Fate: Hero of Justice Takeover

Having found a solution, Sakatsuki and Draco naturally left Mount Enzou. The latter rejected the former's invitation to hang out, declaring with tsundere pride, "We shall sleep," before heading straight back to the hotel.

As Draco put it, the church was too bland, Illya's home was nauseatingly warm—only the bustling city center truly suited her.

"Beast Nero in the hotel, Caren in the church, Illya and Miyu at Illya's place... Somehow, I feel like a scumbag. What's up with that?"

Joking in a way only men would understand, Sakatsuki remained oblivious to the presence of the kunoichi materializing behind him, her gaze dark and unreadable.

"Master... have you forgotten about me?"

"Huh?" Sakatsuki froze. The old Danzou would never have been so direct. But he quickly backpedaled, "Of course not! There's also Danzou, who's always by my side. Yeah, I definitely didn't forget. Of course not."

"Mmm." Though something still felt off, speaking up like this was already Danzou's limit. Under Sakatsuki's "sweet talk," her mood brightened, the corners of her lips curling up as she proactively reported:

"After Lady Chloe was taken back by Lady Irisviel, they had a fierce argument. She tried to escape but ended up at the Edelfelt estate, where she was captured by Luvia and Rin. Using Illya as the caster, they performed an ancient curse to share pain sensations."

"Then Irisviel, Illya, and Miyu also rushed to the Edelfelt residence. After an intense magical disturbance, they finally neutralized Chloe's threat—at least by the time I left, Chloe had lost all hostility."

Sitting sideways on the backseat of Sakatsuki's bike, she delivered the report methodically, her eyes narrowing as the rushing wind tousled her long hair.

"Good work, Danzou."

That sincere gratitude alone was enough to erase the exhaustion of the day.

At some point, her shoulder had come to rest against Sakatsuki's back, the warmth slowly spreading, enveloping her entire being.

The puppet girl let her mind go blank, leaving only fragmented thoughts adrift in a sea of comfort.

Please... let this road stretch a little longer.

***

At the entrance of Illya's home

"Ugh, so Chloe was actually my past self... Life is full of surprises, huh."

"Illya sounds like such a mature little adult. But still, a personality formed from your sealed magic, memories, and knowledge, accumulated over years, then manifested through a Class Card to become Chloe... That's just too bizarre."

"Right?! And she's so shameless, trying to steal Onii-chan from me!"

"What do you mean 'your Onii-chan'... Ahem, well, it's fine, right? After all, you two share pain sensations now."

"Are you suggesting I hit myself? Ruby! How could I possibly do that?!"

"Ahaha, well..."

Having narrowly escaped Rin and Luvia's endless lecturing, Illya sighed. After such a chaotic day, all she wanted was to collapse into bed and sleep like the dead.

But the moment she pushed open the door and stepped into the entryway, she heard voices from the living room.

"Hey, Onii-chan, what kind of girls do you like?"

"Huh? What's this all of a sudden, Illya?"

"Come on, just tell me~"

Thud!

Illya faceplanted onto the floor, then scrambled up and hid behind the wall.

Since Shirou had been at school, he had no idea what had happened at home. By the time he returned, she and Chloe had already gone to Luvia's place—meaning Shirou still didn't know about Chloe's existence.

And that sly little fox Chloe was clearly trying to exploit the timing to sneak ahead!

"Hah, as expected. Her real target is Shirou. After all, she split off from Illya, so she must've inherited Illya's feelings too..."

This is bad. This is terrible. What a shameless, formidable enemy!

Illya's face darkened. She wanted to rush in and stop Chloe immediately, but she was afraid Chloe would drag her down with mutual destruction. As she agonized over what to do, the conversation in the living room continued without pause.

"By the way, Illya, did you get a tan?"

"Do you care, Onii-chan? Do you really pay that much attention to your little sister's skin?"

"D-Don't make it sound weird! I just—"

"Onii-chan, you skin fetishist~"

"Skin fetishist?!"

Poor Emiya Shirou of this world, utterly at the mercy of tiny Chloe.

No way—

Crouched in the entryway, Illya slumped to the ground in despair.

"How could this happen? This is practically terrorism! A malicious attack on sibling bonds!"

Suddenly, Illya's expression darkened further as she sat up.

"Illya?"

"I won't forgive her!"

Muttering to herself, Illya raised her hand high, as if to prove her resolve.

Slap!

"Eek!" A startled shriek rang out as Chloe's head jerked to the side, her left cheek stinging. Tears welled up in her eyes as she clutched her face.

"Illya, what's wrong?"

This pain... Sensing the ominous throbbing in her stomach, Chloe immediately understood.

The shared pain sensation!

"I-Illya, are you okay? Why did you just slap yourself?!" Ruby fluttered around in panic, only to see Illya—despite her own teary eyes—ruthlessly raise her hand again.

In the living room, Chloe tried to play it off for Shirou: "I-I'm fine, Onii-chan... Whack!"

"Onii-chan whack?!"

That was clearly the sound of an interrupted sentence, followed by "Illya" clutching her cheek and writhing on the floor in pain.

This mutually assured destruction tactic not only punished Chloe but left Illya herself blinking back tears.

"It hurts... But this is the only way to stop her..."

Ruby, now sure its host wasn't having a mental breakdown, started snickering shamelessly.

"Illya, you're hilarious."

Meanwhile, in the living room, Chloe—her face now swollen—pushed herself up. She knew Illya must be nearby but refused to back down. "At least let me—"

With that, she leaped at Shirou, puckering her lips:

"Onii-chan, give me a kiss!"

"Wha—?!"

"Not happening!" Illya shrieked, her hesitation vanishing now that her bottom line had been crossed.

Crack!

"Yowch!" Two overlapping screams echoed through the house like stereo surround sound.

"Illya, are you okay?!"

"We heard screaming!"

The door burst open as Irisviel rushed in, followed by Rin, Luvia, Miyu, and a smirking, robe-clad shota priest.

But when they hurried inside, they found Illya collapsed in the entryway, clutching her ankle in agony.

"What are you doing?!"

"Stubbed... my pinky toe... on the corner..." Illya whimpered pitifully.

"Never mind that—Chloe's in the living room!" Ruby cut in urgently. "She shouldn't be able to move right now!"

Turning a passive counter into an active skill... What a talent. Sakatsuki stepped forward, suppressing a chuckle as he helped Illya up and placed a hand on her forehead.

"What I wound, I mend. None may escape my grasp."

A basic divine spell took effect, easing Illya's pain.

"Let's go." Standing up, Sakatsuki grinned mischievously. "Time to meet the new family member."

His tone made it sound like he was the head of the household.

Behind him, Irisviel's expression stiffened, her teeth gritting.

Kiritsugu, when will you come back!

***

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