1994, Spring.
Fuyuki City, Miyami Town, Japan.
This remote, dilapidated, gloomy detached residence belonged to one of the three great Magus families—the Matou house.
In a spacious, tidy room, the elegant crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling wasn't in use. Only the pale moonlight streamed through the window, casting the window frame's long, distorted shadow across the wooden floorboards, stretching all the way to the room's entrance.
And there was another shadow, similarly stretched long and thin by the slanted moonlight—that of a boy, Shinji Matou.
Late at night, the blue-haired boy found himself, for what felt like the hundredth time, fussing with his hair while frowning at his reflection. He stared critically, tilting his head.
Dammit!
This seaweed head...
I really am that Shinji!!
The boy—seven-year-old Shinji Matou—was having a minor crisis. Sure, his memories from his past life had just come flooding back, but the current situation wasn't exactly giving him much to be happy about.
That's right. The boy named Shinji Matou was a transmigrator... no, reincarnator was probably more accurate. However, for the first seven years since his birth, he'd had no memories of his past life. It wasn't until tonight, as he was getting ready for bed, that those memories suddenly awakened!
His cheat ability... still hadn't shown up. He didn't even know if he had one. What if it wasn't like those wish-fulfillment stories from his past life and he got nothing?
Shinji irritably ran his fingers through his soft hair. For some reason, the more he looked at his reflection, the more wrong it felt.
To be honest, this world was pretty dangerous. I mean, when was the Type-Moon world not dangerous?
But on the other hand, if he just laid low, didn't go asking for trouble like the Shinji in Fate/stay night, and lived an ordinary life—or maybe even ran away from home like his (probably, maybe, deceased?) uncle, Kariya Matou, once did—he could probably live out a peaceful life.
Still, after regaining his memories, he couldn't shake a growing sense of unease. His little sister, who had joined the family just over a year ago; his grandfather, who never really looked him in the eye; his father, who was "temporarily" still paying him some attention... everything felt off, somehow.
Oh, right. Forgot to mention. The Fourth Holy Grail War had just ended.
Huh? What's the Holy Grail?Don't worry about it. It's basically just a fancy toy for Saber to slash at. Though, it is a little bit dangerous.
The Fate route? UBW? Heaven's Feel? No way, no way. The moment his past memories woke up, those plotlines had nothing to do with him.
Only the real Shinji was stupid enough to get involved in all that. He'd just stay far, far away.
Thinking this, Shinji lay down on his large bed and felt an inexplicable sense of relief. He wasn't the original Shinji. If he just kept his distance, everything should be fine. Yeah, definitely.
The eldest son with no talent for magecraft, the failure?
Whatever, whatever. As long as he had food to eat and clothes on his back, it was fine.
A five-hundred-year-old monster who'd forgotten his original heart? Not my problem! Do whatever you want. He'd just live a stable life and hopefully get access to the family funds like his cheap old man someday.
And then there was his little sister, whom he'd felt some affection for before his memories awakened. Sure, her situation was pitiable. Judging by the timeline, she'd probably already spent a whole year in the worm pit before his memories came back. But...
I'm sorry, Sakura!Your big brother's spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak!You've got to understand! In return, your big brother will understand you by staying out of your way!At most, I'll keep giving you that kinda "condescending" affection like before! But don't worry, I'd absolutely never do anything too awful to you!
Ding!
[You are the reincarnation of Athern's bloodline. I, your forebear—King Athern of the Old World—command you: Take your Grandfather to the Holy Grail War!]
The sudden voice in his head jolted Shinji upright.
In that moment, it was like Shirou Emiya himself had possessed him!
I will be the one to save my sister!I will be the one to end the Holy Grail War!
His heart swelled with a heroic, almost blinding sense of justice—but the feeling was short-lived.
Did that just say High Lord Aethern?
Who the hell was that supposed to be?
And why did he sound like Siri?!
Actually… not even the male Siri. This was the female one.
And claiming I'm the reincarnation of his bloodline? Isn't that a bit of a stretch?
[Do not doubt. This one is indeed King Athern from your original world, and you are indeed the reincarnation of his bloodline.]
Hmm... I don't believe you. I don't remember any King Athern from my original world.
[If you do not believe it, call me 'Grandfather,' and see if I respond.]
...I'm not calling you that.
[This one has wandered the worlds for a thousand years, searching for you to make amends, even pursuing you to this foreign realm. And you will not even grant me a single 'Grandfather'?]
...Not really, no. And hey, about that voice—can you switch to something less robotic? Maybe Alexa? Or Google Assistant? Anything but Siri.
[System initial language switching...]
Hearing this robotic tone, Shinji's eye twitched uncontrollably.
Since when are systems this cheeky?
[Greetings, grandson. I am your Grandfather—King Athern of the Old World.]
Shinji: "..."
[It's changed. Your turn to speak.]
Shinji: "..."
[Say it.]
Shinji: "..."
[Faster, grandson, or your grandfather will be gone.]
Are you freaking kidding me? How far are you going to take this joke? Shinji really wanted to curse.
[This one is truly your ancestor. Do not be an unfilial descendant. Say it.]
How about you just give me your bank account number, and we'll part ways here.
[This one is not a degenerate gambler from the 'Quit Gambling' forums.]
You are absolutely NOT a king, are you?!
[System and host contract not finalized. Initiating system separation...]
A clearly different, mechanical voice rang out.
[Grandson, quickly. Call me Grandfather.]
Then, a thought occurred to Shinji. Maybe this thing really was a system, but it needed a binding condition—and that condition was for him to call it 'Grandfather.'
Hmm... Forget it. A true man would rather die than be humiliated. I'm going to sleep. I'll just pretend this never happened.
Thinking this, Shinji turned over, hugged his blanket, and closed his eyes.
"Grand... Grandfather." The word was a barely audible whisper.
A real man knows when to yield and when to stand firm. The most important thing is to learn to compromise with life. Shinji comforted himself with this thought.
[Yes, my good grandson.]
[System binding successful.]
Two completely different mechanical voices sounded in Shinji's head at the same time.
This damn system! Shinji cursed inwardly.
[Host's resentment towards the system detected. Initiating forced separation...]
[Grandson, call me 'Grandfather' a few more times to counteract the resentment.]
Screw this! I'm done! Shinji pulled the blanket tighter and decided to simply ignore it.
But the cold, counting-down mechanical voice made him hesitate.
[10, 9, 8, 7...]
The next one will be better. The next one will be sweeter. The next one might even be a soft, sweet, silver-haired, red-eyed beauty, Shinji tried to comfort himself. But...
...Will there even be a next one?
[...3...2...]
"Grand... Grandfather, Grand... father..."
I am so damn pathetic! Shinji cursed himself.
[Yes, my good grandson.]
[Matou Shinji, your exclusive 'Grandfather, the King Athern System' has been successfully bound. Any issues arising during use are non-refundable. We wish you a pleasant life.]
Shinji instantly leaped out of bed, grabbed his pillow, and started viciously beating the mattress with it.
DAMN IT! I've been played!