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The bright headlights tore through the darkness of the night.

The sound of tires rubbing against the ground shattered the silent night.

A black Toyota sedan sped along the national highway towards Fuyuki City.

Driving the car was a woman with a graceful Yamato Nadeshiko aura. Sitting in the back seat were two girls of similar age, the very reason behind the ugly battle that took place - Aoi, Rin, and Sakura, the mother and daughters whom Kariya was willing to burn his life to protect.

Since the evening, Aoi had been feeling restless, as if something was gripping her heart, causing her great unease. It felt as if something bad was about to happen.

At sunset, she received a phone call from Kariya. It lasted only a few seconds, and only two short sentences were exchanged.

"Aoi, are you, Sakura, and Rin all okay?"

His usual concern received an affirmative response from Aoi, and from the other end, a gentle voice spoke.

"Tomorrow, you can return to Fuyuki City. Tonight, everything will come to an end."

Without giving Aoi a chance to ask further questions, Kariya ended the call.

Tomorrow.

Return to Fuyuki.

Tonight.

End.

These few words heightened Aoi's unease to its peak.

What will end?

It can only be the Holy Grail War.

Only when the Holy Grail War ends can she and her daughter return to Fuyuki City, to their home.

But Aoi was well aware that the Holy Grail War was cruel, with only one set of winners and low chances of survival for the losers. Her husband, Tokiomi, also worried that he wouldn't be able to make it to the end, which is why he came to the Zenjou residence yesterday afternoon to give his final instructions to their daughter.

And now, Kariya had called with such news.

The shadow of death cast a pall over Aoi's heart.

Tokiomi, Kariya.

Tokiomi, Kariya.

Tokiomi, Kariya.

...

The faces of her husband and her childhood friend flashed before her eyes, alternatingly.

Childhood warm memories and the happiness of married life kept replaying in her mind.

Love, friendship - she didn't want to lose either one of them.

Yes, that's right.

She didn't want to lose either Tokiomi or Kariya.

But tonight, the Holy Grail War would come to an end, and one of them was likely to fall.

No, she couldn't let that happen.

She had to stop it, and the only one who could was herself.

As long as she was there, no matter who lost, they wouldn't be killed. Aoi didn't know why, but she had the confidence. Perhaps it was a woman's intuition.

She had to return to Fuyuki; she had to catch up with Tokiomi and Kariya's duel.

With this decision in mind, Aoi stepped out of the house. Before leaving, she didn't forget to tell her two daughters that she had some things to take care of and would be back soon, asking them to stay at home and behave.

To her surprise, the two daughters had somehow guessed their mother's destination from the fragments of conversation they overheard. One of them grabbed Aoi's hand and insisted on going together. No matter what Aoi said, they wouldn't listen.

Mischievous Rin even said, "Dad said that Fuyuki at night is dangerous, but we can protect Mom. The magical compass can help us avoid danger."

Sakura, who was always obedient, nodded along and added, "I know where Uncle Kariya is likely to be. I won't tell you if you don't take us."

The words of the sisters completely dispelled Aoi's insistence, and the mother and daughters set off toward Fuyuki under the rising moonlight.

Sakura didn't deceive Aoi; she truly knew Kariya's location. She had heard Shinji, Kariya, and Justeaze mention the names "Mount Enzou" and "Ryuudou Temple" more than once. They had said that those places were the most suitable for conducting rituals and had even visited them a few times under the pretense of sightseeing.

She had a feeling that her brother, her mentor, her uncle, and Teacher Justeaze would all be there.

The magical signals they had seen on the outskirts of Fuyuki City also confirmed Sakura's belief.

However, unlike Rider and Archer who had means of flight, or Saber with her exceptional driving skills, Aoi didn't dare to speed due to the presence of her two daughters in the backseat. As a result, their speed was much slower compared to the others.

Parking the car haphazardly by the roadside, the mother and daughters followed the guidance of the magical compass and walked up the mountain along the shrine path.

They were unaware that the magical compass was leading them astray. At this moment, with the magical energy of the leyline converging at Ryuudou Temple, the compass would always point towards the mountaintop unless a Servant released their Noble Phantasm at close range.

They also didn't know that Kariya and Tokiomi, who had been rolling down the hill, had come to a stop near the mountain path.

The fateful encounter of these individuals, whose destinies were already intertwined, occurred earlier than expected.

In the distance, the mother and daughters heard the roar of a man.

"Tokiomi!!!"

"Kariya!!!"

Rushing towards the voices, they witnessed a scene that none of them could have imagined.

Tokiomi, who was always elegant and composed, like a medieval noble, meticulously groomed and neat, now had a swollen and bruised face, covered in wounds, resembling two monkeys who had just rolled out of the mud.

Tokiomi grabbed Kariya by the collar, delivering consecutive knee strikes to his abdomen. Kariya, even fiercer, kept using his forehead to headbutt Tokiomi's head until both of them became dizzy and collapsed on the shrine path. They tumbled down, leaving behind two trails of fresh blood.

After finally coming to a stop, the two struggled to stand up and began a new round of brawling, not even hearing the voices calling their names.

Just as they were about to pounce on each other once again, they suddenly felt their legs being held.

In their blurred vision, a familiar woman appeared between them.

"Tokiomi, Kariya, please stop fighting!" Aoi's eyes were red, her voice almost pleading.

"Dad!"

"Uncle Kariya!"

Rin clung to her father's leg, while Sakura held onto Kariya's leg, refusing to let go no matter what.

"Aoi... Rin... Sakura."

"Aoi... Rin... Sakura."

The familiar faces and familiar calls acted as two buckets of cold water poured over the heads of the two men, cooling down the heated blood that consumed them.

"You two, step aside. This is between me and Tokiomi."

"Men's affairs don't involve women."

Their gazes crossed over Aoi's head, colliding once again, full of tension.

"Tokiomi, today I will wake you up!"

"Kariya, I will make you pay the price!"

"Enough!"

Even the gentlest person has their temper, and even the most patient woman has her limits.

Days of continuous worry and fear finally erupted into an unprecedented scolding.

"Have you two had enough?!"

Though Aoi was not tall and her body was delicate, her current aura was incredibly astonishing. Both Tokiomi and Kariya were stunned by this sudden outburst.

"You're already injured like this, and you still want to fight? Do you realize that you might die if this continues? Have you ever thought about how we feel?"

"Tokiomi, what will I do if you die? What will Rin do? How can you continue pursuing the Holy Grail?"

"Kariya, I entrusted Sakura to your care. What will happen to her if you die?"

"Both of you, both of you—this is just too much!!!"

=====

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