"Is Zouken Matou really dead?"
As Zuke walked out of the Matou residence with Sakura Matou, he heard her ask anxiously.
Although she hadn't yet been thrown into the worm pit by Zouken, just the sight of the insects inside made it clear that her fate wouldn't have been pleasant.
For Sakura, there was no sense of attachment to Zouken Matou. His death was, in fact, a relief to her.
"Rest assured, he's as dead as can be."
Zuke smiled. While others might be uncertain about Zouken's death, Zuke was entirely sure.
For one thing, after he killed Zouken Matou, the insects in the Matou household lost control completely.
The previously quiet insects in the pit suddenly became agitated, and those hidden in the ceiling crevices even began to crawl out.
This happened because all those insects had been under Zouken's control; with him dead, they reverted to their basic instincts and scattered.
Although disgusting, Zuke had no immediate means of dealing with the insects, so he did the decent thing and reported it to the authorities.
Soon, the police would arrive to inspect, only to find the Matou residence crawling with insects.
While these insects had magical connections, without Zouken's control, their threat was minimal, comparable to large hornets, and could be left for the police and fire department to handle.
On the other hand, Zuke noticed a change in his synchronization rate.
Current World: Fate/Zero
Main Quest: Obtain the Holy Grail of the Fourth Holy Grail War
Player Zuke's Strength Synchronization: 5%
Please advance the main quest to unlock further synchronization.
Before killing Zouken, his synchronization rate had been at 0%, but now it was at 5%.
This made it clear that Zouken was indeed dead. Zuke had cleared an obstacle on his path to the Holy Grail, and the system rewarded him with a 5% synchronization boost.
However, it was a minimal increase, likely because Zouken had never intended to be deeply involved in the Fourth Holy Grail War, so the system considered this a minor obstacle.
Five percent... basically a symbolic increase, just enough to avoid making Zouken's existence feel meaningless.
"Now, I'll take you to meet your sister."
Seeing Sakura Matou still clinging to his hand, Zuke spoke.
Having just escaped the worm pit, Sakura tightly held onto Zuke, afraid he would leave her behind.
"...I don't want to go back."
Sakura murmured, lowering her head.
After all, she was just a child, sent to such a dreadful place by her own father; it was impossible for her not to harbor resentment.
Due to Tokiomi Tohsaka's actions, Sakura also felt some blame toward her mother and sister.
Although she rationally understood it wasn't her sister or mother's fault, her feelings as a child made her reluctant to see her original family.
"Is that so?"
Zuke pondered for a moment and understood.
"Then, I'll find you a place to stay for now."
After all, Rin hadn't insisted on bringing Sakura back; she only wanted to check on her well-being.
Since Sakura didn't want to meet Rin, it wouldn't be a problem for Zuke to find her temporary lodging nearby and see what she wanted to do later.
Zuke wasn't Sakura's guardian, so he couldn't decide her future. Offering her temporary assistance was already a good deed.
"Big Brother, are you a Servant?"
Relieved by Zuke's promise, Sakura looked up at him, curious.
She had overheard Zouken calling Zuke a Servant.
Sakura knew about the Holy Grail War; Tokiomi often discussed it back when she was still with the Tohsaka family.
Both Rin and Sakura had some understanding of the Holy Grail War.
Rin had even learned to draw the summoning circle for Servants by watching and listening.
"I suppose so. To be precise, I'm your sister's Servant."
Zuke shrugged, not denying his role. After all, his identity in this world was designated by the system, so there was no point in refuting it every time someone asked.
After all, not all Heroic Spirits had to be deceased. In this Holy Grail War, one of them was even a living Heroic Spirit—Artoria, who held the Saber class.
Probably because Zuke was also alive, he shared Artoria's inability to dematerialize.
"...My sister's Servant, huh."
Sakura's expression darkened slightly, seemingly upset.
But she understood why Zuke had come to save her—it was Rin's task.
...
"For now, stay here."
Zuke rented a room at an inn and brought Sakura inside.
His role in this mission world was merely as a Servant, so he didn't have a residence. Since Sakura didn't want to stay with Rin, this inn would have to do for now.
As for the money for the inn... let's just say that Japan had no shortage of petty thugs.
What? Was it inappropriate to rob people in front of a child?
Seeing that Sakura seemed unfazed, Zuke assumed it wouldn't be a bad influence.
"Are you leaving, Big Brother?"
Seeing Zuke about to leave, Sakura tugged on his sleeve.
"Yeah, I'm your sister's Servant, so I can't stay away forever."
Zuke patted Sakura's head with a smile.
He had to complete the main quest, and that "Berserk" skill was something he was determined to obtain.
"My sister's Servant… In the future, could I also summon you in the Holy Grail War?"
Sakura's expression darkened slightly at this, though she hid her emotions well and asked curiously.
"The future Holy Grail War… maybe?"
Zuke was unsure, as he didn't yet know what would happen to each world after completing a main quest.
He suspected that this world would continue to progress until a new main quest appeared, allowing him to return, but that was just a theory.
Since no new main quest had generated in the JOJO world yet, Zuke was still uncertain.
If his theory held, he could probably be summoned again in the Fifth Holy Grail War.
"Then, Big Brother, could you leave me something?"
Sakura's eyes brightened as she quickly asked Zuke.
"What? Are you asking for a holy relic?"
Zuke chuckled, realizing her intent.
A holy relic was an object left behind by figures from myth and history, often used in summoning to call the corresponding Heroic Spirit.
Sakura clearly believed that if he left her something, it could serve as a holy relic for the Fifth Holy Grail War, allowing her to summon him.
"Though I'm not sure if this counts as a holy relic... here you go."
Zuke didn't have much on him. He still had some cash he'd taken from the thugs, but that obviously wouldn't work as a relic.
So he plucked a black feather from the mantle draped over his crow companion and placed it in Sakura's hand.
Originally, as a part of his Stand, this black feather would have been invisible to Sakura, but Zuke used Highway Star's ability to transform it into a "tangible illusion."
This way, Sakura, though not a Stand user, could see the black feather.
To be continued…
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