Chapter 340: The Asagami Family's Attitude

Having temporarily satisfied Kokutou Azaka's curiosity, Rin Tohsaka inquired about Asagami Fujino's situation: "Miss Asagami, would it be convenient to tell me about your family situation?"

Asagami Fujino was rather simple; even toward people she had just met she held no wariness, and simply nodded: "As long as it's something I know."

"Is there anyone in your household who taught you about the Twisted Mystic Eyes?"

"No, I only found out today that I possess this kind of ability."

Asagami Fujino was born with the Twisted Mystic Eyes; unfortunately, her childhood memories have already grown blurry.

"Then what about knowledge of Mystery?"

"What is that?"

Rin Tohsaka was not surprised by her counter-question.

"How about your relationship with your family members?"

"Only Mother cares about me at home; as for the others, they merely treat me as non-existent air."

Rin Tohsaka frowned; the Asagami Family's handling of things left her somewhat incomprehensible.

A possessor of Mystic Eyes, placed in any Magecraft household, would never be treated as air.

"This might be related to the fact that I am not Father's biological daughter."

However, the girl's final sentence resolved Rin Tohsaka's doubts.

Asagami Fujino was brought along when her mother remarried.

And her stepfather's attitude toward her was one of some indifference.

Although he never stinted on food and drink, in the aspect of familial affection he did not allot the stepdaughter Asagami Fujino even half a share.

"In elementary school, when I saw others get full marks and receive praise from their parents, I also worked hard to get full marks; but when I brought the perfect test paper to show Father, all I got was a single 'Is that so,' and he did not care about my grades at all.

However, Mother praised me, although she looked somewhat careful, watching Father's expression; but Father did not stop Mother from doing so either.

It's just that after Mother and Father had a new child, she no longer praised me much like she did when I was little."

The girl's voice was very soft, recounting the story of a reorganized family, a burden child ignored in the new home.

The story sounds a bit sad, yet Asagami Fujino's face did not show much sorrowful expression.

On the contrary, because she was gnawing on Broly and he would from time to time place snacks in her hand, after tasting the flavors of various snacks, her face even showed a somewhat happy appearance.

Now that the false painlessness seal has been broken open and her taste has fully recovered, Asagami Fujino only feels that the things continuously placed into her hand are all extremely delicious.

"Judging by your situation, your Mystic Eyes may have awakened suddenly today."

Rin Tohsaka said.

"Eh, can this kind of abnormal ability also be suddenly possessed?"

Kokutou Azaka asked, pointing at the twisted breadstick cup lid on the ground.

"The world is vast, containing all manner of strange things; a normal person suddenly awakening an Origin Ability is not a non-existent occurrence."

"Then can I too?"

Rin Tohsaka looked at her somewhat speechlessly.

"I don't know about you, but could you please not interrupt? I'm currently solving her problem."

"Oh."

Kokutou Azaka sat her raised butt back down.

"The current problem is: what kind of attitude will the Asagami Family hold toward you, who has suddenly awakened Mystic Eyes?"

Thinking in a good direction, Asagami Fujino would be valued by the Asagami Family.

But thinking in a bad direction, would Asagami Fujino be regarded with wariness?

After all, the Asagami Family annexed the main Asakami Family as a branch family, and Asagami Fujino, brought along when her mother remarried, can be said to be a potential successor of the Asakami Family; from the perspective of a clan head, would the Asagami Family head, the other party's stepfather, worry that the girl might later restore and annex the annexed main family?

If he truly harbors wariness, the accidental death of this girl named Asagami Fujino is not an impossibility.

Of course, the girl has now been confirmed as a Crystal Palace-recognized Reserve Member, and has even agreed to become Broly's wife; the probability of her meeting with an accident is absolutely greater than the probability of Broly letting that entire family meet with an accident.

"I don't know what attitude Father will have; perhaps there won't be any attitude at all, after all, I am not an important member of the household."

"The fact that you were ignored before does not mean you will be ignored now; hmm, if you want to understand clearly what attitude your current family will hold toward the present you, you must investigate the past — whether any grudges existed when the Asagami Family annexed the Asakami Family."

"Then how to do it, go directly to their door and ask?"

Kokutou Azaka asked.

"If you go directly and ask, will the other party really tell you the truth?"

Rin Tohsaka countered.

"If they don't tell the truth, I can help."

Broly rolled up his sleeves.

Stepfather not caring, mother not loving — just grab the old geezer and give him a good beating.

"No need for that; we have a better way."

"What way?"

"Miss Aozaki's Garan no Dou is also an Information Broker, after all."

Matters like investigating intelligence should be left to professionals.

Rin Tohsaka decided to go to Garan no Dou to inquire about the Asagami Family's intelligence.

"Can I come along?"

"If you're going then all go; anyway there's nothing worth watching at the School Sports Festival anymore."

Rin Tohsaka's words received everyone's agreement.

"I haven't packed my things yet."

Realizing she would be brought along too, Asagami Fujino hurriedly said.

"I'll go help you pack, and say hello to Fujimura-sensei on the way."

Broly volunteered and went to Fujimura Taiga's side.

He explained the situation to Fujimura Taiga, and the intern teacher waved her hand: "You all go, just don't forget to bring me dinner tonight."

Broly nodded, then ran to the venue side, found Asagami Fujino's friend from earlier, and explained to her about the girl needing to leave early.

After getting the girl's promise to help explain to the teacher, he packed up Asagami Fujino's things and ran off.

"Fujino, can I call you that?"

Sakura asked.

"Mm, okay."

The girl nodded.

"You can't see right now, let me support you and we'll walk."

"I'll help too."

Karen leaned over, and together with Sakura, one on the left and one on the right, they sandwiched Asagami Fujino.

"Thank you."

The girl gave thanks; although she had temporarily lost her vision, the recovery of tactile sensation, the feeling of both her left and right hands being held by someone, made her feel her existence was so real.

"By the way, Shiki, can your family's car fit this many of us?"

Rin Tohsaka asked Shiki Ryougi.

"Should be fine, my family's car has quite a large interior space."

At the school gate, an extended black sedan drove up and stopped.

Butler Qiu Long came down to open the door, a group of people climbed into the car, and it wasn't crowded.

"Where is he?"

Around this time, Kanata, having found the physiology textbook, returned from the teaching building side, only to discover Broly's spot was already empty.

"Turn left up ahead..."

Rin Tohsaka sat in the front passenger seat helping navigate; the car turned left and right through the city, and not long after arrived near the abandoned building of Garan no Dou.

The breach in the building that Broly had punched out when he first came here had now been covered with steel plates and painted with wall paint similar to the walls; looking from the outside, one couldn't tell what difference the abandoned building of Garan no Dou had from other abandoned buildings.

"Is Miss Tohsaka here to inspect the research project's progress?"

When the group entered the abandoned building, the owner of Garan no Dou had already noticed their tracks.

When Rin Tohsaka went upstairs, pushed open the door, and entered the office, Aozaki Touko was already wearing her glasses and sitting on the other side of the office desk waiting.

"This has nothing to do with that; I'm here to inquire about the Asagami Family's situation."

Rin Tohsaka spoke straight to the point.

"For no reason, why inquire about the Asagami Family?"

Aozaki Touko was a bit curious.

"This person is the Asagami Family's adopted daughter; she may have just awakened Twisted Mystic Eyes today, and she temporarily cannot control the Mystic Eyes' power. As a friend, I'm prepared to help her, but I don't know what attitude the Asagami Family has toward her as a Mystic Eyes possessor."

Rin Tohsaka explained concisely.

"Adopted daughter, huh? Then she was once of the Asakami Family. Hmm, the Asagami Family doesn't really get along with the past Asakami Family."

Aozaki Touko stopped there and didn't continue speaking.

Rin Tohsaka understood and asked directly: "Speak then, how much for the information fee?"

"This isn't any hidden information, but it's hard for general people to know the inside story. Two hundred thousand yen."

"Card or cash?"

"Either works."

Aozaki Touko took out a POS machine; Rin Tohsaka took out a black card.

With a swipe of the black card, a "Thank you for your patronage" voice sounded from Aozaki Touko's mouth.

Then, the doll-maker before them, like beans poured from a bamboo tube, spoke the corresponding information.

And what's worth mentioning here is the situation regarding Demon Hunter Families.

The Type-Moon World has existences called "Demons," and thus Demon Extermination Forces that hate "Demons" have appeared.

The most famous is the Holy Church, but that is the West's Demon Extermination Force.

In the Eastern Land, the most famous in the past were the Four Great Demon Hunter Families.

So-called Demon Extermination is correcting twisted species.

And the power used by both Demons and Demon Extermination are natural interference methods under the same rule.

Demon Extermination can correct naturally twisted Demons, but cannot interfere with humanity's own twists.

Therefore, there is a lack of effective response methods against species that are a mix of Demon and human.

Mixed-bloods who are human yet carry Demon within them sometimes become Demon Extermination's collaborators, and sometimes become Demon Extermination's greatest hostile force.

And the Asakami Family is, among the Four Great Demon Hunter Families, the family that advocates controlling Demons with Demons; this family advocates mixing blood with Demons, using humanity to overwhelm the Demon's demonic nature, thereby creating more powerful Demon Exterminators, and in the past they gained powerful Demon Extermination power and status this way.

But with the development of the era, naturally twisted Demons no longer appear in the world, society's demand for Demon Extermination business becomes less and less, and when the Demon Hunter Families are all seeking new paths and transformation, the Asakami Family still spends great cost maintaining the mixed-blood ideology; decline becoming inevitable is a matter of course.

"Four years ago, the Asakami Family declared bankruptcy due to poor management; the Asagami Family, on condition of obtaining land rights, assumed the Asakami Family's debts, and the Asakami Family merged into the Asagami Family."

"So there was nothing shady inside; it was a peaceful handover?"

"I don't know if there was anything shady, but on the surface there were no disputes; it belongs to a peaceful fusion situation."

"Then what do you think that family would think of a Mystic Eyes possessor appearing in their family again?"

"Mystic Eyes are also twisted things; the Asakami Family has already paid the price of family decline for this, and with the Asagami Family's current style of actively embracing the upper class of normal society, they probably wouldn't be willing to see a person of demonic nature appear in their family again."

Mystic Eyes, to many magi, are things they flock to, but for the Asagami Family who have standing in society, they do not welcome the appearance of a Mystic Eyes possessor; that represents mixed blood, represents the cause of the main family's decline.

"The situation is not optimistic!"

Rin Tohsaka looked at Asagami Fujino and said a sentence; however, these not-optimistic words were not directed at the girl, but at the Asagami Family behind her.

Given the way Broly beat his own father back then, once he figured out the Asagami family might be harmful to Asagami Fujino, he probably wouldn't be polite to the Asagami family either.

"It is somewhat pessimistic, but don't be pessimistic either. Since the Asagami family didn't dispose of the Asagami family's mixed-blood back then, it shows their attitude toward mixed-bloods isn't primarily elimination."

Aozaki Touko said this one sentence, then asked Rin Tohsaka: "Do you need me to act as a mediator and help you contact the Asagami Family Head? I've done the other party some favors, so there's still a connection, just need a bit of an intermediary fee."

Rin Tohsaka felt the intermediary fee should actually be paid by the Asagami family side, but forget it, who told her to be comparatively kind-hearted.

"Fine then, your help contacting is good too."

Swiping the black card again, Aozaki Touko took out her attitude of serving customers.

After examining the blind girl, she drove her own old car, taking a group of people to Asagami Construction Co., Ltd.

At the company's downstairs reception, she took out President Asagami's business card, made an internal phone call, got agreement, then greeted the group to board the elevator going straight to the building's top.

"Miss Aozaki, what brings you to visit me?"

"The person wanting to visit Mr. Asagami this time isn't me, but the Thousand Gold from Fuyuki City's Tohsaka Family. I was just commissioned to help act as a mediator, to build a bridge."

Led in by the female secretary to the office, Aozaki Touko stepped forward and exchanged pleasantries with the middle-aged man, explained the situation, then yielded her position.

The Tohsaka Family, a famous family in the magecraft world, has been very much in the limelight these past several years with Holy Grail Wars blooming everywhere; Asagami Kenzou had heard of it too.

Just unclear why the Tohsaka Family's Thousand Gold would suddenly come knocking.

"Wonder what noble business brings Miss Tohsaka to visit me? Our Asagami Family should no longer count as people of the Inside World, right?"

"Asagami Family Head, I came to visit you for your daughter."

Rin Tohsaka, facing the middle-aged man's gaze, didn't flinch either, stepped forward and spoke.

"My daughter?"

The man was somewhat puzzled, seemingly unable to recall who that was for a moment.

Until Rin Tohsaka raised her hand and pointed behind her, at the single-ponytailed girl who had followed in together.

Seeing the other party's face somewhat resembling his wife's, this man finally reacted.

"Fujino, why are you here?"

Asagami Kenzou frowned.

"Father, I was brought here."

The girl hurriedly replied to the man's words.

"What happened to your eyes?"

Just the direction her gaze faced while speaking wasn't right, letting the middle-aged man detect something abnormal, and he asked.

"Your daughter awakened Magic Eyes, uncontrollable; I temporarily sealed her vision for her."

Rin Tohsaka took over the conversation.

"Then Miss Tohsaka came looking, is it for Fujino's Magic Eyes?"

The man asked; in his view, the Asagami Family being sought out by the Tohsaka Family's magecraft practitioner now, this seemed to be the only reason.

"You don't seem surprised by your daughter awakening Magic Eyes; could it be you long knew Asagami Fujino possessed Magic Eyes?"

"This has nothing to do with you, sir."

"Alright, I don't covet your daughter's Magic Eyes; in fact, she and I are still very good friends..."

Rin Tohsaka spoke glibly; after all, she couldn't possibly say it was because her family's boy took a liking to Asagami Fujino and wanted her as a wife.

"I'm somewhat worried about your family's attitude toward her after she awakened Magic Eyes; therefore, I commissioned Miss Aozaki as a mediator, bringing her to visit you."

Hearing this, Asagami Kenzou was stunned; his serious expression then eased: "My apologies, just now I thought Miss Tohsaka, you had designs on my little girl's eyes."

【This person's attitude seems a bit different...】

"Can understand, but what I can't understand is, you clearly knew she possessed Magic Eyes, yet why didn't you teach her to control her own Magic Eye power?"

Rin Tohsaka asked, and also told of Asagami Fujino's Magic Eyes nearly injuring her younger sister today.

"If I hadn't been there, timely controlling her Magic Eyes, a disaster caused by runaway Magic Eyes might have occurred in the academy."

Facing Rin Tohsaka's accusation, Asagami Kenzou solemnly thanked: "Thank you very much for Miss Tohsaka's help; in the aspect of sealing my little girl's Magic Eye power, our family side indeed had an oversight; we are willing to take out a substantial sum of money as thanks."

"I don't lack money; I just want to know how you'll treat her afterwards."

Rin Tohsaka pointed at the girl with lifeless eyes and asked.

"We will reseal her Magic Eyes."

Asagami Kenzou glanced at his stepdaughter and gave his answer.

"Mr. Asagami, pardon my bluntness, Magic Eye power — just sealing it won't solve the problem; not to mention your seal even caused another side effect."

Before coming, Aozaki Touko had questioned and examined Asagami Fujino; at this moment she interjected.

The Doll Master Miss takes money to do jobs; though the introduction work was already over, Rin Tohsaka as the Gold Master Mom still had to stand on the girl's side and say a couple sentences.

"Then what does Miss Tohsaka mean?"

Though unclear how his stepdaughter hooked up with the Tohsaka Family's Thousand Gold, Asagami Kenzou had figured it out — the girl before him was speaking for his stepdaughter, dissatisfied with his original way of handling his stepdaughter's Magic Eyes.

"I plan to teach Fujino how to control Magic Eyes; wonder what Asagami Family Head thinks?"

Rin Tohsaka stated her opinion.

"Fujino may be your friend, but she is even more the Asagami Family's person; her matters are my Asagami Family's private affairs, no need for Miss Tohsaka to trouble yourself."

To this, Asagami Kenzou refused very decisively.

"Wait, why refuse? My proposal isn't bad..."

Words unfinished, Rin Tohsaka stopped; she realized the other party's reason for refusal.

"Asagami Family Head, let me declare first: I have no designs on your Asagami Family."

To this, Asagami Kenzou's face indicated he believed her words.

But his attitude of refusing Rin Tohsaka wanting to help his stepdaughter grasp Magic Eye power remained obvious.

"I insist on using our Asagami Family's own methods to seal the Magic Eyes."

"Even if it causes your daughter to lose physical sensation?"

"It's just physical sensation; she's endured it for so many years, and I believe Fujino has already gotten used to it."

The girl who had temporarily lost her sight stepped back, unaware that her lack of sensation was caused by the side effects of sealing her Magic Eye.

"Clearly, she is not used to it, and she is unwilling."

On the Crystal Palace Panel, the drop in Asagami Fujino's Happiness Value prompted Broly to roll up his sleeves; he believed that as long as he sincerely persuaded the old man before him with his fist, the other party would surely change his current refusing attitude and humbly accept the advice of his own wife, Rin Tohsaka.

"Oh oh oh, Broly, don't take action; leave this matter to me."

Rin Tohsaka hurriedly stopped the boy.

"Take action; could this child possibly still want to fight me?"

Asagami Kenzou found it somewhat amusing; even if the boy was a Mo Jia Shi, at his age he estimated he couldn't have mastered several Magecrafts.