Chapter 185: Kirisaki Nan Xiong

The great fire ten years ago?

Hearing these words, Emiya Shirou's expression froze.

In a daze, he seemed to return to ten years ago, seeing a street in ruins, a wall of crimson flames burning fiercely, and the man within the ruins who held him and wept...

"What you mean is..."

Emiya Shirou came to his senses and slowly said with a grim and complex expression: "The great fire in Shinjuku ten years ago is related to this so-called Holy Grail War?"

"That is correct."

Bai Bai Zeming said softly: "I mentioned it back when we were at school; the previous Holy Grail War was ten years ago."

Confirming his guess, Emiya Shirou lowered his head and fell into silence.

After a moment, he raised his head, looked at Bai Bai Zeming, and asked: "If this Holy Grail War continues, will a similar disaster occur?"

"You have already witnessed the power of Heroic Spirits."

Bai Bai Zeming asked softly in return: "What do you think?"

Emiya Shirou remained silent for a long time, until finally his expression hardened, as if he had made some decision.

"What should I do?"

"..."

A smile appeared on Bai Bai Zeming's face, and he immediately stood up, saying: "Come with me!"

At the same time, about three thousand meters above the Emiya residence, a pink-haired boy floated in the air, his deep purple eyes looking down calmly through green glasses.

Without a doubt, this extraordinary pink-haired boy was the invincible psychic Kirisaki Nan Xiong!

In several previous cycles, he had already noticed Bai Bai Zeming, an existence unaffected by time reversal.

At that time, he too had secretly spied on Bai Bai Zeming for a period, just as he was doing now.

But unfortunately, aside from retaining perfect memories during time reversal, the other party seemed to possess no other abilities.

Until the end of the previous cycle, Bai Bai Zeming suddenly appeared in Nemu County and, acting against his usual nature, intended to meet him.

And this time, Bai Bai Zeming not only possessed the ability to block his telepathy but also brought powerful technology far beyond the era.

This abnormal phenomenon had never appeared in the previous several cycles, naturally arousing Kirisaki Nan Xiong's curiosity.

Therefore, after reversing time, he once again used his Clairvoyance ability to secretly observe every move Bai Bai Zeming made.

Until not long ago, during his battle with Lancer, Bai Bai Zeming summoned a mysterious and powerful existence.

The moment it descended, the entire Fuyuki City was enveloped by some strange ability; even as strong as Kirisaki Nan Xiong, he could not use Clairvoyance to spy on the scene in Fuyuki City.

Discovering this, Kirisaki Nan Xiong was both shocked and suspicious.

He hesitated for a long time before finally deciding to move personally and rush over to take a look.

However, since his troublesome parents were arguing, Kirisaki Nan Xiong had to first resolve the family dispute; after delaying for a while, he finally arrived in Fuyuki City.

At this moment, the mysterious existence that had blocked Fuyuki City had already vanished.

In Ryuudou Academy, only Bai Bai Zeming, Tohsaka Rin, and others remained.

Guided by the thought that since he was already here, Kirisaki Nan Xiong quietly observed the Holy Grail War he had already watched many times, and after the Lancer disappeared, followed them to the Emiya residence.

Looking down at the three people below—Bai Bai Zeming and the two Heroic Spirits accompanying them—Kirisaki Nan Xiong fell into deep thought.

"This time, Bai Bai Zeming actually became a Master..."

"Then the outcome of the Holy Grail War should be completely different from the last time, right?"

It was just unknown whether this time's result would be better or worse...

While thinking this in his heart, Kirisaki Nan Xiong turned his head, his gaze seeming to pierce the void and see scenes thousands of li away.

Suddenly, Kirisaki Nan Xiong's face darkened; not knowing what he had seen, he flashed his figure and instantly vanished from the spot.

The next second, he appeared in a familiar room, pushed open the door with a dark face, and entered the living room.

"Oh ho ho~ Classmate Lin, you really know how to talk; Auntie isn't as young as you say~"

"That is your mistake, Auntie; how can that term be used for you? Looking at your appearance and temperament, anyone would think you are Classmate Kirisaki's older sister!"

"Is... is that so?"

Following the sound, he saw Kirisaki Kurumi, wearing a purple sweater, sitting on the sofa, covering her face somewhat shyly, seemingly quite pleased with the praise from this classmate surnamed Lin.

Seeing this scene, Kirisaki Nan Xiong had a vein throbbing on his forehead and couldn't help but look across the sofa.

There sat a handsome young man with black hair and black eyes, wearing a PK Academy school uniform obtained from who knew where, with a smile on his handsome face that felt like a spring breeze.

Judging by age alone, this person should be around twenty-four or twenty-five; by no stretch could he be mistaken for a Gao Zhongsheng.

Yet his thick-skulled parents failed to notice, instead treating him to good food and drink, seemingly truly believing this uninvited guest in a school uniform was his classmate...

Wait, his classmate?

Recalling the rugged, uncle-like face of Nendo Riki, Kirisaki Nan Xiong sighed deeply in his heart.

Alright, it really wasn't his parents' fault; his classmates were simply too bizarre, not a single normal person among them...

Just as Kirisaki Nan Xiong was internally complaining, the handsome young man on the sofa also seemed to notice him, immediately turned his head, and greeted him with a smile.

"Yo, Nan Xiong!"

The sudden greeting drew the attention of Father Kirisaki and Mother Kirisaki.

Mother Kirisaki Kurumi looked at him with joy, waving repeatedly to signal him to come over and entertain the classmate.

Father Kirisaki Kuniharu stood up from behind the sofa and said with a reproachful face: "Nan Xiong, you have a classmate visiting our home, why didn't you say anything beforehand!"

Is it possible that he is not my classmate?

Kirisaki Nan Xiong glanced at his father expressionlessly and then instantly understood why his father had been crouching behind the sofa—

Because at the base of the wall behind the sofa, there was a pile of many exquisitely wrapped gifts, including not only fresh flowers and fruits but also many special gifts tailored to his parents' preferences.

Qi Mu Guochun picked up an exquisite Gundam model, fondling it with delight while sighing, "If you're coming, just come! Bringing so many gifts is really embarrassing!"

No, that's clearly not what you're thinking!

Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong mentally retorted, ruthlessly exposing his father's inner thoughts.

Qi Mu's father turned around, clutching the model, and asked with a look of longing, "Um, Classmate Lin, may I ask where you bought this Gundam model? The craftsmanship seems even more exquisite than my collection!"

"Oh, I had this custom-made by a specialist; you definitely can't buy it."

The handsome youth, or rather Lin Yu, smiled slightly and said, "However, if Uncle likes it, how about I bring another one when I visit next time?"

Great, great!

His father's excited inner thoughts echoed in Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong's ears.

But on the surface, he still scratched his head and said, "That would be too embarrassing!"

What a hypocritical my lord...

Clearly on the verge of bursting into laughter, yet still pretending to be polite in front of others.

Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong sighed in his heart, thinking that after today, he would have to remind his top-tier parents.

He hoped they would change in the future, not daring to invite just anyone or accept just any gift...

"Ah, look what this is!"

Qi Mu Guochun pulled out an exquisitely wrapped box from the pile of gifts and said with a look of surprise, "Desserts from XX Pastry Shop, and the latest coffee jelly with added cocoa powder!"

It wouldn't be wrong to accept it...

Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong instantly changed his mind, gazing intently at the coffee jelly in his father's hand.

There was no choice; the enemy's sugar-coated bullets were too fierce. Even the mighty Qi God found it somewhat difficult to withstand.

Watching the expression on the pink-haired youth's face, Lin Yu smiled slightly.

"How is it? Surprised?"

Quite surprised...

Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong subconsciously answered via telepathy.

But the next second, he realized his mistake and looked at the wrapped box in his father's hand with slight astonishment.

Wait, surprised?

His superpower actually couldn't see through this layer of packaging?!

Also, Lin Yu clearly hadn't spoken just now, yet he heard the voice distinctly.

Could it be... this guy also has the superpower of telepathy?!

Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong looked at Lin Yu with slight bewilderment, thousands of thoughts flashing through his mind instantly.

Lin Yu smiled and said, "Since you've made the trip, won't you invite me to visit your room?"

"Yes, yes!"

Qi Mu's father and mother both agreed enthusiastically.

Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong came to his senses, looked deeply at Lin Yu, then turned around and walked toward his room.

Lin Yu also stood up from the sofa, waved to Qi Mu's father and mother with a smile, and said, "Then I won't disturb you~"

Qi Mu's mother said warmly, "I'll go cut some fruit and bring it to you."

Lin Yu thanked her with a smile, then stepped forward and followed Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong into the room.

As soon as they entered, the door closed by itself.

Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong turned around and looked at Lin Yu with a calm expression.

"Who are you?"

"..."

Lin Yu did not answer immediately; instead, he first glanced around the room and replied casually, "You went all the way to Fuyuki City just to see me, didn't you?"

"Now that I'm here, why are you asking who I am?"

Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong frowned and replied via telepathy, "I know you are the person who appeared in Fuyuki City. What I want to ask is your true identity—superpower user or mage?"

"... Oh?"

Lin Yu raised an eyebrow, finally turning his head to look directly at Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong and said, "So, you already knew of their existence?"

Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong said calmly, "Of course."

Lin Yu said thoughtfully, "Is it because of the Holy Grail War?"

Without waiting for Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong's answer, he continued to speculate, "Putting aside the superpower you possess, essentially, you are a kind and good child. Given your personality, you should not have stood idly by while the Holy Grail War happened."

"If I'm not mistaken, you probably interfered with the Holy Grail War long ago?"

Qi Mu Kirisaki Nan Xiong was slightly stunned, then fell silent.

"It seems the result of the interference wasn't very good!"

Lin Yu said with a smile, "No wonder, in the subsequent cycles, you did not interfere with the Holy Grail War."

"That makes sense. Your superpower and the magic of mages are completely different systems. Even if you have the power to crush Servants, facing that Holy Grail corrupted by a curse, you were probably powerless, right?"

(End of this chapter)