"The Mage's Association Clock Tower—on the surface, it really doesn't look much different from an ordinary university."
Standing outside the office of the Modern Magecraft Theory Department, Daniel Davis glanced around at the young men and women walking the corridors. If he didn't know better, he might've mistaken this place for a normal college.
After obtaining Avalon from Shirou Emiya and resolving the Matou family's and Sakura's affairs, Daniel and Rin Tohsaka traveled to the Clock Tower in London.
Sakura's situation mostly concerned the Matou estate. With both Zouken Matou and Shinji Matou dead, the inheritance naturally fell to her—a massive fortune, far surpassing that of the Tohsaka family. With this, she and Shirou would have nothing to worry about in life.
Originally, Rin had planned to come to the Clock Tower after graduating high school. She would've also earned a degree recognized by the mundane world—yes, the Clock Tower did grant standard university diplomas. However, because of Daniel's intervention, she came early. That said, she would still return for the Holy Grail War.
Since she intended to study in the Modern Magecraft Department, she was received by Lord El-Melloi II.
Daniel had initially been in the office too, but as the admission formalities dragged on, he got bored and stepped out into the hallway, hoping to maybe bump into a familiar face—perhaps Gray.
"Alright, you can come in now."
About fifteen minutes later, Rin exited the office and called Daniel in. From the looks of it, the discussion was over. As the current head of the Tohsaka family, she didn't need to take any exams. She also had a recommendation slot, which she used to recommend Daniel.
"Miss, is there something else?" Lord El-Melloi II asked curiously as Rin re-entered the room, although she had just left.
"I have something to discuss, Lord El-Melloi II. I'd like to make a deal with you."
"A deal? What kind of deal?"
Lord El-Melloi II looked at Daniel with mild surprise. He had assumed Rin was the decision-maker, but now it was clear Daniel was leading. Still, he was intrigued—he'd made many such deals since inheriting the El-Melloi name. The fact that his family retained its title as one of the Twelve Lords—albeit the weakest—was largely thanks to such arrangements.
The Twelve Lords of the Clock Tower were elite. Even the weakest among them was beyond the reach of ordinary magi. Even someone like Rin had spoken to Lord El-Melloi II with great respect.
"I have some materials I'd like to sell here at the Clock Tower. Would you be willing to assist?"
Part of Daniel's purpose for visiting the Clock Tower—aside from joining the Modern Magecraft Department—was to sell the materials he'd obtained from the Singularities.
He could have used the Tohsaka family name to sell them, but Rin's network wasn't as extensive as El-Melloi II's. After all, Tokiomi Tohsaka had been dead for nearly ten years, and his connections had long dissolved. Magi were, after all, notoriously pragmatic.
Once someone was gone, their legacy was quickly discarded. The El-Melloi family itself was a prime example. Shortly after Lord Kayneth's death, his family splintered. Most of the estate was seized, and the responsibility of upholding the family name fell to the young Reines El-Melloi Archisorte.
In theory, many coveted the title of Lord. But Kayneth's death had been tragic—his Magic Crest was almost irreparable, and he had taken out numerous loans for magical artifacts to participate in the Fourth Holy Grail War. When everything was destroyed in that war, he left behind a massive debt.
Taking the title of Lord meant taking on that debt. No one wanted that. And so, the burden fell to Reines.
People expected her to die in an assassination attempt. But to everyone's surprise, she found someone to take the fall—and that someone turned out to be unexpectedly powerful. Thanks to this individual, the El-Melloi classroom, once on the verge of collapse, was held together.
Even now, despite being buried in debt, the El-Melloi name had regained its standing. All because of Lord El-Melloi II's outstanding teaching ability. Over the years, nearly all his students had achieved "Ranked" or higher status.
That ability was invaluable for families focused on legacy. As a result, many families—even other Lords—chose to protect him.
The mage hierarchy from highest to lowest was Grand, Color, Ranked, Ritual, Opening, Firstborn, and Lastborn. Kayneth had been a Color-ranked magus, highlighting how capable El-Melloi II was as a teacher—especially considering many of his students were seen as "problem children" by other instructors.
It was incredibly difficult to rise in mage ranks. Take Ritsuka Fujimaru, for example—despite saving humanity from incineration, she only reached Opening rank.
"Some materials from Phantasmal Species. For example—this: blood and scales from Fafnir."
As Daniel spoke, he pulled out a black dragon scale and a small vial of dragon blood.
"Impossible. That can't be."
When Daniel mentioned they were from the Evil Dragon Fafnir, Lord El-Melloi II immediately dismissed it. After the separation of humans and gods, even Phantasmal Species had become legendary, let alone something as rare as Fafnir.
But upon seeing and sensing the aura from the scale and blood, his expression changed. To magi, these were legendary-grade materials.
Rin remained calm—she'd already seen these. Unfortunately, her gem-based magecraft didn't benefit much from them at her current level.
"Brother, do you have guests?"
Just as Lord El-Melloi II continued examining the materials in amazement, the door opened and in walked a beautiful young girl with long golden hair and porcelain skin, like a living doll. From her greeting, it was clear she was his foster sister—Reines.
"Good day, gentlemen. Brother."
Reines smiled as she greeted Daniel and Rin, then turned to Lord El-Melloi II. But the items in his hands caused her to pause.
"Fafnir's dragon scale and blood—now that's truly remarkable. You're planning to auction them?"
"That's right. We're in need of funds."
That much was true. Chaldea needed money for supplies, and Daniel also planned to start a company here, which required startup capital. Though he carried quite a bit of gold, there was no need to dip into that when he could cash in things he didn't need.
After all, he had taken Fafnir's entire corpse. The scale and blood here were merely a drop in the bucket. And scarcity drove value—if he dumped too many at once, the market price would tank.
"That's easy enough. There's an upcoming auction, and I can arrange for you to use the Lord's name—but it won't come cheap."
"You can decide the commission."
Daniel immediately understood her implication. He knew a bit about Reines' character—scheming and sly, the type who delighted in manipulating others.
"Then let's have a pleasant partnership."
Reines extended her hand toward Daniel. If managed properly, materials from Phantasmal Species could fetch a fortune. Even though the El-Melloi family had stabilized, their debt remained heavy. A side income like this could greatly ease their burden.
To repay their debts, Reines had already sold nearly everything the El-Melloi family owned, keeping only one villa for appearance's sake. Lord El-Melloi II lived in a modest apartment and often took jobs solving magical family problems—like a mage version of Sherlock Holmes.
He could've lived in Reines' villa, but he chose not to—for reasons that were probably very personal.
"Pleasure doing business."
Daniel shook her dainty, pale hand—so soft and delicate, a stark contrast to Rin's well-toned, calloused palm.
"Ahem." Rin couldn't help but cough when she noticed Daniel lingering a bit too long.
"Alright, we've got other matters to handle now. Let's go."
"Oh? What kind of matters? Perhaps I could be of assistance." Reines gave a sweet smile—one that would fool anyone unaware of her real personality.
"Housing," Rin said bluntly, perhaps disarmed by Reines' charming demeanor.
Naturally, if they were going to study at the Clock Tower, they needed a place to stay. Given the Tohsaka family's limited resources, renting was the plan.
"Exactly. We need money to buy a house."
That was Rin's thinking. But Daniel planned to buy a villa outright. With the scale and blood from Fafnir, he could easily make tens of millions of dollars—more than enough for a luxury home.
"A house, huh? I might be able to help."
"Then we'll be counting on you."
As the legitimate heir of the El-Melloi family, Reines' connections in London far surpassed Rin's. With her help, they quickly found a suitable villa two blocks from the Clock Tower. They could move in immediately, and payment could be settled after the auction—something the El-Melloi family had the clout to manage.
While house-hunting, Daniel also gave Reines other materials to liquidate—like wyvern teeth. These weren't as valuable as Fafnir's parts and could be sold directly without an auction.
After moving in, Daniel brought Mash and Ritsuka Fujimaru over from Chaldea. Although the second Singularity had been detected, Ritsuka needed more training. Leonardo Da Vinci was busy developing a dragon-blood-based potion that would enhance both her and Mash's strength. So, Daniel brought them along for a little vacation. Da Vinci and Jeanne Alter came too—Da Vinci was curious about the modern Clock Tower, having never left Chaldea despite being summoned in modern times.
"You're going to France? Don't tell me you're planning revenge. You know times have changed."
Daniel sighed at Jeanne Alter's desire to visit France. With her strength, things could get ugly if she got emotional.
"I know. I just want to see it."
She was referring to Jeanne's hometown. Given that she carried all of Jeanne's memories, it was impossible for her to let go of that part of her.
"I'll go with her. I wanted to travel anyway," Da Vinci offered, sensing Daniel's unease.
"Alright. I'll cover your travel expenses."
After receiving the funds, the two quickly departed.
"Phone booths, streets, double-decker buses, cakes, ice cream—it's all real, Senpai! Not just simulations at Chaldea!"
Mash was full of excitement as she strolled down the streets of London. Even though she had seen these things in Chaldea's simulations, the real thing was an entirely different experience.
"No need to rush. You'll have plenty of time. Let's eat first."
"A mirror… is another world."
Back in the El-Melloi classroom, Lord El-Melloi II lectured on the topic of the day. After a few days of listening, Daniel began to understand why his students were so strong. When it came to magecraft, he focused on its practical origins—not the Root of Type-Moon, but the functional root of how magic worked.
There were no heavy restrictions—just logic and application. This mindset likely irked many traditional magi families, who believed the older and more mysterious the magecraft, the better.
"This world's magecraft is fascinating. Even as technology advances and we better understand celestial mechanics, astrology-based magecraft hasn't become obsolete."
Daniel was here mainly to borrow ideas. Many concepts in magecraft could be useful to him. Celestial magecraft, for instance, was incredibly powerful. With sufficient mana, it could overwhelm even Heroic Spirits. One mage, Kirsch, used it to wipe out multiple Servants in one move.
But aside from combat, Daniel was even more intrigued by magecraft that served daily life—like the golems used by the Clock Tower for cleaning, or Reines' Moon Cell Elixir, which she used to create maid-type familiars with their own personalities.
Then there was jewel magecraft, perfect for building magical barriers by storing one's power in gemstones.
"Gray… she really does have Saber's face. But man, Reines is something else—just because King Arthur killed Kayneth, she can't stand that face. She won't even look at her own apprentice."
A few days into classes, Daniel finally met Gray. Their encounter began with an assassination attempt on Lord El-Melloi II.
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