37 Chapter 37: Exploiting Weaknesses

"How do you feel?"

Kiritsugu felt like he was waking up from a bad nightmare. He dreamed about the Grail being false and his wish for saving the world become annihilating everyone as the grail spill out evil demonic substance that engulf the city in fire. If not for him forcing Saber to use her noble phantasm on the grail, maybe the entire Japan would already be engulfed.

*Piak*

"Oi, are you okay? I'm not wasting more of my precious time on you if you are fine already." A young man probably 16 years old looking at his size and height. The young man is blabbering something weird at him but he couldn't understand what the man is trying to say as a radio noise is ringing in his ears.

"Eh, look fine enough." Ray said after making a brief scan on Kiritsugu before dropping him back to the bed and left to allow Irisviel a quiet moment with her newly revived husband. Well not exactly revived. Only technically revived.

Anyway, it appears that the Tohsaka and Kotomine also start their move to remove Ray, the unpredictable variable in their path of victory. Meanwhile Lancer and Berserker remain working alone. Rider however is going on his usual shenanigans, asking people to join him only to be rejected immediately.

Suddenly a transmission came from Tanya and Charlotte.

"Master! We found the person you asked us to find." Charlotte excitedly as usual, reported her success to Ray.

"Good. You performed excellently. I will reward you at a later date." Ray promised after remembering her good track of achievement lately. "You too, Tanya." Of course, Tanya too. Both of them had been very excellent and able to complete any task he had for them.

Tanya stays oddly silent instead of giving any reply.

"Ray, can you tell me what you are planning for this girl and her mother?" Tanya asked with a somewhat grim tone.

"To use them as bargain chips against Archer's Master of course. Are you against my planning?" Ray asked confusedly as this is the first time in a while since Tanya questioned his action.

"That's all? You are not using the daughter as experimental subject or as suicide attack on her own father?" Tanya continues to question.

"No. Why would I? Such a precious talent has more worth as my underlings than what you stated. Besides, she is extremely crucial for my future planning."

"Hmn… I see. Glad you still haven't fully abandoned your humanity." Tanya sighed with minor relief and quickly changed the topic. "Anyway, you ordered a mother and daughter. You can expect the delivery by evening." Tanya cracked a joke about the infamous Oyakodon joke.

"Okay…" Ray suspects something is wrong with Tanya when she or women in general ask weird questions out of the blue.

After Ray cut off the communication, he immediately returned to his task and Wraith refining the sweatshop. The second night, everyone was in hiding. None tried to issue a challenge or anything throughout the night. So, he just spent his time refining Wraiths, comprehending Einzbern family craft and appreciating fine tea. His newly refined Elite Wraith along with Wraith Soldiers are spread across the Fuyuki city to form his surveillance network while also having sizable troops to help him in battle.

Today is the third day and tonight hopefully everyone stops hiding to come out and fight. Especially dealing with Tokiomi and Gilgamesh. After all, if he cannot have a guaranteed victory in a frontal battle against Gil. He might as well remove his anchor on this material world which is Tokiomi. Even with Independent Action, he can win with a battle of endurance and attrition against Gilgamesh.

———

Two days ago, Rin Tohsaka was secretly returning to Fuyuki city despite her father warning her the place will be dangerous and even temporarily relocate Rin and her mother to their mother's family in the next city. Her classmate actually went missing and he hot headedly embarked on an adventure to find her missing friend.

Her adventure however didn't last long and descended into a nightmare very quickly when she entered an empty bar by following a suspicious man that she suspected was the kidnapper that kidnapped her classmate and she was correct as that man was a deranged serial killer trying to turn children like her into his twisted work of art. She was captured very quickly and soon found an anomaly which she detected as a large amount of mana from the compass gifted to her by her father. None of her magecraft were able to hurt the serial killer once the anomaly appeared and brought every captured child into the sewer.

She has regrets. She regrets not listening to her father's warning and staying away from this city.

"Come, I'll make you my first art. It's the first time I can have such a rare material that can use magic like the Mister. I bet it must be very beautiful." The serial killer said with a joyful face and dragged the tied up Rin to a chair. Then a giant slug-like monstrosity crawled near them bringing a toolbox.

The serial killer hummed happily and moved the toolbox to the nearby table before opening it, displaying various dissecting and carving tools expected of a serial killer. Various carving tools neatly arranged inside and some still have wet blood dripping from them.

"Now, I wonder which one should I choose, hmn?' He hummed while Rin was screaming on top of her lungs but only a stifle of grunts and screams could be heard because of the gag stuffed in her mouth.

However, before the serial killer could injure her. Howls of pain and dying screams echoed through the tunnels that connected to this room used by the serial killer. The man instantly dropped his tools and went to investigate the noise along with a terrifying man in a weird robe.

"WHO! WHO DARE TO KILL MY CHILDRENS!" The weird man in robe screamed while holding a book that flips itself even with the absence of wind and more of the slug-like monstrosity appeared around him. "GO AND BRING ME THEIR CORPSES!"

The monsters sort of nodded before swarming into the tunnel where the howl and screams come from. Less than a minute later, the similar howl and scream of the butchered beast echoed through the sewer tunnel.

"Mister, could this be the enemies you spoke of before." The serial killer said with an excited grin even in such a situation. Something is wrong with his mind indeed.

"Yes, Master. It's best if you leave immediately. I couldn't defend you while I fight." Caster said before continuing summoning more monsters by using the recently captured children as material.

Before Caster could finish his preparation and Ryuunosuke Uryuu could escape, ghostly beings came out of the tunnel and more from other directions. Some even phase through walls and floors to surround the duo.

"What is t-"

*Raagh* The ghostly creatures howled and swarmed the caster and his monsters before gouging, clawing and slashing with their claws that ignored the difference of realm to affect the physical realm even if the ghostly being is well… a ghost by definition. Caster was easily overwhelmed and killed by the swarm of ghostly beings while another possessed the serial killer. The monsters vanish when the weird guy in robe turns into golden particles and vanishes along with his monster. The possessed serial killer limping away to the hidden entrance.

Rin was spared from the traumatic incident and somehow saw something incredible. She uses her magecraft to free herself and then the others before making her escape with her classmate before finding a telephone booth to call for police to help with the rest. Then she returns home and secretly slips back into her room hoping she can use the excuse she was playing out and forgot to return home but her worried mother discovers her and instantly hugs her before checking her body for any bruises and injury.

This should be it and she shouldn't be involved again in the 4th Holy Grail War but the fate have something else for this mother and daughter duo as Aoi Tohsaka and Rin Tohsaka was bagged by the head, hand and legs tied up n broad daylight when her her mother was fetching her from school before they were kidnapped away.

———

"That should be all of them. Haah… feel nostalgic. Like my old 766 job." Ray reminisces about his old days, struggling to find a proper job and having to take manual labor jobs on construction sites to tide his early days after finishing university.

Unlike his previous life, he had no need to worry about work, food, expectation, etc. He can do his own stuff with no fixed schedule and do whatever he wants, however he like but it's obviously more work since he's been sitting in this room refining Wraiths for more than 16 hours straight since last night. But, this is for his own benefit and he can tolerate it, he thought.

Pouring another cup of tea, he takes a deep puff of his own hand rolled cigarette and his own special blend of spiritual herbs and leaves.

"Indeed the homunculus is very compatible to mix with Wraiths." Ray concluded after he finished his high speed comprehension of the Einzbern Homunculus Creation manual. "The homunculus is basically a newborn baby with a soul like an empty canvas and body only has what is programmed into their body during their creation. However the modification on their body and soul to specialize on certain tasks need some sacrifice and they chose lifespan huh."

"This modification reduces their life expectancy to within 2 years. But the trade off is their strength can even triumph over an enforcer of the Clock Tower that is regarded as a monster even by the Magus population." Ray stops and takes another sip of the tea and a puff. "If I can use the homunculus and merge them with Wraiths like the Wraith Soldiers, wouldn't I have an unstoppable and easily mass produced army at my disposal?" Ray slammed the table and spilled his tea after reaching an epiphany.

"Still, I can start any progress as long as the Holy Grail War is ongoing…" Ray then sighed and fell back on his reclining chair before starting another batch of refining when noticed the previous one had been completed. "Haah, suddenly I feel very lazy and want to snuggle all day in bed yet all I have is to struggle as long as Goldie with sticks up his ass isn't dead."

Lying on his reclining chair, there isn't anything to accompany him while he 'works' his ass off refining Elite Wraiths. "Maybe I should learn some Omnyodo and summon a fox familiar as a pet. Yeah, I'll keep that in mind for later." Ray nods and keeps a note at the back of his mind.

While waiting for the refining, he continued to comprehend the Einzbern Alchemy craft. It was a peaceful silence and outside the window was snowy weather and a pine forest that looked like a painting if not for the moving falling snow.

"Such a peace is not bad at-"

*Bang* *Crash*

The door was kicked down before he could finish jinxing himself. Saber waltzed in with her apathetic and expressionless face while carrying two people with sacks on their heads.

"Master, a delivery from Lady Tanya for you." Saber walks in as if she did nothing wrong and puts down the kidnapped people in the room before leaving immediately without even looking at him in the face as a form of protest to Ray.

Just like how Saber found a loophole to exploit on the contract between her and Ray, Ray also found a loophole to exploit. The contract states she must pledge her allegiance to me and I will not allow her to be hungry under my service. This means the quality of food doesn't matter as long as I keep feeding her food, she cannot disobey me. Thus Ray went ham on maximizing the supply and forsake the quality for quantity which Saber dissatisfied because the deliciousness also reduced.

Ray didn't need her respect or acknowledgement for now. As long as she obeyed his order it is already enough for him. Those he can do after the war has concluded.

"Now, what do we have here?" Ray licked his lips when noticed someone was awake the whole time. With a flick of his finger, the sack covering Rin's head disappeared and her eyes immediately scanned around the room she found herself in.

"Ah, welcome to my workshop. Heir of Tohsaka, Rin Tohsaka." Ray greeted the girl with her signature twintail hair held together by two black ribbons. Her eyes immediately widen and she cower a little closer to her still unconscious mother while glaring defiantly at Ray. Ray however is only humored by her cute attempt to intimidate her and chuckles. "Such a feisty tigress even at such an age, sadly you are still a cute kitten to me right now."

Ray climbs off his reclining chair and walks closer to Rin and squat next to her before Tracing his Mauser pistol and aimed at her mother. "I dislike making things difficult for me and you. Especially since I took a liking of you." Ray started while lifting one of her twintail with the barrel of his pistol and took a whiff of her fragrance and then licked his lips. "You smell very… delicious."

Rin recoiled and panicked because she was now captured by an unknown Magus and probably an enemy of her father. Her father warned her about this before and she knew there is nothing she can do now without a way to contact her father. To make matters worse, her captor is a deviant that likes young girls like her.

"So, my offer is. You become mine and you will absolutely follow my order in exchange for saving your mother." Ray activated Devil's Contract and grinned because this will be very easy like stealing candy from a toddler. "Do you agree?"

Seeing Rin have some difficulty making her decision, Ray fired his pistol on the floor and showed her the bullet hole to tell her this gun is real before pointing it at her mother's legs.

"Oh, you better not make me wait because I have low patience and might slip my hand again." Ray tried to use intimidation and saw Rin basically shaking in fear right now.

"3… 2…" Ray makes an annoyed face and pretends his patience is running dangerously thin.

"I AGREE! Please don't hurt mom. I will listen and follow your order." Rin stop her resistance before Ray could count the final number. She still remembers her promise to her father that she must protect her mother and she couldn't bear seeing her mother being injured by this evil person. If she can stall time, her father will definitely notice their disappearance and come save them. However, she overlooked one thing which is the Devil's Contract and she felt a chill down her spine when the face of her captor suddenly morphed into a big twisted grin as if ridiculing her stupidity.

"Good. All requirements are fulfilled and the contract has been established." Ray clapped both his palm before giving Rin a caress on her head which confused her for a moment. "Good girl." Ray praised and Rin who is weak to praise immediately blushed but when remembered this man is a deviant, she shook her head and gnashed her teeth at Ray.

"Indeed, you are like a kitten. Ferocious and acting like a tsundere already. But, your time isn't now. So, forget everything that happened to you today and purge this memory except of my face until the next Holy Grail War happens. By then, you will remember who your owner is. Sleep until the next day." Ray immediately exercised his authority and proceeded with his plan that he laid out for Rin. Unbeknown to Ray, a pair of eyes is looking at him like a predator.

"Hmn, we thought you would instantly push that girl down and devour her whole while forcing her mother to helplessly watch you deflowering her daughter before eating the mother too. But I am glad you have yet to become a sex fiend guided only by your desire and dick." Tanya said before she suddenly climbed up and entered through the window.

"Who! Who dares slander this righteous young master's name to stain my honor!" Ray turned to his back and played along knowing it's Tanya.

"Then, why else would you tell your girlfriend and mistress to kidnap a young girl and her mother into your castle in the middle of the forest?" Tanya said with a sigh while rubbing her head helplessly while watching her man fall into depravity. "Would you say otherwise after you blackmailed the girl to become your slave while threatening to kill her mother. It sounds like a pretty convincing hentai plot for me." Tanya added with a deadpan face. "What next? You're going to drag her into your sex dungeon if not for me interrupting you and catching you red handed in the action?"

"What dungeon! Stop putting your words in my mouth." Ray sighed and walked over to his refining formation and put in another batch to keep the process going. "Anyway, what's the matter? Did you run out of funding already?"

"No. I just paid you a visit after you had been holing up for the past 24 hours in your room." Tanya said with a shrug and checked on his progress on refining.

"What are you? My mom?" Ray replied sarcastically and invited her to sit with him. Tanya took the invitation and sat on his thigh. Since the weather around the Einzbern castle is adjusted to always be snowy, it's always cold and it's a pain to change every time she returns from outside. Meanwhile, Ray's body is warm as his Supernatural Physique automatically adapts to keep Ray comfortable and in optimal condition. It felt quite good being hugged by him from behind.

"I can't be your mother. That's too unrealistic but I am still technically your elder sister." She whispered flirtatiously to Ray's ears before pushing him down to the reclining chair.

"Wait, they're still here." Ray pointed at the mother daughter duo but Tanya replied. "Don't worry, the drug I use will knock the mother out for at least a day. Few hours shouldn't be an issue. "But night time is a few hours left and I should be preparing for that."

"Too many excuses. Fuck me or I'll fuck you instead. Which one is your choice." Tanya pushed him down and pinned him while glaring at him like a predator would on a piece of juicy meat.

Ray was wondering what with her sudden aggression and demand for seggs. Not that he didn't want to but as he said. He still needs to do the preparation for tonight to deal with Tokiomi and Gilgamesh. But now, the lioness is demanding the meat. He better feed the lioness first and protect his dignity as the man before she forces herself on him. Tanya is a person that rarely jokes about her actions and will see it through once she gives her words.

—————