Same city. Same abandoned building. Same fourth-floor room. Same characters. The only difference was time. It had been over three years since the last time they experienced something like this.
Shinji Matou, now eleven years old, had grown taller.
Sakura Matou, now ten years old, was gradually entering adolescence.
Fujino Asagami, now sixteen years old, had blossomed into a graceful young woman.
And there was Touko Aozaki, who hadn't changed at all. Time had altered many things, but it had left no traces on the Puppeteer. She remained in the prime of her beauty.
However, at this moment, her current appearance couldn't be described as beautiful.
Disheveled hair, a dirty face, and a wrinkled white shirt. The collar and cuffs were stained with a color that seemed difficult to wash off, giving her the appearance of a construction worker who had toiled all day at a construction site.
In comparison, the three underage individuals looked much better, although they too were covered in dust. Overall, they were still presentable.
This was largely due to their attire—a uniform gray tracksuit and matching face masks—which protected them from being bothered by the dust.
Yes, Shinji and the others had come prepared.
They had arrived in Fuyuki City half a month ago. During that time, they had been busy dealing with the government, logistics, water supply, electricity, gas, and various departments and companies. They had also taken the opportunity to send a few dolls to an exhibition. Finally, yesterday, Touko had completed all the necessary procedures and could officially move into the building.
The first workshop, naturally, was a secluded cottage near Mount Enzou, prepared by the Matou family for Touko. However, Touko's free-spirited nature meant she wouldn't stay in one place for long. Leaving was just a matter of time.
Shortly after the bodies of Justeaze and Irisviel were fully adjusted, Touko left Fuyuki City to continue her journey across Japan. This time, she wasn't alone. She had three accompanying "hangers-on," the underage individuals by her side.
Shinji had always wanted to travel after the Holy Grail War ended. Originally, he planned to leave home when Kenneth's recovery was almost complete. He intended to tour Japan first and then head west, visiting countries like China, India, the Middle East, and Central Europe, and finally reaching London, England, to enter the Clock Tower for further studies.
However, plans often change unexpectedly. Justeaze had obtained her own body and no longer needed to rely on external sources for magical energy. She could sustain herself. As for Kenneth's treatment, Shinji couldn't help much, and he didn't want to go back to elementary school all over again. It just so happened that Touko suggested going out for a walk, so he decided to accompany her.
Once he made that decision, Sakura insisted on joining them. Shinji initially wanted to oppose it, but then he thought about it. The parents' objections were likely based on concerns about growth, safety, self-sufficiency in daily life, and education.
He didn't have to worry about Sakura's growth when they were together. He would keep a close eye on her to prevent any misconceptions.
In terms of safety, with a Puppeteer and a Servant-level combatant, it was highly unlikely they would encounter any ancient families or forces that could pose a threat. With Touko as their experienced guide, they also minimized the chances of unintentionally violating any taboos due to ignorance.
As for self-sufficiency in daily life... well, it was a bit embarrassing to admit, but Sakura was indeed the most capable of taking care of them at home. Being with her made things easier for Shinji.
As for education—whether intentional or not—Scáthach had passed down modern knowledge to the Servants through the "Wisdom of the Magical Realm" lineage. At this stage, basic education held little significance for Sakura.
Given these circumstances, there was no reason not to bring Sakura along. As a magus and the heir of the Matou family, she would eventually leave the shelter of her home and stand on her own.
As for Fujino, she was Touko's disciple. Her most important task at the moment was to learn from Touko, so naturally, wherever Touko went, she followed.
This journey lasted for over three years. During this time, the four of them had visited almost every prefecture and city in Japan. The only city they didn't visit was Misaki City, a small city less than an hour's drive from Fuyuki City. It was Touko's hometown and the land managed by the Aozaki family. After losing to her sister Aoko, Touko was cursed by her. She could never return to her hometown unless the curse was lifted, and since then, Touko had not set foot in Misaki City.
Shinji held a skeptical attitude toward this claim:
Firstly, Aoko's magical abilities were quite average, and a long-term binding curse like this was far beyond her capabilities.
Secondly, he had heard rumors more than once that Touko had already lifted the curse.
While the physical curse could be resolved, the psychological shadow was difficult to overcome. It was like being able to wake up a sleeping person but never being able to wake up someone pretending to sleep. As long as Touko's emotional barrier remained, she would never go back. So, Shinji chose to remain silent, at most handing her a cigarette when passing by. That was all he could do.
As they continued their journey, Touko grew tired and wanted to take a break. She returned to the city closest to her hometown and decided to stay there for a while. She chose a building that represented their fate as her residence, workshop, and office for her livelihood.
Today was moving day, and Touko unceremoniously brought Shinji and the others to help with the cleaning. In retaliation for Touko's act of employing underage child labor, Shinji secretly bought three sets of cleaning outfits for Sakura and Fujino but deliberately didn't prepare one for Touko.
The result was as follows—seeing Touko in a disheveled state, Shinji couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Sensing the malice in Shinji's smile, Touko became angry and drew a rune symbolizing wind with a flick of her hand.
The next moment, an upward draft of air carried the dust on the ground and blew it into Shinji's face.
"How dare you sneak attack!" Shinji spat out a mouthful of dust and quickly carved a rune symbolizing water to settle the dust. With his other hand, he scooped up a water ball from a basin and hurled it at Touko.
Unexpectedly, Touko didn't dodge or avoid it. She continued to create more dust while mocking him.
"Thanks, I was just thinking of washing off the dust on me."
"Then wash off even more." Shinji didn't even bother using magecraft and simply picked up the basin, splashing water.
The living room turned into a mess instantly.
Fujino and Sakura, who were tidying up the room, exchanged glances, quickly closed the door, and began to organize the important items in the living room at the fastest speed to avoid being affected by the "battle" between the two.
Similar "battles" had occurred many times during their journey. The two girls went from not understanding and trying to stop them to becoming numb and avoiding them, and eventually to proficiently cleaning up and minimizing the damage. They had long become accustomed to it.
When they were almost done with their "battle" and had tidied up most of the workshop, Sakura and Fujino would each grab Shinji and Touko to change clothes and fix their appearances.
By now, it was already evening, and Touko leaned back on the sofa, looking at the refreshed workshop and nodding in satisfaction.
"It looks much better now."
"It's good that it looks better. Now let's talk about the reward," Shinji said, sitting across from Touko and looking at her with a sideways glance. "We've put in eight hours of work. Shouldn't you show some appreciation?"
"I should show some appreciation, but I've been tight on funds lately, so I can only treat you to a simple meal," Touko said apologetically, touching her face.
"That's not right," Shinji frowned. "The final payment for the workshop was settled last week, and you made a six-digit profit from that previous exhibition. Did you spend it all again?"
"Ahahaha," Touko chuckled awkwardly, not answering.
Fujino explained on behalf of her teacher, "Yesterday, the teacher saw a clay puppet said to be from the ancient Philippines, and..."
"I'm amazed by your ability to spend money," Shinji sighed helplessly. "Forget it, I'll treat you today. Let's go for a seafood buffet."
"Since you're not short on money, I won't be polite with you. Let's go!"
Just as Touko got up to get her coat, a knocking sound suddenly rang out.