Fate: How About a New Savior?

Gandr was a spell known for being both easy to control and highly effective.

Even at minimal output, it could knock out an ordinary person. With the caster's fingers pressed together like a cannon barrel, it fired a magic bullet powerful enough to punch through reinforced concrete.

For a regular person, it could be lethal. Even a Magus would be in serious trouble if hit directly.

But that was under ideal conditions.

If the target was a top-tier Magus, fully prepared, it was a different story.

Rin didn't expect Gandr alone to take down Sakura. She had already prepared a gem, intending to launch a true attack with gem Magecraft the moment Gandr disrupted Sakura's defense.

But just as she reached for the gem, she saw something that stunned her.

The Gandr began to slow midair, finally halting in front of Sakura's wand. It hovered gently, like a stabilized bubble, as her wand guided its motion.

"Sigh... Did you forget, Sister? What kind of Magecraft is Father best at?" Sakura looked at the magic bullet. "Gandr is a curse passed down from Norse tradition. It's a type of Rune Magecraft. Using Rune Magecraft on a Rune Magus... isn't that a little careless?"

"What... How...?" Rin was dumbfounded. She never imagined her spell would be hijacked.

Once fired, Gandr was like a bullet leaving a gun—unstoppable unless it hit its target or faded from distance. It wasn't something that could be intercepted mid-flight.

And yet, Sakura had caught her spell as casually as catching a ball.

"Unfortunately for you, unlike the common Rune Magecraft that anyone can learn, I've been studying a more special kind," Sakura said with an embarrassed smile. "Though honestly, I haven't mastered much of it yet."

Most of her studies had been under her mother's guidance—the Great Witch herself—who had helped Sakura build her own unique Magecraft system.

Still, even without full mastery, just one or two of the Primordial Runes were enough.

This was the sixth of the Primordial Runes: the Rune of Curse Reversal.

It returned damage inflicted by curses back to the caster, doubled.

And since Gandr was, at its core, a curse-type Magecraft, it was the perfect target.

Rin could only watch as the Gandr she had fired was twisted by Sakura's wand—growing to twice its original size.

"Sis, better catch this one," Sakura said cheerfully, waving her wand.

Her tone was light, like back when she, Rin, and Caren used to play catch together as kids.

Cold sweat beading on her forehead, Rin didn't hesitate. She pulled a green gem from her pocket.

"Baut!"

Mana surged from the gem, forming a rectangular shield that intercepted the rebounded, empowered Gandr.

Before the barrier gave way, Rin swiftly pulled out several more gems.

"Sechs. Ein Fluß, ein Halt!"

Two green gems curved sharply around the mana shield, each splitting into two. Four magic bullets struck from different angles, converging on Sakura.

Their aim was to completely restrict Sakura's movement and take her down.

Even if someone got hurt, they could always heal afterward. A Magus on the battlefield had to have at least that much resolve.

A violent explosion erupted at the top of the slope, kicking up a thick cloud of smoke.

Rin dashed forward, preparing her next spell as she charged in, aiming to launch a second attack at close range.

But—

"No one...?"

As the smoke cleared on the slope above, Rin saw nothing. Not even a trace of Sakura's presence—not a shadow, not a single strand of hair.

There was no way her Magecraft could've done this. And there was no chance her sister had been obliterated like that.

"Looking for me, Sister?"

A sweet voice rang out from behind her, and Rin jumped in shock. She spun around, instantly flinging a gem to detonate, and reinforced her legs to leap away from the spot.

But again, the explosion hit nothing.

As she landed, her peripheral vision caught sight of Sakura—now several meters to her left.

"That won't do, Sister. I heard from Dad that the Tohsaka family's Magecraft is different from ours—yours especially needs money, right? Even with a huge inheritance, those high-quality gems aren't exactly easy to come by," Sakura said playfully, feigning concern.

Every word was carefully aimed to get under Rin's skin.

Without a doubt, this was one of Sakura's tactics.

Taunting her opponent mid-battle, disrupting their focus to provoke a fatal mistake. And because they were sisters who knew each other inside and out, it worked even better.

Of course, that only worked when one had the upper hand.

And right now, Sakura clearly did. She hadn't even launched a serious attack, yet Rin already felt like she was being run ragged.

"Teleportation?" Rin forced a smile.

She realized she might've underestimated Sakura's potential.

Back when they were still both Tohsaka, before being separated, whether it was cards or any kind of game, Sakura had rarely won.

Whenever Sakura pulled a good hand, Rin would always have a better one—like she was naturally more favored by fate.

But Rin knew better than anyone: her sister wasn't weak.

This was simply the difference between two people with talent—and what became of it over time.

However...

"No, this is my Magecraft—Imaginary Numbers," Sakura said, tucking her wand behind her back. "Right now, I can only teleport within a limited range, but Dad says that's more than enough."

"Yeah... it really is," Rin muttered, finally grasping it, unable to hold back a wave of emotion.

Sakura had already learned how to exploit the gap between imaginary space and the real world to move herself freely.

That's why every single one of Rin's attacks had failed to connect.

Even that wand she'd pulled out of nowhere—it was probably stored in imaginary space.

So even if there was a slight gap in innate talent, differences in the training they'd received could easily turn that gap into a chasm.

After all, Rin had to study the Tohsaka family's Magecraft. She couldn't very well blame the person who'd helped lay her foundation for playing favorites.

"But that's still not enough! Second—Reinforcement! Stark Groß zwei!"

A gem Rin had left nearby suddenly flared to life, flooding the area with blinding light.

By the time the flash faded, Rin was already right in front of her.

"Brace yourself—I'll heal you later!"

Without hesitation, Rin drove a punch into Sakura's abdomen.

She'd learned her fundamentals under Tenkei Shiomi. In less than six months, she'd already mastered everything he needed to teach.

But Rin hadn't wanted to lose the excuse to visit her sister, so she'd begged to learn something else.

Left with no choice, Shiomi taught her hand-to-hand combat.

With proper training and body enhancement through Magecraft, any Magus could do it.

Rin wasn't stuck in her ways. As long as it meant she could visit Shiomi's house each month—and see Sakura—she was fine with it.

She'd gone on to train in close combat for another three years.

"You really are Father's star student…"

Rin froze.

Her punch had been caught.

Sakura seized Rin's arm and, with a fluid motion, threw her over her shoulder—Rin couldn't resist at all.