Shinji Matou at Your Service-Chapter 961: Young Lady, You Shouldn’t Raise a Flag

All of the above analysis was merely Shinji's mental deductions, but he believed that it was about ninety percent accurate. Perhaps one more thing could be added—that Hercules' immense strength gave Acht absolute confidence, leading this old man, who should have been staying at home, to believe that the time had come to fulfill his long-cherished wish. He then directly brought people to Fuyuki.

The Einzbern homunculi were different from Atrum; they weren't as ostentatious. Shinji hadn't expected Acht to personally make a move. He had always had Kirie and Fujino monitoring women similar to Justeaze, and thus, they hadn't detected the arrival of the Einzbern family. This led to the failure to prepare the defense of the Emiya household in advance. Fortunately, no irreversible tragedies occurred.

Of course, that was all in the past. Now that the situation was clear, he would not give Acht any more opportunities, whether it was for the Emiya family, with whom he'd had ties for ten years, or for his girlfriend, Justeaze.

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"Sakura, you and Rider will have to work hard again tomorrow. Investigate the recent real estate transactions. Acht didn't go to the castle in the suburbs, so he must have prepared a new hideout. We need to find him, and fast."

Because if they were too slow, Hercules' resurrection count might recover, making him much harder to deal with.

"Okay, Brother."

"Until the issue with the Einzbern is resolved, Irisviel and Illya should stay in my family's mountain villa and not go anywhere. Few people know about it, and there are bounded fields and various defense mechanisms set up by Touko nearby, so it's very safe. Saber, their safety is in your hands."

"You don't need to tell me. I would do so regardless. Illya is my Master, and it is only natural for a Servant to protect their Master."

"What? Illya is your Master?"

Hearing Artoria's response, Kiritsugu was stunned.

He had always thought that Shinji or someone from Shinji's side was Artoria's Master since it was Shinji who had been giving orders, and Artoria had never once refused—she was so obedient that she seemed like a completely different person from the Knight King who had always been at odds with him ten years ago.

As for how this had happened, Kiritsugu naturally assumed that he had returned too late and that Shinji, growing impatient, had borrowed the scabbard to summon her himself—after all, Shinji had done plenty of miraculous things, and it wasn't impossible that he had figured out Kiritsugu had left the scabbard for his daughter.

He never imagined that his daughter, the person he least wanted to be involved, had become the Master.

"Illya, what is going on?"

"Actually..."

Illya didn't hide anything and told everything. Kiritsugu's reaction shifted from shock to a bitter smile.

"Ah... The summoning circle in the warehouse..."

Kiritsugu had set it up himself. He never expected the ritual to activate, nor that the person who activated it would be Illya. Truly, you reap what you sow.

After composing himself a bit, Kiritsugu lowered his head toward Artoria.

"Thank you, Saber. Thank you for saving Irisviel and Illya."

"No need to thank me, Kiritsugu. Have you forgotten? I swore to protect Irisviel—that oath still stands."

As she spoke, Artoria looked toward Irisviel, her former temporary Master, who was also looking back at her.

"Saber..."

Just like ten years ago, when the two first met—the golden-haired knight and the pure white princess formed a profound bond of friendship (or something more).

Kiritsugu continued, "Although this might not be the best time to bring it up, Saber, I hope you can sever the contract with Illya. She is not suited for this kind of war."

"This..."

If anyone else had said this, Artoria wouldn't have paid any attention. But the one speaking was Illya's father and a participant in the previous Holy Grail War. Illya also appeared very young, and as a knight who upheld her code of honor, Artoria indeed did not wish for a child to step onto the battlefield.

Just as she hesitated, Illya spoke up first, her tone firm.

"No, I don't want to sever the contract with Saber. Saber is mine."

"Illya, don't be stubborn."

Kiritsugu, who had always doted on his daughter, rarely put on a stern face.

"This isn't a game; it's a real war. At your age—"

"—I'm already eighteen!"

Illya protested.

"Eighteen is still too young!"

"Big Liar can do it, Sakura can do it, so why can't I?"

"They're different from you."

"How are they different?"

"This..."

"Well, if she's eighteen, she's not that young anymore, though you really can't tell," Artoria murmured.

"Look who's talking," Shinji retorted.

Illya only grew slowly, unlike you, who doesn't grow at all. Perhaps it was this kind of pressure that led to so many following Mordred in rebellion back then—having a king who always looked like a boy was no small burden.

Beside him, Kiritsugu, realizing he couldn't handle his daughter and that Artoria wasn't helping, turned to others for support.

"Iri, Maiya, can you help me convince her?"

"Sorry, Kiritsugu, but I joined the Holy Grail War when I was less than ten years old."

Irisviel said this naturally, and immediately, many people's expressions toward Kiritsugu changed.

Less than ten years old ten years ago, and Illya is eighteen now. Add in the ten months of pregnancy... This means Kiritsugu and Irisviel got married when the latter was at most one year old.

Though looking at Irisviel and Illya now, anyone could tell something was off. But still, marrying someone who was technically one year old was hard for most people to accept—especially for Natalia and Shirley, who were hearing this for the first time.

Natalia whistled, "Didn't expect this, kid. I always thought you were into older women."

Shirley glanced at Irisviel and whispered, "Kerry, this is not right."

Kiritsugu's expression was quite a sight to behold. Back then, he had approached it all with a transactional mindset and lofty ideals, and married life had been happy and fulfilling, so he had forgotten about this fact. Now that the old matter was brought up again, the awkwardness was off the charts. Left with no choice, Kiritsugu forcefully changed the subject.

"We're talking about Illya here, not my past."

"As for that, I can't help you. I was already out in the world long before I turned eighteen, and you're not much different." Natalia shrugged, expressing her helplessness.

Kiritsugu was feeling utterly miserable. He'd asked for help, yet none of them were helping, only making things worse. Fortunately, Maiya spoke up then.

"Illya, the Holy Grail War is extremely dangerous."

"I'm not afraid," Illya said confidently, striking a pose with her magic wand.

"You're not afraid of the giant that attacked you and your mother? That was one of the Holy Grail War's participants."

"I'm not afraid! I have Saber. I've heard all about it—Father and Mother won the last Holy Grail War thanks to Saber. Saber is the strongest!"

Illya raised her head high and declared her victory—though, in Shinji's eyes, this was a sign of impending defeat.

Young lady, you shouldn't raise a flag.