"It seems… she really is just asleep…"
After checking Fujimura Taiga, who was slumped over the table, Shirou Emiya spoke up.
Hearing this, Rin Tohsaka, who had been tense the whole time, finally relaxed and let out a long sigh of relief.
"I told you, it was just a sleeping aid," Fang Mo shrugged. "As a Master, can't you trust me a little more?"
"This 'sleeping aid' would be explosive not just in the medical field but also in the realm of magic," Rin rubbed her forehead in frustration. "Physical assistance for sleep, with a possible side effect of death, right?"
"That's because you hit too hard, the dose was too strong," Fang Mo said with a shrug. "Too much sleeping aid can be fatal, and hitting with a brick too hard can also be fatal, so a brick is a type of sleeping aid…"
With that, Fang Mo casually put the brick away.
Since he had spoken earlier, the German boy he had summoned as a decoy was no longer necessary. Fang Mo recalled the avatar with a mere thought.
Yes, it was actually just a decoy. The German boy had been impersonated by Steve. Fang Mo wasn't the only one who could use the "Custom Steve" ability; Steve himself could use it too. Coupled with the "Smart Moving" mod, Steve could be disguised as anyone.
In the beginning, Fang Mo's decoy Steve had many limitations, such as being invisible to ordinary people or unable to speak. However, after much experimentation and research, Fang Mo had gained a deep understanding of some mod settings. He had even discovered configuration files that allowed him to toggle the visibility of the decoy. Now, controlling it was as smooth as ever.
For example, in the Minecraft world, the "Smart Moving" mod only added new abilities like swimming, crouching, charge jumping, and climbing. But, as previously mentioned, mods that didn't add new items were functional, adding conceptual abilities to the game. This meant they acted like a form of conceptual magic, making the "Smart Moving" mod extremely useful, even outside the Minecraft world.
By figuring out the tricks, Fang Mo could make Steve move however he wanted. And when combined with the "Custom Steve" mod, the possibilities were endless. With enough imagination and detailed modeling, Fang Mo could even shape Steve into anything, like a living, red-eyed, white-haired character, complete with skin, clothes, vocal cords, and even muscles...
He had tried something similar in the X-Men world, but the dual-perspective issue made it feel like a Japanese roleplay, which quickly made him lose interest.
It was only last night, on a whim, that Fang Mo had decided to use these abilities for practical jokes.
"Enough of that," Rin said, unaware of the intricate details, rubbing her temples in exasperation. "Since Fujimura-sensei is asleep now, let's talk about the Matou family."
"Oh, alright," Fang Mo nodded cooperatively.
"You saw her just now," Rin continued. "The girl with the purple hair is Matou Sakura. During the Holy Grail War, Masters can sense each other, but I didn't feel any Command Spell from her."
"Indeed," Saber nodded. "I didn't sense the presence of a Servant near her either."
"So, Sakura shouldn't be a participant in the Holy Grail War?" Shirou sighed with relief. He cared deeply for his junior, Sakura, and was glad to hear she wasn't a Master. "That's good."
"Archer, what do you think?" Rin turned to ask her Servant. Despite their frequent bickering, Rin trusted Fang Mo when it mattered.
"I did sense something strange," Fang Mo rubbed his chin and spoke in a way that immediately caused both Rin and Shirou to tense up. "There's something off about her."
"Do you think she's a Master?" Rin's voice grew tense. If Sakura were a Master, things would get complicated.
"I'm not sure she's a Master, but Aki just told me that she has two very faint traces of magical energy," Fang Mo replied, watching their reactions closely. "One of them is similar to the energy from that barrier at school, but very weak. It doesn't feel like a Servant... more like she's been affected by the barrier."
"And the other?" Rin asked quickly, her tension rising.
This made Shirou glance at her curiously. From his perspective, Rin had no connection to Sakura, so why was she acting so concerned?
"The other feels cold, vile, and sinister. It's a kind of malicious magic I'm quite familiar with," Fang Mo said, rubbing his chin. "It feels less like a cunning insect and more like… well, a Jew. By the way, is the Matou family native to Japan, or are they foreigners like the Einzberns? Do they have a mezuzah or a Star of David at their door?"
"Well…"
Rin was stumped by Fang Mo's sudden question.
"Sakura mentioned something about it before," Shirou said after thinking for a moment. "I think her grandfather told her that the Matou family has some European lineage…"
"Hmm!?" Fang Mo's eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Wait!" Rin's heart sank, and she almost blurted out the truth. "Actually, Sakura is—"
"Is what?" Fang Mo glanced at her, while Shirou looked confused.
"She's…"
The words were on the tip of Rin's tongue, but she hesitated and changed her answer, her eyes avoiding Fang Mo's. "Sakura is a really good girl. I don't think she's the type of person you're imagining, so don't jump to conclusions."
"Yeah, exactly," Shirou chimed in, finally catching on. "Mr. Adolf, Sakura isn't an enemy. You said she probably isn't a Master, right?"
"She might not be a Master, but what about Matou Shinji?" Fang Mo suddenly asked.
"Uh…"
Shirou was at a loss for words.
"I've gathered intelligence," Fang Mo said slowly. "The Holy Grail War was initially established by three mage families: the Matou, Tohsaka, and Einzbern families. Even though the Tohsaka family has fallen from grace, Rin still summoned me to participate in the war. The Einzbern family also sent that homunculus. Now, if you were the head of the Matou family, would you just sit by while the others participated?"
"Do you have to drag me into your complaints about the Matou family?" Rin couldn't help but speak up.
"Don't worry, Rin. Your family's downfall is only temporary," Fang Mo patted her on the shoulder. "Once I win the Holy Grail and regain my physical body, I'll set you up with 500 handsome men and women to help you restore your family's glory."
"Who would want to restore their family like that!?" Rin yelled.
"Eh? You don't want that?" Fang Mo feigned surprise before nodding thoughtfully. "Well, you're right. If you did it one by one, it would take forever. Don't worry, Rin. We can go for in-vitro fertilization. I've got some black-market tech that can help you harvest unlimited eggs…"
"Please, just shut up already," Rin slumped against the wall, sighing deeply.
"So, Archer, are you saying Matou Shinji is most likely another Master?" Shirou quickly steered the conversation back on track.
"Or perhaps their family head," Fang Mo replied.
"Sakura's grandfather?" Shirou blinked. "That can't be. Shinji said his grandfather is very old."
"Whoever it is, we need to investigate." Fang Mo spread his hands. "Compared to other random Masters, the remaining two mage families are much bigger threats. You've seen what that little Einzbern girl can do. If not for me, she would have killed all of you."
"…"
Everyone fell silent at that.
Indeed, Illyasviel was terrifying, and her Berserker was a force that not even Saber could withstand.
"So… what should we do?" Shirou asked after a moment of hesitation.
"Let's investigate," Fang Mo rubbed his chin. "If the Matou family is involved in the war, they probably already know quite a bit about us through Sakura. We need to strike first and catch them off guard before they can act."
"When you say 'strike first,' you don't mean we're going to attack them right now, do you?" Rin frowned.
"Not necessarily." Fang Mo shook his head. "We'll wait until tonight to investigate the Matou residence. If we confirm they're enemies, Saber and I will team up to eliminate their Servant and disqualify them from the war."
"Archer, isn't two-against-one a bit…"
Saber hesitated, her honor as King Arthur showing through. She seemed uncomfortable with the idea of an unfair fight.
"This is war, Saber," Fang Mo said, turning to her. "We are all spirits who have experienced war. You know better than anyone that war is cruel. To protect what we care about, we must destroy our enemies, by any means necessary, even at the cost of bearing the criticism of those who don't understand."
"I could use more brutal methods, like a railway gun or V2 rockets to blow the Matou family to pieces in an instant," Fang Mo continued calmly. "But I haven't done that because I respect you as my allies. Saber, our goal is to win the Holy Grail and save our fallen country. This is war. Showing mercy to the enemy is being cruel to your own people."
"But…" Saber was clearly conflicted.
"No buts," Fang Mo chuckled and patted her on the shoulder. "We allied ourselves for the sake of the Grail. Other Masters could form alliances to fight us as well. That's their choice. It has nothing to do with us. If you were surrounded by two Servants, would you curse them for being dishonorable, or would you raise your sword and face them?"
"…"
Saber didn't respond but tightened her grip on her invisible sword.
"See? That's the right attitude." Fang Mo spread his arms. "For us Servants, fighting to the death is already an honor. As long as we fight fair and don't resort to dirty tricks, we're fine. As for teaming up, even countries form alliances. Is that dishonorable? War doesn't always give you the luxury of a one-on-one fight."
"Fine, Archer," Saber sighed and turned her head away. "I don't fully agree with your views, but for the Holy Grail War… perhaps you're right."
"Come on, I'm a well-rounded talent. Trust me, and you'll be fine," Fang Mo grinned, feeling his persuasive skills had improved since arriving in the Fate universe. "Just follow my lead."
Rin, watching from a distance, couldn't help but admit to herself that Fang Mo's rhetoric was absurdly effective. He had even managed to convince Saber, the King of Knights, to accept his approach. It was terrifying to think what might happen if he gave a speech in public—would he incite a rebellion in Japan?
But for now, things were moving according to plan.
Since they had decided to strike at night, everyone agreed to rest and prepare.
Rin spent some time organizing her gemstones and planning their route for the night. Since her relationship with Sakura was complicated, she had to think carefully about how to handle things.
Shirou, meanwhile, focused on trying to replenish Saber's mana—though, of course, it wasn't through any questionable means. He was simply trying to gather his own mana, but as a novice, he was making slow progress.
As for Fang Mo, he didn't have much to prepare. He could steamroll through the Holy Grail War if he wanted to; he was mostly playing along for fun. Taking advantage of the quiet moment, he decided to study some of the Minecraft items he had recently acquired.
Back in the Arad world, Fang Mo had materialized a spike block to defeat the so-called Creator Carloso. He hadn't dared to store it in his inventory back then. However, after studying it for a few days, Xiao Yao assured him it wasn't as dangerous as it seemed.
At her suggestion, Fang Mo flipped the spike block upside down, absorbed its base, and stored it in his inventory. Using it was simple—just like the black rods from Naruto's Deva Path. By extending a spike from his palm and stabbing an enemy, the spike's death law would trigger instantaneously. Even a being like Carloso, with the power of a cosmic will, had been instantly killed by it, so it would likely work on most other entities too.
It was somewhat similar to the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception from the Type-Moon universe, except Fang Mo didn't need to search for death points. Wherever his hand touched would be the death point.
Fang Mo spent some time playing around with this and other tools. Before he knew it, night had fallen, and it was time to move.
The group made their way to the Matou estate. However, just as they neared the house, they spotted a very familiar figure.
"…It's him?"