Chapter 14: Young Rin's Boyfriend Power

"Little Sakura, what's wrong? Are you alright?"

Aoi Zenjou also noticed her youngest daughter's unusual state; her heart skipped a beat and she hurriedly asked.

"I, wah..."

Young Sakura couldn't hold it in; the half-eaten apple meat still in her mouth fell out, and she threw herself into her mother's embrace and burst into tears.

Then, as if complaining to her father, she also told her own mother about her own miserable experiences after being sent to the Matou Family.

Aoi Zenjou listened to her youngest daughter being pushed into a basement full of worms, listened to her body being crawled over by a swarm of worms, listened to the pain and fear she felt during this process.

Only now learning the true situation her youngest daughter encountered at the Matou Family, she covered her mouth at once, heart aching as she looked at the daughter crying in her arms; tears also flowed from her eyes.

"Sakura, don't be afraid. Everything is in the past. From now on, me and Mom and Dad will all protect you."

Hearing her younger sister's experiences, Rin Tohsaka also clenched her small fists; her mature-beyond-her-years mentality made a strong protective desire for her younger sister rise within her anger, and she patted her small chest, guaranteeing, "I promise."

"Really?"

Young Sakura lifted her head from her mother's embrace, her small face like a little tabby cat, and looked at her older sister, asking.

"Really. Truer than pearls. If you don't believe me, ask Mom; she definitely means the same."

Rin Tohsaka answered with a very reliable look, even pulling her own mother in as guarantor.

"Mom..."

Young Sakura raised her head, looking at her mother with expectation.

"Little Sakura, you'll be fine."

Aoi Zenjou didn't dare answer her youngest daughter's question directly; the decision to send Little Sakura to the Matou Family was her husband's, and as that man's wife, she ought to be mentally prepared to unconditionally support him.

This time Sakura was sent to her side; her husband, Little Sakura's biological father, precisely wanted her to go persuade the other party to return to the Matou Family again.

If she spoke of this arrangement now, her youngest daughter would certainly collapse, unwilling to believe her, this mother.

Aoi Zenjou felt pained in her heart; she held her youngest daughter tighter, and Young Sakura's emotions gradually calmed because of her embrace, her Happiness Value starting to rise again.

In Young Sakura's mind, she believed her family would definitely protect her well, and wouldn't let her end up thrown into a worm pile again.

Late night, Tohsaka Residence; Tohsaka Tokiomi had not yet rested.

"Kirei, how is the situation?"

He sat before a phonograph; this was a communication Magecraft tool. Compared to the modern invention of the telephone, it was more concealed and harder to eavesdrop on.

"Caster was repelled by the joint efforts of Saber and Lancer; Lancer's Master suffered severe injury and was saved away by his own Servant..."

At the Fuyuki Branch of the Holy Church, Kirei Kotomine also stood before the same model phonograph reporting the situation: "This is the situation at Einzbern Castle tonight.

And in the evening, Rider and his Master found Caster's Magic Workshop in the sewers.

There was a group of children abducted and missing from Fuyuki City; those children had their organs hollowed out and made into human instruments, and due to Magecraft's function were in a half-living, half-dead state.

Rider's Master vomited directly upon seeing that scene; at the time I thought it was an opportunity to assassinate the other party, so I ordered the Assassin following them to act.

But pity, Rider still discovered it in advance; Assassin's assassination failed. Sorry, Teacher; I exposed the fact that Assassin is still alive."

"Don't mind it, Kirei. Although exposing the fact that Assassin is still alive before figuring out Rider's trump card is indeed a major loss.

But through this matter, learning that Rider's Master is a third-rate Mo Jia Shi is already a sufficient harvest. Continue monitoring the other Masters and Servants; if there's any movement, report to me again."

Ending the communication, Tohsaka Tokiomi leaned back on the chair; the current chaotic battle situation outside was what he expected to see.

The mantis stalks the cicada, the oriole waits behind; the composure and elegance of sitting firmly on the fishing platform — Tohsaka Tokiomi believed he would move toward a winning endgame and obtain the final Ritual reward — the Holy Grail.

"Magecraft, oh Magecraft..."

Even he had some yearning imaginings of the scene after transcending the World and reaching the Root.

But soon, the sound of a telephone ringing from outside interrupted his imaginings.

"Who is it this late?"

Tohsaka Tokiomi frowned, walked out to answer the phone, only to discover it was his own wife calling.

"Aoi, what is it? Calling me at this hour — could it be you're calling to tell me the good news that you've already made Sakura cheer up again?"

His wife Aoi Zenjou was an extremely excellent woman; she had already borne two children with excellent Magecraft aptitude for the Tohsaka Family; Tohsaka Tokiomi never doubted her qualification as a wife.

"Tokiomi, can we not send Sakura away? Just let her stay by our side, stay at the Tohsaka Family?"

However, the words his wife spoke from the other end of the phone made this elegant gentleman change expression.

"What happened? Why suddenly say this kind of thing?"

"Sakura told me tonight about her experiences after going to the Matou Family. That is not something a child of such a young age should have to endure, so..."

"So, you don't want to send her away, you want to keep her."

"Mm."

From the other end of the phone came his wife's acknowledging voice.

"Aoi, you should understand clearly: a child with excellent aptitude, if she lacks the protection of a Magecraft family, do you know how much danger she will suffer in the future?"

"I know, but doesn't Sakura still have her older sister? Rin, this child, is very excellent; in the future she will inherit your Magecraft and become an excellent Mo Jia Shi; she should be able to protect this child Sakura."

"So, you want to sever the other daughter's path of Magecraft, and let Sakura live as an Ordinary Person?"

"Tokiomi, the way Sakura cried and complained tonight truly pained my heart. If she can live safely and peacefully, as long as she doesn't cry anymore, I can accept anything. Just let her stay, stay by me and Rin's side."

From the other end of the phone, Aoi Zenjou spoke pleadingly.

She had already done the act of sending away her youngest daughter once; now that her youngest daughter had escaped back from that Matou Family which made her feel fear, she truly could not bring herself to send her youngest daughter to that place again.

"I can understand your heart of doting on your child, because I also love our children just like you.

However, you should also understand clearly: we are not an ordinary family.

Being born into a Mo Jia Shi family, having talent is a fortunate thing.

We cannot let them become Mortals in the future just because of our own doting on our children.

We cannot stop them from running just because they might fall on that path of Magecraft..."

The elegant man strove to maintain a calm and composed attitude as he persuaded his wife.

"I have already come to understand the Matou family's magecraft situation; they altered their own magecraft's Element in order to adapt to the environment.

The suffering in that household is, for Sakura, actually a kind of metamorphosis through modification; although it will make Sakura endure pain unimaginable for her age, we should believe in that child's resilience and encourage her to press forward bravely amidst the suffering..."

"Sakura is still young now; there are many things she does not yet understand, and as her father, I sincerely hope her future will be soaring in the sky above, not lingering in the mundane world, or even resenting us in the future for letting her be only Mortals..."

Tohsaka Tokiomi's eloquence was excellent, causing Aoi Zenjou, who was originally heartbroken beyond measure because of her younger daughter's crying, to waver on the matter of wanting to keep her daughter.

"If you truly cannot bear to part with Sakura, then let Rin take her place and go become the Matou family's Successor."

"What?"

"This is a choice born of necessity, the only way to let both our daughters not waste their innate talents and together set foot on the path of Magecraft."

Tohsaka Tokiomi said.

"I understand; I will encourage Sakura to pull herself together, or perhaps persuade Rin." The other end of the receiver fell silent for a while, as if understanding that Tohsaka Tokiomi would not change his mind, and Aoi Zenjou ultimately accepted this forced choice.

"Aoi, you are an Uncommon wife, and also a good mother; you are still willing to support my decision, and I am deeply grateful to you."

Tohsaka Tokiomi said sincerely.

"It is late at night; you must take care to rest."

"You as well."

Having hung up the phone, Tohsaka Tokiomi sat alone in a room with only a sliver of moonlight, yet his heart also hesitated over such an arrangement for his two daughters' futures, because he, as one who has walked the path before, knew just how arduous and difficult the path of Magecraft is to walk.

He could not help but feel that his wife's wish for their younger daughter to live on with the identity of an Ordinary Person might not necessarily fail to let the younger daughter obtain happiness in the future, even if not with the identity of a Magus, but with the identity of an Ordinary Person.

Even if this would make her waste her own Magus talent, even if this would make her lose the qualification to view this world as a Magus, as long as she can obtain happiness...

"Heh, it seems my cultivation is still insufficient, to actually give rise to the kind of thoughts only a vulgar person would have; as children of a Magus Family, they should strive for the sake of aspiring to higher Magecraft, no matter how many hardships and perils lie within, even if it costs them their very lives..."

Pouring himself a glass of red wine, and in the process of swirling the glass to aerate the wine, Tohsaka Tokiomi once again firmed his conviction, believing he was not wrong.

"Rin, Sakura..."

Returning to the room, looking at the two daughters already sound asleep on the bed, the only thing Aoi Zenjou could do was embrace them.

Before one of them leaves her side, to strive to remember this memory of still being able to embrace them.

There were still two days plus until the return to Planet Wanpa; Broly, drowsy once more, was sent by Scarface to Fuzhong Elementary School in Shin-Far Town.

Just as he entered the classroom, he caught sight of the new wife he had only met yesterday; Broly walked over and sat down in his seat, then greeted the girl next to him.

"Tohsaka, good morning."

This was what Fujimura Taiga taught him to say: after going to school, he must properly greet his little Partners.

"Mhm, Broly, good morning to you too."

Rin Tohsaka nodded in reply, and quite a few classmates in the class were greeting her as well.

The bearing of a mature little adult made her the Core figure of this class.

Many girls of the same age liked to revolve around her.

Although Broly had only joined this class during the last period yesterday, because of Rin Tohsaka, he received proactive greetings from quite a few elementary schoolers.

However, compared to the friendliness from the girls' side, the boys' side was not very friendly toward him.

"A guy who plays with girls, and even has a rattail at the back of his head; why don't you just become a girl instead."

Second-grade elementary schoolers already had awareness of gender distinction; boys had the boys' circle, girls had the girls' circle.

And seeing this newcomer Broly getting along so well with Rin Tohsaka, the Core figure of the girls' circle, the Class Representative Xincheng, as the Core figure of the boys' circle, began making sarcastic remarks in displeasure.

However, boys of this age disliking girls is most likely not because they dislike them, but merely because they want to attract the girls' attention.

So, the target of bullying is a boy, and the reason is because the other party gets along well with a certain girl; that is most likely purely out of jealousy.

"I'm telling you, don't even think about becoming friends with us boys."

Rin Tohsaka is cute, cheerful and helpful; who wouldn't like a girl like this? Although her personality is strong-willed, she always stops boys from bullying others.

But in this class, many little boys still care about her, even the Class Representative Xincheng who is in an opposing relationship is the same.

"If you're unwilling to be friends with Broly then don't be friends; do you really think the only ones who can be friends are you boys?"

Faced with this person's inexplicable use of the little-kid ostracism technique on Broly, Rin Tohsaka directly stepped out to block in front of her deskmate boy and confronted him.

"Ignore that guy Xincheng; if he doesn't want to be friends with you, I'll introduce my friends to you so they can be friends with you."

Young Rin Tohsaka's Boyfriend Power MAX; she had many female friends, and under her incitement, Broly quickly experienced the oriole-and-swallow feeling of the little-girl version.

Just when Broly still hadn't figured out the situation of this class and the elementary schooler cliques, he passively got to know many of Rin Tohsaka's friends.

They were all little girls, all with rosy lips and white teeth, skin with that Q-bouncy quality of children, but although there were quite a few people, not a single one obtained a Crystal Palace prompt.

Obviously, aside from Rin Tohsaka herself, among the other little girls just met, there was no one else who could be his wife.

However, although he didn't understand what happened, Broly was still very happy about suddenly having so many little girl friends with a relationship similar to Ba's.

"Strange, how come Kanon didn't come?"

After the first period in the morning ended, Rin Tohsaka frowned slightly; seeing Broly cast a questioning gaze her way, she pointed at the empty desk on the other side and explained to the boy: "Kanon is the girl who sat here yesterday; she is my best friend, but I don't know why she didn't come today."

"Oh."

Broly nodded to show he understood, but he actually didn't have much impression of the girl at the next desk yesterday.

"Right, you don't seem to know characters?"

Rin Tohsaka asked at this moment.

"I only know five characters, and those were just learned yesterday."

Broly did not conceal his illiterate attribute.

"Then how about I teach you to write your own name?"

Rin Tohsaka was very enthusiastic.

"Okay."

A morning's time passed quickly, and Broly was taught to write his own name, but in Japanese.

However, the way to write Kanji simultaneously surfaced in his mind, seemingly because learning brought forth some text memories hidden deep in his consciousness, and Broly wrote down even more fonts.

Rin Tohsaka did not recognize these characters, so she asked: "What is this?"

"Kanji."

"You know Kanji?"

"I don't know, these things suddenly just appeared in my mind."

Broly answered honestly, and Rin Tohsaka, because he knew things she did not, produced some admiration toward him.

And besides knowledge of writing, this morning some little girls also taught Broly the game of Cat's Cradle.

From Broly's initial clumsy string-fumbling to forming a Pentagram pattern that looked more or less right, he obtained the little girls' clapping praise.

And the little boys, under the lead of Class Representative Shinjo, treated him with even more contempt, even warning other little boys not to seek out Broly for conversation.

Especially warning Yesterday, those boys interested in Broly's Saiyan identity, not to mix together with Broly.

Regarding this, Broly did not have any reaction; he merely immersed himself somewhat in the process of playing with human friends for the first time.

This was not too the same as playing with Ba; the friends around him would speak with him, would teach him some novel knowledge and games.

Letting Broly feel, as a child, the kind of purest pleasant feeling that can only be felt when playing with little partners.

To summarize in one sentence, that is, a childhood never had before.

(Chapter End)