Three Heroines, Three Routes? I Won’t Choose!

The Holy Grail War, on the surface, appears to be a battle to seize the Grail and fulfill the wishes of Masters and Servants. In reality, it's a conspiracy spanning centuries.

But for Su Ye, this Holy Grail War is just another quest. All he needs to do is play the role of a Master, lead his Servant to victory, claim his abilities, and leave.

Of course, if possible, picking up a few girlfriends along the way wouldn't hurt.

Everything else? Whoever cares.

In this quest, Su Ye plays the role of Shirou Emiya, a so-called useless "mutt" as everyone calls him.

Though this guy is both useless and overly altruistic, he has at least three romanceable heroines in his story.

Key word: at least.

The shy girl-next-door, Sakura Matou, the stunning classmate, Rin Tohsaka, and the yet-to-appear spiky-haired Saber.

Saber is her class, but her true identity is a female version of King Arthur, Artoria Pendragon.

Due to the involvement of these three heroines, this quest, Fate/Stay Night, has spawned three distinct story routes, each culminating in only one victor.

However, so far, Su Ye has no idea which of the heroines his [Special Card] represents.

Perhaps, this is the unique feature of the [Special Card]: which route to take is entirely up to Su Ye.

Among the three girls, only one is currently in front of him—Sakura, the most gentle, timid, and soft-spoken. Even a brief accidental glance makes her blush.

Sakura also happens to have the most tragic backstory of the three.

Originally Rin Tohsaka's younger sister, she was adopted into the Matou family at the age of five, spending the next decade under the control of the monstrous Zouken Matou, enduring endless torment.

Can you imagine a five-year-old girl, adopted into another family, being thrown into a pit full of disgusting worms and left there all night?

That Sakura survived and became the sweet and gentle girl she is now is nothing short of a miracle in the twisted chronicles of her life.

As with all horror stories, a tormented little girl, if she doesn't die, inevitably grows into a severely darkened final boss. Sakura is no exception, becoming the ultimate villain in her dedicated storyline.

However, whether someone wants to romance Sakura or sees her as an opponent, no one wishes to witness her descent into darkness.

Especially Su Ye—seeing this adorable junior who makes him breakfast and dinner, and even offers a wake-up service—he just can't bear the thought of her turning into someone wielding a hatchet with a crazed expression.

So, to prevent the story from unfolding as it originally did, trapping Sakura in eternal despair, Su Ye decisively spoke to her after dinner.

"Sakura, it's getting pretty late, and it's not convenient for you to head back alone. Why don't you stay over tonight?"

As soon as Su Ye finished speaking, the two women across from him instantly froze.

"Su-Su-Su-Su-Su-Ye!" Taiga Fujimura, with a look of utter shock, nearly poked Su Ye's eye with her finger.

"How dare you invite Sakura to stay the night right in front of me? You heartless little scoundrel! So I'm not a woman, huh? I don't need to walk alone at night? That's not dangerous?"

"I don't care, I'm not leaving either! I'll stay with Sakura, so don't even think about being alone with her!"

Su Ye couldn't help but facepalm. Was Taiga trying to vie for attention or assist? Sakura hadn't even agreed to stay over, and yet Taiga had already confirmed it for her.

Is this your plan? Normalize the idea of both of you staying over, and then find an opportunity to sneak out on your own?

If that's the case, I might as well start worshiping you as a goddess, Taiga!

Sakura's submissive nature, combined with her scripted high affection for Su Ye and the fact that Zouken Matou had ordered her to monitor him, made her reluctantly agree.

That night, Su Ye didn't sleep well—not because of the girls chatting late into the night next door, but because he wasn't used to sleeping on the floor mats.

Meanwhile, as Su Ye and the others slept, a man and a woman dressed in red leapt from the top of a tall building hundreds of meters away.

In that moment, Newton wept. Gravity seemed meaningless to them.

These two were a Master-Servant pair. The girl, Rin Tohsaka, was the Master and also Su Ye's classmate.

The tall male Servant bore some resemblance to Su Ye, though their hairstyles and temperaments were quite different. Without close inspection, one wouldn't link the two.

The next morning, as Su Ye woke up, he was pondering this very issue.

In the original story, Rin's Servant wasn't a hero from the past or mythology but the future version of the protagonist, Shirou Emiya. His class was Archer, and he wore red, earning him the fan nickname "Red A."

Since Red A was the future version of Shirou Emiya, his true identity wasn't an Archer but a mage, wielding abilities Shirou had yet to fully master.

In this quest, Su Ye had replaced Shirou Emiya and inherited his abilities, including Projection Magic, the Reality Marble Unlimited Blade Works, and the Noble Phantasm sealed within him, Avalon.

At the same time, Su Ye's own powers—like those of Spider-Man, a martial artist, a ninja, Professor X, and Magneto—remained fully intact.

This raised the question: was the Red A Rin summoned the future version of Shirou Emiya, or Su Ye?

If it was Su Ye, then wouldn't this Red A be ridiculously overpowered?

Could the combined might of the other six Servants even stand a chance against him?

Unfortunately, he hadn't encountered the real Red A yet, so he had no idea what abilities that guy possessed or what was on his mind.

Would he, like the original Red A, prioritize both "erasing his past self" and "helping Rin achieve ultimate victory" equally?

If that's the case, wouldn't that mean Su Ye had created an opponent even stronger than himself?

He originally thought that with his many powerful abilities, paired with Saber, the Knight of the Sword, winning in a crushing battle would be a piece of cake.

But now it seemed likely he'd have to face a future version of himself?

Absolutely absurd!

As usual, after eating the meal Sakura had prepared, they washed the dishes together. Then they watched as Taiga Fujimura hurried off to school to grade papers. Once everything was tidied up, Su Ye and Sakura walked to school together.

If things could continue like this—a carefree high school life—Su Ye would actually be quite content.

After all, back in his own world, his high school days were over. And with New York destroyed, his time at Empire State University had been indefinitely postponed.

Technically, his student life was already over. This carefree, responsibility-free high school experience was something he could never return to.

Unfortunately, Su Ye knew he couldn't enjoy this peaceful high school life for long. Starting tonight, he'd be thrust into the pace of the Holy Grail War.

As usual, he idled away the day until school ended in the evening. Just before leaving, a guy with seaweed-like hair named Shinji Matou approached him, asking for help with fixing the archery club's equipment and cleaning.

Just hearing his last name, you'd know he was Sakura's brother and Su Ye's classmate. They supposedly used to be on good terms.

Of course, that wasn't important. What mattered was that by staying late to help, Su Ye found himself in the middle of a Servant battle on school grounds after everyone else had left.

In the original story, Shirou Emiya stumbled upon a battle between Red A and the Lancer. As per the rule that witnesses must be eliminated, Lancer sentenced him to death.

Now, just like in the original, a battle between Red A and Lancer unfolded on campus, and Su Ye witnessed it as a bystander.

"Why is there still someone at school?" Rin Tohsaka exclaimed in surprise, looking in Su Ye's direction.

The Lancer, clad in blue and wielding a red spear—none other than Cú Chulainn from Celtic mythology—spotted Su Ye and immediately charged at him.

Su Ye ignored Rin's exclamation and paid no mind to Cú Chulainn's rapid approach. His gaze remained fixed on Red A, who had paused in the distance.

With just one distant glance, Su Ye suddenly understood.

It's me, no doubt about it!

After a moment of inner reflection, Su Ye turned and sprinted toward the school building. He couldn't confront Cú Chulainn directly, as Rin still saw him as just an ordinary student.

Inside the school building, Su Ye crouched in a hallway, his face painted with fear and confusion.

At that moment, Cú Chulainn materialized before him out of thin air.

"You sure run fast, but tough luck. Since you've seen this, I've got no choice but to kill you!"

With that, Cú Chulainn's crimson spear thrust straight toward Su Ye's heart.

With the reflexes and physique of an ordinary person, dodging this spear was impossible.

But just as the spear was about to strike, a large black hand emerged from the side, catching the spearhead before it could pierce Su Ye.

The black hand, clad in a metal gauntlet, scraped against the spear, emitting a piercing metallic screech.

"Who are you?"

Cú Chulainn quickly pulled back, trying to retrieve his spear from the black hand's grip, but no matter how hard he tried, it wouldn't budge.

"You must be Lancer?"

The owner of the black glove was a tall man clad in black armor, with a flowing black cape and a bat-shaped helmet.

His eyes, visible through the mask's slits, calmly observed Cú Chulainn, his voice filled with an overwhelming pressure.

"Who are you?" Cú Chulainn's eyes widened in shock as he stared at the unexpected appearance of Batman, feeling an overwhelming rush of disbelief.

"You're a Servant, which makes him a Master? Kid, you've been playing me?"

He glared fiercely at Su Ye, realizing he had underestimated him as just an ordinary person. Instead, this guy had been hiding his true strength, even summoning an incredibly powerful and unidentifiable hero.

Adding to that the equally enigmatic Red A outside, Cú Chulainn knew he was in trouble this time.

At this moment, Su Ye stood up, his expression of fear vanishing, replaced by a cold smile.

"Lancer, is it? Seems like your luck isn't great."

As the saying goes, "Lancers have always been cursed with bad luck—except Zhao Yun, who's a cheat code."

Cú Chulainn was the original example of this saying.

Seeing the grin on Su Ye's face, Cú Chulainn released his grip and flipped backward, putting some distance between himself and Batman. In a flash of red light, a new spear appeared in his hand.

At the same time, the spear in Batman's hand vanished.

"Maybe my luck isn't great, but yours won't hold out forever. We'll meet again."

With that, Cú Chulainn retreated into the shadows and disappeared.

His mission was only reconnaissance, not a full-scale fight. Upon realizing there were two Servants on the opposing side, he opted to retreat immediately.

As for Su Ye, Batman was merely a shadow clone he had summoned to temporarily act as his Servant. Thus, after driving Lancer away, Batman vanished as well.

At that moment, the sound of hurried footsteps approached. Seeing this, Su Ye rolled his eyes and collapsed, a bloody wound suddenly appearing on his chest.

The footsteps soon reached him—it was Rin Tohsaka. After instructing Red A to track Lancer, she had hurried over herself to check on Su Ye's condition.

After all, Su Ye was her classmate, and he got involved because of her. If he died here, she would feel responsible.

One look, and Rin instantly tensed up.

Su Ye lay motionless on the ground, a gaping wound in his chest, seemingly killed by a pierced heart.

Rin hesitated for a moment before pulling out a heart-shaped pendant. She began casting magic on Su Ye's 'corpse,' attempting to revive him.

Rin's such a good girl. Every time I think about how I tricked her during our first meeting by faking my death with a shadow clone, I feel a bit guilty.

Through their telepathic link, Red A spoke in a wistful tone, leaving Su Ye unsure whether he was being reflective or reproachful.

Since Red A was Su Ye's future self, everything Su Ye did now would eventually become Red A's memories.

At that moment, Red A stood atop the rooftop, gazing at the surrounding scenery, while Su Ye's true body remained hidden in the nearby shadows, avoiding detection by any mage using a crystal ball.

Even without speaking, the two could communicate telepathically without any spatial constraints.

After hearing Red A's words, Su Ye shook his head. "If you feel guilty, go ahead and expose me. Honestly, I don't care. Whether I romance two girls or three doesn't make much difference to me."

"Especially Rin—she's not as cute as Sakura or as adorably clueless as Saber. Plus, her chest is a bit small…"

Red A sighed. "You're right. I'm a manifestation of my obsessions, but you're not, so I'm more anxious than you. Still, it's not your fault. Blame my lifelong infatuation with, uh, ample chests!"

Su Ye shrugged. "Glad you understand!"

Red A's eyebrow twitched before he murmured, "Cut the nonsense. Don't tell me you don't want to clear all three routes. Don't bother lying—I am you!"

"Heh!" Su Ye chuckled.

"Since you're me, you should know my goal isn't limited to just those three routes."

Red A froze, images of the Rider Servant Medusa and the Caster Servant Medea flashing in his mind, sending a chill down his spine.

"So, you're really going all out?"

"Romancing the three main heroines is one thing, but those two? They're no pushovers—look at them! They're literal seductresses. You sure about this?"

Su Ye nodded. "Of course. Since I'm here, might as well go big!"

Red A shook his head. "But the Grail can only grant one Servant's wish. If you take Saber, you won't be able to bring Medusa or Medea."

Su Ye smiled.

"I'm starting to doubt you're really me. Haven't you ever heard this saying?"

"It's not about forever; it's about having had it once!"

After hearing this, Red A's demeanor deflated slightly.

"I suddenly regret being you. Such a scummy mindset doesn't suit my status as a heroic spirit, okay?"

"Do you even know what it takes to become a heroic spirit? You bastard, apologize to this sacred role right now!"

Su Ye waved dismissively. "Spare me the lecture. Just tell me—are you in or not?"

Red A resumed his serious demeanor, glancing at Rin Tohsaka as she emerged from the school building, searching for him. His gaze was resolute, his expression firm.

"First, I'd like to express my sincerest disdain for my past self—what a scumbag!"

Second, as a heroic spirit, I can't go against my original wish: [to fulfill my past self's goals]."

"Lastly, I just want to say, morally, I'm absolutely against this. But... I'm in!"

Watching Red A walk away, Su Ye snorted. "Hypocrite! You really are me after all!"