If Zouken's original body had already transformed into Sakura's nerves and become part of her body, it would have been quite troublesome. But now, having just parasitized her, he was easily pulled out by Ryougi Raku!
"How... how is this possible! How could you know my true form?!" Matou Zouken's voice came from the insect, filled with unprecedented fear.
"Please! Don't kill me! Don't kill me! I'll give you everything I have—the Matou family, Sakura—it's all yours! Just please, don't kill me!" Matou Zouken's voice wailed. His greatest desire was immortality, so he naturally feared death.
"Fool! Everything you have is already mine!" Ryougi Raku looked disdainfully at the disgusting insect and didn't want to hear its voice any longer!
"Your filthy soul shall dissipate! Be grateful—your soul will burn away. Even hell wouldn't want such an ugly soul!" His entire palm was instantly engulfed in flames. This time, Matou Zouken didn't even have time to scream before turning into a wisp of green smoke. The flames continued to burn. Ryougi Raku seemed disgusted by the insect he had just touched and was washing his hands...
In truth, if Matou Zouken had resisted from the beginning, even if he died, he might have caused some trouble for Ryougi Raku. After all, he was a monster who had lived for centuries. But when he saw Lancer, he knew he was no match, so he gave up resistance entirely, relying on his original body hidden within Matou Sakura to survive...
Under normal circumstances, this could be considered exceptionally decisive. Unfortunately, facing Ryougi Raku, he became a complete joke...
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"Alright, that old man is completely dead now, Kariya. You just need to keep your promise!" Ryougi Raku said to Matou Kariya after the insect was utterly destroyed.
"Don't worry! I will definitely follow your orders!" The overjoyed Matou Kariya quickly replied, his excitement evident on his face!
"Wonderful! Sakura is saved! But I never expected that old man to hide his soul in Sakura's body... How despicable! Thankfully, we met you, sir..." Thinking of the insect extracted from Sakura's heart, Matou Kariya broke out in a cold sweat. Who would have thought Matou Zouken would hide his soul inside a child?
"Alright, let Berserker recover. I'll tell you what you need to do later!"
"Yes, sir!" It was like a drowning person on the verge of death, clinging to life by sheer willpower, when suddenly someone descends from the sky and saves them. The gratitude in that moment is beyond words. Such was Matou Kariya's feeling. Though he had the fighting spirit to win the Holy Grail War, deep down, he knew the chances were slim. If not for his unwavering belief, he would have collapsed long ago. Now, Ryougi Raku's orders even outweighed his desire for revenge against Tōsaka Tokiomi...
"Let's go, Sakura, let's get out of here!" Taking Matou Sakura's small hand, Ryougi Raku pushed open the basement door.
Matou Sakura let him hold her hand, lowering her head as she followed him out...
After taking only a few steps, Ryougi Raku heard movement from behind a closed door...
"Kariya, who's in there?" Ryougi Raku asked Matou Kariya, who had caught up with him.
Matou Kariya noticed the direction Ryougi Raku was looking and replied, "That should be my brother's child..."
"Oh? Your brother? Is he not here?"
"No, my brother has matters to attend to and doesn't live here..." Matou Kariya shook his head, wondering why Ryougi Raku was interested in his brother.
"Matou Shinji? The legendary Second Master..." A dangerous glint flashed in Ryougi Raku's eyes. In that moment, the terror he emitted made the highly sensitive Matou Sakura shudder.
Ryougi Raku tightened his grip on the small hand, then relaxed it. At the same time, he said to everyone, "Wait a moment, I'll go check..." He released her hand and gently pushed the door open. Everyone stood obediently outside, except for Matou Sakura, who stared at Ryougi Raku with curiosity...
The room wasn't very large and was quite dark without any lights on, but Ryougi Raku immediately spotted the trembling figure huddled in the corner. As Ryougi Raku approached step by step, the figure trembled even more violently.
It was a boy about the same age as Sakura, his face buried in his knees so his features couldn't be seen clearly, but Ryougi Raku knew this was the future Second Master!
"Look up, kid!" Ryougi Raku said coldly as he stood before Shinji Matou. As if under some incredible spell, Shinji Matou obediently raised his head.
The first thing that met his eyes was a pair of pitch-black pupils. Those demon-like eyes terrified him so much he wanted to scream. Yet, strangely, even though he opened his mouth, Shinji Matou couldn't make a sound...
"Look at me!" The magical words commanded him. Though Shinji Matou was utterly terrified, he couldn't resist staring into those eyes. Gradually, his gaze lost focus, and he felt as if something inside him was breaking and reforming!
"Matou Shinji, remember, you will become a great brother. Your life's purpose is to protect your sister—Matou Sakura! Everything about her is the meaning of your existence—your thoughts, your life, your soul, all of you exists for her!" Words from the deepest depths of hell slowly spilled from Ryougi Raku's lips, pouring into Matou Shinji's mind with the most malevolent magical energy!
This wasn't suggestion or hypnosis—it was personality restructuring! For an adult or someone with even a modicum of power, the success rate of this personality restructuring was infinitely close to zero. The ability to shatter another's soul and reassemble it, thereby altering their personality, memories, and even their very being, was exceedingly rare! Moreover, its application was extremely limited, the failure rate too high, and the backlash severe. Thus, most magi capable of learning and using this useless ability simply abandoned it!
For Ryougi Raku, the side effects of this ability could be ignored, but the success rate against the target remained unchanged. This meant he could only attempt it on someone like Matou Shinji—devoid of Magic Circuits, a child, with a fragile psyche...
"...Also, remember my name. My name is—Ryougi Raku!"
"Yes... yes, Lord Ryougi!" Shinji Matou's pupils gradually regained expression. Ryougi Raku knew he had succeeded. From today onward, Shinji Matou would become someone who would disregard his own life for his sister, who would sacrifice everything for her!
"I really want to see what the Second Master will become in the future!" Ryougi Raku thought maliciously. For scum like Matou Shinji, Ryougi Raku didn't kill him but completely altered his personality traits. In a sense, Matou Shinji was already dead...
Of course, this was merely Ryougi Raku's twisted amusement.
After all, Matou Shinji was still a child. After this personality restructuring, his body quickly couldn't bear it. He gradually relaxed and fell unconscious...
Ryougi Raku had ultimately implanted absolute loyalty into his personality. Matou Kariya would eventually die, and after his death, everything in the Matou family would belong to Matou Sakura and Matou Shinji. Regardless, as one of the three founding families, the Matou family had accumulated vast wealth over the centuries! And everything in the Matou family could be said to belong to him!
After completing all this, Ryougi Raku walked out without saying much to those waiting outside, merely gesturing for them to follow.
In the main hall of the Matou residence.
"Alright, I still have matters to attend to. Kariya, just wait for my orders!" Ryougi Raku spoke first.
"Won't you stay here?" Matou Kariya asked hesitantly after a moment.
"No, I have some things to handle. Kariya, just stand by..."
Ryougi Raku turned to Matou Sakura beside him and said, "Sakura, you must listen to Uncle Kariya, okay~"
"Yes, I will, big brother!" Matou Sakura nodded vigorously, assuring Ryougi Raku.
He smiled slightly and ruffled Sakura's hair. "Let's go! Lancer! No need for spirit form!"
After a moment's hesitation, Lancer obediently followed Ryougi Raku out of the Matou residence.
Dawn had already broken, a sliver of daylight appearing in the east, but the city remained unusually quiet. It would likely be some time before it became bustling with activity!
"Lancer, what do you think of what I did?" As they walked, Ryougi Raku whispered to Lancer, who followed beside him.
"Master, everything you did was right! No matter what, we can say we've defeated an opponent and gained an ally!" Lancer adhered to the chivalric code, but he was no fool. This method of subduing the enemy without combat was more righteous than a direct confrontation!
Ryougi Raku nodded. "Alright, let's head back, Lancer. Lend me your spear when the time comes!"
"Yes, sir!" Lancer agreed to Ryougi Raku's request without hesitation, even though Ryougi Raku was asking to borrow a weapon a warrior valued as his life!
What Ryougi Raku meant by "matters to attend to" was finding a quiet place to continue analyzing Lancer's two spears. The remote and tranquil mansion he had found was exactly what he needed!
Fuyuki City wasn't large. By the time the sun had fully risen, Ryougi Raku and Lancer had already returned to their residence.
"Sir! Should we deal with those despicable spies?" Lancer suddenly frowned and asked.
"No need, Lancer. Even if we clear them out, they'll just send more! This trash can never be fully eliminated!" Upon returning to the vicinity of the house, Ryougi Raku had sensed the surveillance from the nearby familiars and Assassin. The ones Lancer referred to were likely the familiars. As for Assassin, Lancer couldn't detect him with his perception.
Ryougi Raku wasn't surprised by this surveillance. A significant amount of time had passed from the end of the first battle to his visit to the Matou family to kill Matou Zouken. He had also appeared in the war. It was only natural for the other Masters to investigate his origins and gather information.
"Let's go! Lancer, ignore them!" Lancer glanced back in the direction of the familiars, as if to let them know he had spotted them, then followed Ryougi Raku into the mansion...
…
"Have we been discovered? But I expected as much..." Emiya Kiritsugu muttered to himself as he watched the footage from the monitor.
But most of his attention was on the documents in his hand.
While flipping through the papers, Emiya Kiritsugu asked Hisau Maiya beside him, "Maiya, how accurate is this information?"
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(TL : More Chapters @)[1]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/c/Gooberilla