The Emiya Residence,
Afternoon.
Mitsuyuki, having enjoyed a lunch served by the Grand Caster-class chef Emiya Shirou, was currently sitting alone on the Japanese-style veranda, basking in the sun and resting.
Under the warmth of the sunlight, especially having just eaten not long ago, Mitsuyuki couldn’t help but yawn.
“Why do you look all drowsy again?” Emiya Shirou said as he walked out of the kitchen, seeing Mitsuyuki’s lazy appearance.
“Didn’t you catch up on sleep this morning?”
“It might be because of the nightmare,” Mitsuyuki said, lacking energy.
Hearing this, Sakura Matou came out of the kitchen.
Seeing the scene, she said gently, “Then does Brother want to take a nap in the sun?
I’ll go get a pillow and blanket for you.”
Mitsuyuki looked up at today’s cloudless blue sky and said, “That is indeed a good suggestion, but…
calculating the time, he should be arriving soon.”
As he spoke, a sudden, urgent knocking came from outside the house.
Emiya Shirou went forward to open the door, only to find an angry Matou Shinji standing there.
And in his arms, he was clutching several books.
Before the surprised Emiya Shirou could ask why, the fuming Matou Shinji burst in and ran up to Mitsuyuki, who had clearly expected this.
He angrily tossed the books in front of Mitsuyuki and shouted, “You bastard!
Didn’t I tell you I had a date with my girlfriend today?
Why did you keep calling me!”
“…Here, the things you wanted, you bastard!”
Mitsuyuki picked up the books thrown before him and saw that they were indeed historical records of the late shogunate period, as well as history books regarding Okita Souji and others.
He then smiled at Matou Shinji and said, “Thanks, Shinji.”
Having said that, he ignored Matou Shinji and began reading on his own.
“You…
you guy!”
Seeing Mitsuyuki ignore him like this, Matou Shinji’s eyes widened and he was about to lose his temper, but he was stopped by Emiya Shirou, who had rushed over.
The two of them then made a fuss for a while until Sakura Matou couldn’t take it anymore.
She stopped their bickering and pointed toward Mitsuyuki.
The two of them looked over, startled, and found that Mitsuyuki, who was now holding a book, had shed his previous laziness.
His expression was incredibly focused and serious.
“Shh…
be quiet,” Sakura Matou lowered her voice, her brow slightly raised as she said seriously, “You two, stop arguing!”
Under the mysterious pressure Sakura Matou was exuding, Matou Shinji and Emiya Shirou almost instinctively nodded.
But they both quickly snapped out of it.
Wait, shouldn’t the culprit behind all this be him?
He’s the one in the wrong!
But in the end, even Matou Shinji just clicked his tongue and fell silent.
Time passed,
In the blink of an eye, it was sunset.
Mitsuyuki, who had been browsing quickly, finally finished the books in his hand.
With a general plan in mind, he stretched and returned to the living room.
Seeing Matou Shinji sitting there looking bored, he couldn’t help but blink and say instinctively, “Shinji, why are you still here?”
Hearing this, Matou Shinji instinctively looked toward Mitsuyuki.
Finding Mitsuyuki looking at him, and after his brain processed the meaning of Mitsuyuki’s words, his face instantly turned black.
“You bastard!
If it weren’t for you, would my date today have been ruined?
My girlfriend even broke up with me, and you’re asking me why I’m still here?!”
“Broke up?
It’s fine, it’s fine.”
Mitsuyuki waved his hand and said, “If she breaks up that easily, she was obviously just after your money.
If it’s over, it’s over.”
“Actually, you should thank me.
If it weren’t for me, she might have already swindled you out of your body and money by now…
Oh, wait, she broke up so quickly.
It seems she was only after your money; she probably would have run the moment things got physical, right?”
As soon as he finished, before Matou Shinji could react,
Emiya Shirou had already very skillfully stepped forward to restrain him, saying, “Shinji, you have to stay calm, Shinji!
Shinji, don’t be impulsive!”
“Let go of me, let go of me!
I’m not finished with this bastard today!”
Mitsuyuki ignored the scene and calmly sat down in front of Sakura Matou.
“Brother, we should head back.
Sakura also seemed to have grown accustomed to this scene as she spoke softly to Mitsuyuki.
“No, Sakura, I’ll stay here today.
As for Grandfather’s side, I’ll have to trouble you to inform him,” Mitsuyuki shook his head.
“This…” Sakura Matou showed a hesitant expression.
Then she nodded gently and said, “In that case, I shall stay here for the night with you, Brother.”
That night, before Matou Shinji, who had eaten dinner, departed, he glanced at Sakura Matou and gave her a look.
Seeing this, Sakura Matou looked at Mitsuyuki hesitantly, then went to see Matou Shinji off.
They were silent all the way until they stepped out of the Emiya Residence and onto the road.
Only then did Matou Shinji suddenly click his tongue and say to Sakura Matou in an exceptionally displeased tone, “Hey, when do you plan to get that guy to beat it?
Don’t forget, the time Grandfather mentioned is almost here!”
Sakura Matou lowered her head and didn’t speak.
Seeing this, Matou Shinji’s mood became even more irritable, and he shouted, “Do whatever you want!
Anyway, whether that guy lives or dies has nothing to do with me!”
After saying that, Matou Shinji turned and left.
He left Sakura Matou alone, standing in place in silence for a while.
When she returned to the house, she found that Mitsuyuki had already left the room.
“He went to his room to rest.” Seeing Sakura Matou’s questioning gaze, Emiya Shirou, who was clearing the dining table, said in a rather helpless tone, “I don’t know what’s wrong with him today, being so tired…
He just eats and sleeps.
He’s going to be the death of me with that laziness!”
Hearing this, a faint smile appeared on Sakura Matou’s face.
She turned and said, “I’ll go check on Brother…”
A moment later, Sakura Matou arrived outside Mitsuyuki’s room.
She hesitated for a long time before lightly biting her lip and saying, “Brother, are you asleep?
May I come in…
I have some things I want to talk to you about.”
“Is that Sakura?
Sorry, I’m a bit too tired today.
Can it wait until tomorrow?”
Sakura Matou was silent for a while before saying softly, “Is that so?
Sorry for disturbing you, Brother.”
After saying that, Sakura Matou turned and left.
The light of the bright moon fell upon her, casting her somewhat thin silhouette very, very long.
Inside the room, Mitsuyuki listened as she walked away.
After a long time, he sighed softly and said, “Sorry, Sakura.”
As the soft words fell, Mitsuyuki’s gaze also became firm.
With a thought, the Heroic Spirit Training Manual appeared in Mitsuyuki’s hand.
Today’s fight with Emiya Shirou had already made him realize something.
Even if he possessed the memories of the simulation, he simply couldn’t exert the corresponding combat power in such a short time.
Mitsuyuki wasn’t stupid.
He had actually been observing Sakura Matou’s strange reactions recently.
In fact, it wasn’t just her; Matou Shinji was the same.
And Mitsuyuki, who had recovered his memories, naturally guessed quickly that this was likely due to the Holy Grail War…
The time must be almost here!
Therefore, the matter of the Spirit Inscription was urgent.
Tonight, Mitsuyuki had made up his mind that he would definitely complete the Spirit Inscription!
Because Mitsuyuki knew very well that only in this way could he protect himself in the upcoming events, have a certain say, and do what he wanted to do.
“System, prepare for the second simulation.”
As the words fell, the black-covered book in Mitsuyuki’s hand automatically flipped open.
At the same time, everything went black before Mitsuyuki’s eyes, and he once again appeared as a soul entity above the map of Japan.
The ink on the black-covered book in his hand intertwined once more, and lines of text appeared on the Heroic Spirit Training Manual.
[Anchor One: Late Edo Period]
[Location: Japan, Kyoto]
[Identity: Samurai]
[Talents obtained through Catalyst: Minds Eye (Fake), Swordsmanship Genius!]
[Minds Eye (Fake): The ability to avoid danger based on intuition and a sixth sense.]
[Swordsmanship Genius: You possess the same swordsmanship talent as Okita Souji!]
…
[Anchor Two: Late Edo Period]
[Location: Japan, Kyoto after the fire]
[Age: 18]
[Identity: Swordmaster.]
[Remaining Simulation Attempts: Two]
[Would you like to start the simulation?]
Seeing that the text this time was different from the last, Mitsuyuki was slightly taken aback.
But he quickly realized that Anchor Point Two was, to put it simply, a save point from the previous simulation.
The system was giving him a chance to reload a save from before his death!
The timing was set after Mitsuyuki arrived in Kyoto during the great fire, right before the choice of whether to go to Edo to fight the final evil of this world, Shishio Makoto.
Loading a save like this had both pros and cons.
The benefit was naturally that he would start at a high level as a Sword Hero, saving eighteen years of grinding.
Moreover, Mitsuyuki’s reputation at that time wasn’t low.
He could completely choose not to return to Edo to face Shishio Makoto and instead return to his small town to continue building his prestige.
And simultaneously improve his own strength.
Because when the first simulation ended, the projection was only eighteen years old, leaving plenty of room for future growth.
But the downside was also obvious.
Past experiences became established facts that could no longer be changed.
Teacher Kondo Shusuke and even Okita Souji would all die in that Edo incident.
Although Mitsuyuki had specifically asked Matou Shinji to bring him history books today and confirmed that he would ultimately die at the hands of the Great Swordsman named Himura Kenshin.
But…
“That guy cut off my head, killed my teacher right in front of me, and destroyed the Watanabe family!”
“If this were reality, I might choose to endure, but this is a simulation!”
“And even if I choose not to go to Edo, this matter will inevitably affect my Sword Heart.”
“Even if the eighteen-year-old projection is indeed young, if my Sword Heart is affected by this, it will be impossible for me to take another step forward!”
As Mitsuyuki spoke softly, his expression became increasingly determined.
At the same time, he gave a faint smile and said, “Besides, since I can restart the beginning, if I don’t achieve a perfect start, I’d be wasting this golden finger.
”
System, Anchor Point One, start simulation.
As for the starting point…
let’s go with the Watanabe family of swordsmanship prestige.
I owed a lot of favors the first time, and I can’t bring myself to be ungrateful.”
With those words, the simulation officially began.
[Late Edo period, the end of the shogunate.]
[A time of war and national turmoil, where people are like ants and lives are as cheap as grass.]
[You are born.
You are born once again into the Watanabe family of Kyoto swordsmanship prestige, named Watanabe Mitsuyuki.]
[You have returned through rebirth, possessing memories of your past life.
You quickly integrate into your current identity.
Because your goal is to leave behind legendary deeds and become a Heroic Spirit, you still choose to keep a high profile in this life—even higher than the last!]
[You are born with innate knowledge.
At one year old, you can recognize a thousand characters and recite poetry, once again becoming famous in Kyoto as a child prodigy in everyone’s mouth.]
[At two years old, you appear at the family’s swordsmanship training hall to critique techniques.
Even Great Swordmasters who debate swordsmanship with you can only admit defeat.]
[At three years old, you begin to swing the sword.]
[At four years old, you hold a sword and remain undefeated against a Great Swordmaster.
Your sword momentum even surpasses theirs.
Consequently, the clansmen’s joy turns to fear, and they seek out the foremost Onmyoji of the age from a Kyoto Onmyoji family.]
[During this time, because you are too monstrous, the clansmen are terrified, and you are nearly imprisoned in the family dungeon.
Fortunately, that same Sword Hero from before still chose to shield you and kept you safe.]
[The following month, the Great Onmyoji arrives.
He determines that you are not a case of a soul borrowing a corpse and claims you are a monster with a natural Sword Heart.
Your achievements in this life will be, at minimum, that of a Great Swordsman, with the hope of becoming a Sword Saint—something that hasn’t appeared in centuries.]
[Consequently, your name becomes famous throughout Japan!]
[As a result, undercurrents surge in the world of swordsmanship.
In just a few days, masters from the prestigious schools of Japanese swordsmanship have all gathered at the Watanabe manor, eager to be your teacher.]
[You choose…]
Mitsuyuki:…
What is this?!
Looking at the handwriting appearing in the text.
Mitsuyuki subconsciously placed his hand on the text.
While bewilderedly accepting the information transmitted from the projection, he looked up at the scene before him: the heads of various sects gathered at the Watanabe residence, looking at him with faces full of hope.
His mind couldn’t help but be a bit dazed.
This simulation…
actually has a New Game Plus?
Restarting the event,
Is actually rebirth?
Holy crap!