal unless the circuits were part of a complete system, like Mystic Eyes.
But if Shirou transplanted circuits from his own body into himself, then restored the originals with [Time Wrap], there would be no side effects at all.
The process was simple, if insane:
Extract a magic circuit.
Use [Time Wrap] to restore his body.
Extract the same circuit again.
Repeat until he had stockpiled the maximum number of circuits his body could handle.
Transplant them all at once.
Through this cheat-like method, Shirou could become the single most circuit-rich magus in history—surpassing even the artificial homunculi of the Einzberns.
As for the more "traditional" method of magical energy replenishment—exchanging body fluids—it was no longer viable. Without a contract, such rituals would only provide a one-time recharge.
And for a Berserker like Musashi, whose mana drain was astronomical… one recharge per fight wouldn't even begin to cut it.
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