The Einzbern Castle.
"All maids, begin your duties now."
With a voice filled with divinity, a new day officially began at the Einzbern Castle.
Cleaning, organizing clothes, arranging accessories, performing all the duties a maid should… as the homunculus maids began their work, the entire Einzbern castle started a brand-new life with a rhythm completely different from before.
And the head maid commanding these maids could, without a doubt, only be one.
That was the Machine God known as Hope.
Bearing absolute divinity, her radiance was like the blazing sun, making all living beings dare not look up.
Following the customs of the Millennium Castle, she directed the Einzbern maids in their tasks. After completing these preparatory tasks, Hope turned her gaze towards a certain closed door on the second floor.
Knock, knock, knock... The sound of knocking.
No response.
Knock, knock, knock, she knocked again.
Still no response.
"…"
Her cold face remained unchanged. Hope did not knock a third time. She simply touched the door lock with her finger, and the door opened accordingly.
As Hope opened the door and entered, everything inside the room was revealed before her.
A clean bookshelf, a dressing table full of life, school books, many cute ornaments, and a bed overflowing with girlish charm.
Huff...
Lying on the bed in a rather twisted posture, completely lacking ladylike composure, Rin liked to sleep in.
On school days, she was someone who struggled to get up, and weekends were even worse.
Definitely a lazy person.
However, today she was forced to end her sleeping-in time because...
Whoosh!
As the window was opened, the wind carrying the winter snow blew into the warm, comfortable room. Jolted by the sudden cold breeze, Rin frowned but still didn't wake up, merely pulling her quilt tighter around herself.
Without a word, Hope kept the window open and walked over to Rin's side, raising a finger.
Swish!
As the quilt lifted into the air, Rin, wearing only a small top and rabbit-themed underwear on her lower body, was instantly exposed to Hope's sight and the howling cold wind.
"So cold! Who's disturbing my sweet dreams?!!"
Woken up directly by her first reaction, just about to have an angry wake-up fit, Rin saw Hope's golden eyes.
"...emmmm, so it's you, Hope-nee."
The moment she saw Hope's eyes, Rin felt as if doused with cold water from head to toe.
Her originally irritable heart instantly calmed down. She hadn't forgotten how powerful the woman before her was.
A smile that was awkward yet polite appeared on her face. Rin didn't know why Hope was waking her up so early in the morning.
"Tohsaka Rin-sama, you are Master's daughter. I am not entirely clear about your previous living habits, but starting today, I need to ensure your knowledge, strength, and that you possess sufficient self-preservation ability."
"Therefore, from now on, I will arrange some insignificant coursework for your rest time. Please complete it on schedule."
After Rin woke up, Hope closed the window. Turning to look at Rin, she presented a pre-made schedule detailing the itinerary she had planned for her.
"My... coursework?"
"Correct. After all, you are Master's daughter, so I believe you need to possess enough glory to be worthy of Master."
Hearing Hope's words, Rin felt a headache coming on, "Um... am I the only one being trained by you?"
"Yes. Illya-sama is not yet of age… she needs to enjoy the beauty of childhood now."
"As for Sakura-sama… Crimson Moon-sama is personally responsible for her instruction. So, for the time being, you are the only one I am teaching."
Nodding, Hope's expression remained as unchanging as ever.
"Crimson Moon-nee is instructing her personally?"
Swallowing hard, thinking of that woman Crimson Moon, whose noble aura was so overwhelming one couldn't look directly at her, and who seemed terrifying just to think about, Rin silently prayed for her sister for ten seconds.
Ever since Crimson Moon uttered Ryuya's name, the conflict within the Einzbern Castle quickly died down.
After all, everyone present was essentially family belonging to the same person… fighting was meaningless.
Having no interest whatsoever in the past between Irisviel, Female Gil, and the others with Ryuya, Crimson Moon, upon learning that this castle beneath her feet had once been Ryuya's base in Snowfield City, directly chose to reside in Ryuya's former bedroom.
As for Hope, she continued her duties as a maid, taking charge of all affairs concerning the homunculus maids in the Einzbern Castle.
She regarded everyone else with indifference. In the arrogant eyes of Crimson Moon, even the oldest human emperor, Gilgamesh, was nothing special. Ultimately, the only person in her world was Ryuya.
After learning that Sakura, Rin, and Illya were Ryuya's daughters, Crimson Moon did pay a bit more attention to these three.
Personally taking charge of Sakura's instruction, Crimson Moon thus began teaching Sakura magic.
Training Ground.
"Well done. You may rest now."
Looking at the sweat-drenched Sakura, Crimson Moon glanced at the time, indicating the morning training was over.
"Yes, Crimson Moon-nee."
Taking a deep breath, Sakura was covered in sweat, but she did not sit down. Even though her body was exhausted to the extreme, she still insisted on standing, slowly drinking water to replenish her energy.
Watching Sakura endure such hardship without sitting down, a flicker of admiration passed through Crimson Moon's eyes.
"As expected of Bloodriver's child. Even without a blood relation, merely inheriting his surname, you are still this outstanding."
Rare words of praise came from Crimson Moon's lips… this was quite an extraordinary compliment.
One must understand, who was Crimson Moon? She was the Moon King, the Planetary Singularity who established the previous Lunar Civilization, the creator of the True Ancestors, a Counter Force on par with Gaia, an absolute monarch.
Having witnessed countless geniuses throughout the ages, regardless of Sakura's quite perfect talent, in Crimson Moon's eyes, such talent wasn't even comparable to the True Ancestors she created, let alone herself.
In Crimson Moon's view, Sakura's talent was no different from an ordinary person's.
If she weren't Ryuya's daughter, Crimson Moon probably wouldn't have given Sakura a second glance.
However, as time passed, coming to recognize Sakura's character, Crimson Moon began to like this gentle yet resolute, kind yet stubborn girl.
If nothing else, the fact that Sakura could endure such labor without sitting down to rest, instead maintaining her stance while slowly drinking water… this kind of self-discipline impressed Crimson Moon.
Hearing Crimson Moon's praise, Sakura seemed rather overwhelmed by the favor.
Rubbing her head, feeling a bit embarrassed, she thought for a moment and tentatively asked Crimson Moon, "Crimson Moon-nee."
"Hmm?"
Her golden eyes glanced at Sakura. Crimson Moon didn't know what the girl wanted to say.
"Um... Crimson Moon-nee, could you tell me about Dad?"
"Ah... I'm just a bit curious about Dad's past life. What did he experience? What did he see? What did he do?"
"If possible, I'd like to understand more, to know more... about Dad."
Her azure blue eyes looked at Crimson Moon as Sakura spoke expectantly.