Chapter 36: Shadows at the Door (Patreon)

After bidding farewell to Illya, Shinji and Sakura left the cemetery.

Sakura was far more composed than Shinji had expected. She didn’t say a single unnecessary word. She simply walked beside him, calm and quiet.

Tell Rider there’s a hat on my desk. Have her wear it and stay silent.

We’re being followed…

Hearing her brother’s quiet voice in her mind, Sakura relayed the message through her link with Rider.

Rider, who had been waiting inside the house the entire time, immediately went to Shinji’s room and put on the hat he had left behind—the Helm of Hades.

Click.

Sakura stepped into the entryway. Shinji followed a moment later, closing the door behind him.

He didn’t need to look to sense it.

There were three distinct gazes locked onto them.

One, without a doubt, was Illya’s Servant—Berserker.

As for the other two, they were farther away. The most distant one—that quiet, patient gaze watching from afar—Shinji could guess belonged to Rin.

The last one, not too close but not too far, felt familiar. Shinji had a few suspects, but he didn’t worry about it.

It was probably that bored “golden” king who had been pacing around his doorstep recently.

After changing shoes, they stepped into the living room.

About ten minutes later, the sensation of being watched faded away. Only then did Shinji exhale.

"Rider, it’s fine now."

Hearing this, Rider—waiting in the living room—removed the hat and solidified her form.

"Nii-san, this hat…" Sakura began, surprised.

"Sakura thinks it’s a bit ugly, right?" Shinji said, taking the hat from Rider casually. "I agree. Maybe I should modify it into a baseball cap. A hat like this can’t be worn outside. Honestly, I think the hat itself knows it’s ugly. Maybe that’s why it gave up and manifested invisibility as a survival instinct."

Sakura let out a small laugh. "Nii-san, you’re teasing me. This is a powerful magical tool, isn’t it?"

"This is the Helm of Hades…" Rider interjected softly.

The admiration in her eyes deepened.

If this man joined the Holy Grail War, regardless of what Servant he summoned, she believed he could reach the end. The hat alone would multiply her chances of victory many times over.

Invisibility and a Servant’s spiritual form were different worlds.

Spiritual form hid one from normal humans—Servants and many magi could still sense it.

But invisibility…

That was a divine ability.

Now Rider truly believed Shinji’s earlier claim that he had no interest in the war—and she believed her own lingering suspicion: this man could take the Grail if he wanted. Easily.

After checking that the formation around the house was intact, Shinji relaxed.

Its purpose was complete concealment of spiritual entities.

The Spirit Concealment Formation was the most advanced formation Shinji had learned so far. If this were a fantasy novel, it would be the sort of technique that let necromancers or ghosts slip past the gaze of the righteous.

Even though he had set it up yesterday, he had still worried something might go wrong.

"It should be fine now. Even though the Matou barrier is gone, no one outside will detect the presence of a Servant inside. Not even other spiritual Servants."

Hearing this, Rider—unable to sense even the faintest trace of a formation—couldn’t help but ask:

"What did you do?"

"That’s a secret." Shinji lifted a finger to his lips and winked. "And speaking of which, did you forget my warning again?"

Rider didn’t press the matter, though her curiosity only grew.

She remembered the early morning clearly—when she’d been about to test whether Shinji could dream. Before she could even attempt anything, she had been pinned down by a spiritual force far greater than her own. Her power had been stripped away instantly, and a barrier had wrapped the room.

That barrier had severed her link with Sakura. It was then that she truly grasped the danger Shinji represented.

(She did not know it was merely the system’s emergency defense. It had nothing to do with Shinji himself.)

"I want to participate in the Holy Grail War."

Rider spoke with a calmness that sounded like both a whim and the result of long contemplation.

Shinji smiled and sat down elegantly on the sofa.

Though it sounded early, Rider had considered this deeply.

As long as this man was here, Sakura would be safe.

So she… could fight. For herself. For the Grail.

And more importantly—she sensed her Master’s subtle discomfort around her.

As if Sakura felt Rider didn’t quite belong in this household.

Rider also held a quiet, unrealistic hope:

If this man helped her… then maybe—

"Nii-san, please help Rider."

Sakura sat beside Shinji and gently linked her arm with his.

As Rider’s Master, Sakura had seen glimpses of Medusa’s memories in last night’s dream. She felt the woman’s suffering, her loneliness, her past. She empathized with her deeply.

And besides… this household didn’t need any more women.

"Alright. But we’ll need to wait. Preparations aren’t finished."

"Preparations?" Sakura tilted her head.

"Mhm." Shinji nodded.

Something he had been seeking finally had a lead.

Phase Two of his plan—to completely sever the Matou family’s involvement in the upcoming Grail War and create enough freedom for his own goals—was progressing smoothly.

…

Night.

Miyami Town, deep in the forest—one of the Twin Mansions known as the Haunted House.

Bazett, her body mostly healed, sat in the living room eating the instant meals Shinji had brought her earlier. She ate efficiently as always.

But something felt different today.

She’d never cared about taste. Efficiency was all that mattered. Yet now…

These convenient foods—normally perfect for her—felt strangely unsatisfying.

The food wasn’t the problem.

She was.

As she ate, she found herself thinking of that young man.

The gentle one, who smiled warmly.

Who occasionally teased her.

Who treated her like a person rather than a tool.

…He hadn’t come for two days.

Click—

The door opened.

Even Bazett didn’t notice the subtle happiness blooming in her chest—an unfamiliar warmth she had never known before. Not the battle-driven satisfaction she was used to. Something else entirely.

Shinji stepped inside, saw her at the table, and smiled.

"Good evening, Bazett-nee."

"I'm fine now. Just a few more days of rest and I'll be fully recovered. You don't need to come here anymore."

Her tone was calm, emotionless.

But after saying it, she felt a flicker of regret.

…Should she have said that?

"I see." Shinji set the medicine he’d brought on the table and walked into the kitchen. While storing the groceries he’d brought, he said casually, "If I’m bothering your rest, then I understand. I’ll come less often—"

"That’s not what I meant."

The words burst out of Bazett’s mouth before she could stop them.
Even she didn’t quite understand what she meant.

"Huh?" Shinji paused, surprised by the sudden urgency in her voice.

"No… it’s nothing." Bazett turned her face away, feeling an unfamiliar warmth rising in her cheeks.

"I see. Well, you’ve already eaten. I brought fresh ingredients that need to be used today, so I suppose I’ll have to throw—"

"The food… is insufficient."

Her voice wasn’t loud.

But Shinji understood perfectly:

I’m still hungry.