Rin Tohsaka: "Wait! She summoned her Servant two months early? That's totally cheating!"
At that moment, far away in Fuyuki City, Rin Tohsaka suddenly felt the urge to run.
The bounded field around the Tohsaka residence couldn't block a Servant.
However... the Holy Grail War hadn't started yet. All the Masters had yet to summon their Servants, so logically speaking, no one would be stupid enough to eliminate a member of the Three Founding Families before the war even began... right?
Souta: "Don't worry. Group members can't inflict lethal attacks on each other. Even if they have grudges, the worst they can do is annoy each other—like slapping someone or stripping them and hanging them up for public humiliation or something."
Illyasviel: "Eh? That actually sounds kinda fun."
Rin Tohsaka: "Souta, if anything happens to me, it's definitely your fault!"
Souta: "I was just joking."
Rin Tohsaka: "Yeah, but she's not taking it as a joke! I bet she's already drafting up a plan!"
Illyasviel: "As expected of you, Rin! You figured it out so quickly!"
Seeing this exchange, Souta scratched his cheek. Wait, is she actually planning something?
But why? These two don't even have a grudge against each other.
...And why is this my fault again?
Souta: "So, when do you two want to come over? Let me know, and I'll pick you up. Just a heads-up—the system requires female group members to hug the group leader in order to cross into the real world. If you don't believe me, ask the system yourself. I'm not making this up just to take advantage of you."
Rin Tohsaka: "What kind of ridiculous rule is that?"
Illyasviel: "Big Brother(Onii-chan), do you want to hug me?"
Big Brother? You're eighteen! Why are you still using such a cute voice...?
Souta roasted her in his mind but, of course, didn't say it out loud.
Souta: "It's just the rule for crossing worlds. If you're uncomfortable with it, that's fine—I'll look up the information you need and post it in the group chat."
Illyasviel: "A hug is no problem! Big Brother, come over now!"
[Illyasviel has invited you to her world. Accept?]
Souta blinked. Wow, this legal loli really doesn't hesitate.
Souta: "@Rin Tohsaka. When do you want to come over? If you're coming too, I'll pick up Illya first, then head over to find you."
Souta: "Wait! Actually, never mind. I should pick you up one at a time."
Rin Tohsaka: "Huh? Why?"
Souta: "I just remembered—Illya's castle is really far from Fuyuki City's downtown area. Even by car, it takes an hour to get there. If I bring her with me to find you, we'd have to walk for hours... Nah, forget it. I'm too lazy to walk that far!"
Souta: "When the time comes, just send me an invitation, and I'll teleport directly to you."
After sending the message, Souta suddenly realized something.
If two group members were in the same world, who would he be teleported to when traveling there?
He asked the system and quickly got an answer:
[Whoever you're thinking about at the time will determine your arrival point.]
Rin Tohsaka: "Sending an invite is fine, but... Are you sure Illyasviel won't attack me? She has a Servant—that's way too dangerous!"
Souta: "Don't worry. If anything happens, I'll protect you."
Rin Tohsaka: "Uh, I remember you're not that strong, right?"
Souta instinctively clenched his fists, feeling the energy coursing through his body.
Wait... am I really seen as the weakest one in the group?
That's not okay! I'm the group leader! How can I have no authority? That's just embarrassing!
Can I actually fight Illya's Servant, Berserker?
According to early interviews, Berserker's strength was roughly on par with lifting a steamroller.
But then Archer EMIYA, with just a D-rank Strength stat, managed to obliterate the Matou residence in one punch.
Frankly speaking, the power scaling was all over the place.
Souta wasn't entirely sure if his immortality, time manipulation, antimatter creation, and ash-level regeneration would allow him to at least go even with one of the weaker Servants.
Souta: "Kurumi is with me too. You don't have to worry at all."
Rin Tohsaka: "Fine. I guess I'll have to meet her sooner or later, so I might as well get it over with."
After some thought, Rin decided there was no point in running away.
Illya lived just outside Fuyuki City in that massive castle. If she really wanted to make a move, Rin couldn't escape anyway.
She'd have to leave the entire city to avoid her.
[Rin Tohsaka has invited you to her world. Accept?]
The system notification popped up.
Unlike friend invitations, world invitations didn't expire, so Souta wasn't in a hurry to accept.
Setting his phone down, he reached for his teacup—
But then he noticed Kurumi staring at him intently.
"Hm?" Souta turned his head. "What's wrong?"
"I'm wondering about something."
Kurumi gave him a puzzled look.
"Why don't you just make two phones, download all the information, and send them over?"
"Wouldn't that save you the trouble of bringing them to the real world? Or could it be that you... just wanted an excuse to hug them?"
...Damn, why didn't he think of that?
Wait a second... was I subconsciously just looking for an excuse to hug them?!
Faced with Kurumi's piercing gaze, Souta felt a little awkward. He quickly said:
"I didn't think of that! I'll tell them now so they don't have to come over."
"Forget it." Kurumi shook her head, no longer pressing the issue. With a soft smile, she said, "We've already agreed on it, and they might want to see the real world anyway. It'd be awkward to change plans now."
She was incredibly understanding—gracious, even.
"It's good for group members to meet in person. Besides, I'd like to see what they're like."
"Alright. I'll go with your decision." Souta nodded.
For some reason, Kurumi seemed especially radiant today.
I really want to hug her...
Arrival in Fuyuki City
"This... isn't the Einzbern Castle?"
After the teleportation ended, Souta glanced around.
He was standing on an empty road beside a mountain slope covered in tall grass and scattered trees.
"Illya isn't at the castle?"
He muttered to himself.
He wasn't worried about danger, so he didn't bring Kurumi along.
Even though the Fate world had two major Counter Forces, the system's direct insertion method should be able to bypass them.
And even if it couldn't—
Souta had cellular-level regeneration, ash-level reconstruction, and antimatter manipulation.
No matter who the Counter Force sent after him, he was confident he could escape back to the real world.
"Is that you, Big Brother?"
A small figure emerged from behind the trees, stepping over fallen leaves.