Chapter 603: Harsh Education for Troublesome Children!
The world is full of noise, but I only find them clamorous.
The sparsely populated cafeteria seemed to return to its lively state from fifteen days ago, with magi gathered here—some exuding extraordinary grace, others unable to conceal their arrogance, and still others smiling brightly... Yet the one constant was the fervor in their eyes and their silver-tongued persuasion.
Surrounded by them were two girls, each with her own charm. One had her twin tails tied up with a red hairpin, arms crossed over her chest, effectively concealing her only weakness. The other had cascading chestnut waves, a soft and sweet face, and eyes that were particularly endearing.
In any other place, this would have been a scene of two beauties attracting admirers—commonplace and unremarkable.
But unfortunately, this was the Moon Cell, the battlefield of the Holy Grail War.
These pure and extreme magi were not here for courtship or to satisfy physical desires. They stood here for one reason alone—
They wanted a man.
That man's name was...
"Sakatsuki! If you hand Sakatsuki over to me, I'm willing to trade all my assets in the Moon Cell!"
"What are virtual world assets worth? I own three hundred miles of land in the Middle East—just say the word, and it's yours!"
"Calculating so shrewdly! What if you lose and end up with nothing? Don't listen to him, Hakuno! I only need victory—the wish afterward can be yours..."
Sakatsuki, Sakatsuki, Sakatsuki.
Passionate, yearning, scheming, barely suppressing their excitement.
Everyone was calling that name—
Sakatsuki, peerless in magecraft, divine in martial arts.
Sakatsuki, fiercely loyal, willing to defy all for his Master!
Top-tier Servants were already rare, let alone one without arrogance, who saw protecting his Master as his duty—such a Servant was as scarce as phoenix feathers!
How many heroes in the vast annals of human history could shine brightly enough to illuminate an era?
Which among them lacked pride? Which lacked strong opinions?
If they happened to meet a Master they resonated with, that was one thing. But once they realized the Master they were summoned by was utterly incompatible... Just look at the tragic cases of Masters and Servants turning on each other, even killing one another, in the two weeks since the war began!
Even among the Masters who had fought their way to this point, how many could claim to be truly in sync with their Servants?
It was precisely for this reason that the value Sakatsuki had demonstrated in the second round was magnified a hundredfold, a thousandfold!
Magnified to the point where, even without knowing Sakatsuki had left his team, these magi still mustered the courage to gather before Hakuno, offering all sorts of conditions to secure his allegiance!
Little did they know... they were only adding fuel to the fire for the girl.
Because she had no idea where Sakatsuki had gone early that morning! And she certainly didn't need these magi to remind her that Sakatsuki might become someone else's Servant—and might never return!
Clang!
The fork stabbed into the plate with a sharp sound. Rin, lost in thought, jumped in surprise, while Hakuno scanned the room, her almond-shaped eyes simmering with anger.
But seeing the bewildered looks around her, her frustration quickly deflated.
They knew nothing... Even if she explained, what would it change?
Shaking her head, Hakuno simply stood up and walked out.
She wanted to return to her room and be alone for a while.
"Alright, break it up, that's enough!" Rin clearly sensed Hakuno's dejection. Pressing her lips together, she stood up and began shooing people away. "Sakatsuki is mine—none of you get to take him from me!"
The crowd immediately erupted into chaos, voices of protest rising one after another. Yet blocked by Rin's interference, they couldn't advance—only their words shot like sharp arrows into Hakuno's heart, making the girl feel even more despondent as she quickened her pace.
Until... she left all the noise behind.
Wait—no!
By the time Hakuno realized it, she had already stepped into a deserted corner. The pale moonlight cast a silvery glow on the corridor tiles, creating a dreamlike, fleeting illusion.
"I heard you, sister."
A girl's laughter tinkled like silver bells. Before Hakuno could react, her school skirt was tugged again. A young girl in a frilly aqua-blue dress tilted her head up, her eyes sparkling brightly.
"I heard... your heart crying~~"
Too young to understand sorrow, the girl cheerfully poked Hakuno's chest with each word she spoke. "Did your big sister's friend disappear? That would be terrible!"
Hurried footsteps approached as Rin Tohsaka, having shaken off the crowd, arrived panting beside Hakuno. "Finally got away... Hakuno—wait, why are you here?"
No matter how adorable the girl might be, she was still Hakuno's opponent in the third round of the Holy Grail War. Without hesitation, Rin reached out to pull her disoriented friend away. But just then, the girl's words reached their conclusion:
"Then come with Alice—with me—to find him! Or... forget all these troubles!"
With just a slight sway, another girl in a black dress emerged from behind the aqua-blue skirt. The two identical girls held hands, both wearing identical smiles.
"Let's jump down the rabbit hole and play somewhere new together!"
A warning flashed through Hakuno's mind in an instant. She snapped back to her senses—only to push Rin, who was gripping her arm, away!
"Hey!"
Caught off guard, Rin fell to the ground with a pained cry. When she looked up, she was horrified to see Hakuno's body beginning to fade. Beside her, the twin sisters in black and blue dresses linked arms as mysterious magical energy formed an invisible, devouring maw—swallowing the corner whole before vanishing without a trace.
Along with... Hakuno, who had only managed to save her!
"...What kind of nonsense is this?!" Rin stomped her foot in frustration, her pretty face twisted with indignation. "Why do I always have to run into these situations? Should I save her or not?!"
As a potential opponent in the Holy Grail War, she should have let Hakuno be taken.
But as a friend, how could she bear to watch the girl be captured by the enemy?
Especially since... this wasn't the first time.
"I shouldn't have shown mercy in the second round, Lancer!" Rin clawed at her hair in agitation but still gave the order. "Go find Sakatsuki and explain the situation to him. If we can't find her, don't blame me, Hakuno!"
————
"I see... I understand."
After listening to Rin's account, Sakatsuki nodded calmly. Countless terrifying magical energies swirled around him, yet his expression remained composed—because he already knew who the enemy was.
The opponent for the third round—Alice.
Unlike Shinji, who deliberately acted mature, this girl was genuinely young—so young it was naive, so young it was terrifying.
Especially when you realized she was the victor who had defeated two opponents to reach the third round.
Even the purest white flower couldn't escape being stained with blood.
But for Sakatsuki, as long as he knew who his opponent was, what was there to fear?
"While Lancer was looking for you, I collected traces of magical energy from this place," Rin said beside him. "It must be an Innate Barrier. That little girl who calls herself Alice used it to transport Hakuno, just like what you did to Robin Hood in the second round."
"Umu, I also sense a familiar presence," came the voice of another figure in red—no, more accurately, a red dress.
For some reason, Nero was pressed extremely close to Sakatsuki, her petite figure nearly leaning against his back, her breath warm against his ear. "It seems the Innate Barrier hasn't dissipated yet. Well? Do you require my assistance?"
"..." Rin narrowed her eyes, glancing between Sakatsuki and Nero, who was practically glued to him. For some inexplicable reason, she wasn't feeling very pleased.
She had thought that aside from Hakuno, she was the closest to Sakatsuki—close enough to have the advantage. But suddenly, a Servant whose beauty rivaled her own had appeared and was sticking to Sakatsuki like this.
And more importantly, Sakatsuki didn't seem to mind at all!
Had someone beaten her to it? Had someone already formed an intimate bond with Sakatsuki before her?
Rin Tohsaka—felt a sense of crisis!
But she wasn't the only one growing tense because of the other's presence.
Couldn't she see that Nero, the great Emperor herself, was practically clinging to Sakatsuki?
"Don't mess around, Your Majesty," Sakatsuki said, though he wasn't in the mood for banter. He gently patted Nero's hair, then took a deep breath, gathering his strength.
The void of the barrier—connection established.
The transference of the Master—anchor fixed.
The projection to clear obstacles—creation prepared.
The force of Baji Quan surged through his organs, a rainbow-colored world bloomed in his eyes, and golden arcs of electricity danced across his skin.
Once everything was ready, the young man suddenly thrust out both hands!
Zzzzzzt—!
The world let out a pained shriek, like steel being torn apart by a sharper saw. Amidst the shattered fragments and cascading streams of data-like light, Sakatsuki's eyes flickered, locking onto a solitary world-egg.
"Found it!"
In the next instant, his arms flexed, and a torrent of mysterious power poured forth, forcibly tearing open the fabric of the world. In the swirling light and shadow, Rin Tohsaka and Nero suddenly realized they had left the Moon Cell's academy behind—and now stood in a vibrant, flower-filled forest!
Golden light, entirely unlike moonlight, filtered through the branches, casting a gentle warmth upon the ground. The garden was adorned with fantastical, fairy-tale-like shadows. At a tea table set for four, a girl sat lifelessly, like a puppet whose strings had been cut.
"This—Hakuno!"
Rin's pupils contracted sharply as she rushed forward—but just then, a black dress and a blue dress moved to block the girl from either side.
"Welcome to Alice's tea party!"
"Uninvited guests aren't allowed, you know!"
It was the two girls who had lured Hakuno into the Reality Marble. They showed no intention of fighting—one held a cake in her hands, while the other grasped a teacup and teapot, looking like lively and adorable princesses.
Yet paired with the empty-eyed Hakuno standing behind them, the scene became unnervingly eerie.
Sakatsuki stepped forward silently, catching the attention of the two little girls. Their eyes lit up:
"Ah, he's here."
"We found our good friend!"
The girl in the black dress and the one in blue skipped over to Sakatsuki, twirling around him joyfully before abruptly appearing beside Hakuno, each taking one of her hands.
"And now,"
"it's big brother's turn to find his friends!"
"We'll be waiting in the arena."
"Make sure you find Alice!"
A flash of white light flickered and vanished in an instant, leaving no time to react. The two girls and Hakuno had already disappeared without a trace.
Clearly, Alice had lingered until now solely to meet Sakatsuki.
"Played for fools by a pair of brats…" Nero muttered discontentedly as the Reality Marble receded like a tide, leaving them standing once more at the hallway's corner. Rin instinctively glanced at Sakatsuki, only to shudder at the sight—far from being angry, he wore a devilish smile instead.
"Seems these naughty children need a stern lesson from big brother's iron fist…"
Before the trembling Rin and Nero, the handsome young man revealed his demonic side.
An overwhelming darkness rose behind him, swallowing everything in its path. Surging black tides filled his aquamarine eyes, casting his handsome face into shadow.
Within the crushing pressure of the abyss, a soul-chilling coldness pulsed.
What awaited next was the strict education specially prepared by adults for disobedient, unruly children—
A merciless discipline!