This is a city similar to Fuyuki City.
It is not big, not famous, and has no famous tourist attractions. It is just an ordinary small city.
This city belongs to Tokyo, Japan.
Tokyo Metropolis and Japan's capital Tokyo are different concepts. The former is equivalent to a province in China, but the area is not as large, while the latter is equivalent to a city in China. The easiest example to understand is Jilin Province and Jilin City in Northeast China (although Jilin City is not the capital of Jilin Province), and this city is roughly equivalent to Tonghua City or Liaoyuan City under the jurisdiction of Jilin Province.
The name of this city is Guanbuzi City. Don't ignore its existence just because its name is not so easy to pronounce. It is a very important stage in the Type-Moon world. The story called "Kara no Kyoukai" takes place here.
In the last month of 1994, a Mercedes-Benz sedan with a license plate from another place drove into this small city with a difficult-to-remember name.
The driver was a woman in her thirties, of Japanese-German descent, with shoulder-length red hair and a pretty face. She was wearing a classic Chanel business suit, accessorized with Cartier crystal jewelry, and a pair of half-frame glasses that gave her both a formal and fashionable vibe. She was a typical urban white-collar worker, or rather, a gold-collar worker.
Her name is Elsa Saijo. Uh, maybe she is the same person as Archer's Master in Fate/Prototype (Fourth War in a Parallel World) from a different world, or maybe they just have the same name. But that's not important. What's important is that she is currently serving as Matou Tsuruya's assistant and an indispensable partner in Tsuruya's career. The Matou family's industry in the secular world has snowballed in a year, and Miss Saijo has made an indelible contribution.
The only person who could have Nishijo Elsa serve as her driver was naturally Matou Tsuruno, who was currently sitting in the passenger seat with his eyes closed to rest.
Yes, the front passenger seat. The Japanese car seat etiquette is "higher in the back, lower in the front, higher in the right, lower in the left". Tsuruya sitting in the front passenger seat proves that the back seat is occupied by two people of "higher" status in the Matou family.
At the back right is the little princess of the family, the apple of everyone’s eye, Sakura Matou.
At the back left is the most influential person in the family, a freak whose mental age does not match his physical age, Shinji Matou.
The two children were each holding onto a window, watching the scenery rapidly receding outside the glass.
The difference is that the innocent Sakura is in high spirits, while the mature Shinji has empty and unfocused eyes, as if he is immersed in his own world.
The traffic around them gradually became denser, and the group was getting closer and closer to their destination. After passing three traffic lights in a row, Elsa, who had been driving for more than an hour, reminded them in a neither loud nor soft voice: "Turn at the next intersection, and then pass two more traffic lights and you'll be there."
Heye hummed softly and opened his eyes.
"Is it finally time?" Sakura smiled sweetly and reached out to tug at the corner of Shinji's clothes, "Brother, brother."
Shinji finally woke up from his dream and looked around blankly: "Ah - Oh -"
Seeing his son's reaction, Tsuruya rubbed his temple in distress: "Shinji, you said you had to come, so I brought you and Sakura here. Why are you so listless now?"
"Maybe he was tired from sitting in the car for a long time. After all, he is still young."
In response to Elsa's advice, He could only respond with a forced smile and "hehe".
What can he say
Saying that your son is a little monster with more energy than you
Although Elsa is one of the closest people to him in the outside world, she does not know the truth about the Matou family, and Tsuruya has no plans to let her know for the time being.
Shaking his head to clear his chaotic thoughts, Heya continued.
"Shinji, Sakura, we are going to attend a reception hosted by the Asagami family tonight. Although this family has fallen on hard times, they are still a famous family in Nagano and have some connections with our Matou family. We must not lose our manners."
"I know, Dad." Ying nodded obediently, "Ying will pay attention."
"Sakura is so good, Shinji—"
"Don't worry, I'm the best at pretending to be nice."
Shinji patted his cheeks, stretched, loosened his body which was stiff from sitting for a long time, and returned to his usual playful smile.
"Look, except for Aunt Elsa, no one else in the group knows that I am pretending. They all say that I am obedient and sensible, and that you gave birth to a good son."
"You—" Tsuruya had never been able to do anything with his son and could only scratch his head out of habit.
"Don't scratch your head. You are the guest of honor tonight, so your hair cannot be messy. And don't scratch your clothes. If there are wrinkles, you will be embarrassed."
After being repeatedly stopped by Shinji, Tsuru had no choice but to scratch the glass. At least this would not affect his dignity. His helpless and frustrated look made Erza and Sakura laugh out loud.
Tonight's cocktail party is a formal occasion. Tsuruya, Shinji, and Sakura are all wearing custom-made dresses. Elsa also brought a dress, but because she had to discuss business first, she would change into it after that.
The two traffic lights passed quickly and the Mercedes-Benz turned into the underground parking lot of an office building.
After the car stopped, the group did not get off immediately, but checked themselves one last time to see if they were dressed inappropriately - mainly women checking for men. Elsa, who was secretly called the housekeeper of the "Matou Group", and Sakura, who was a true disciple of Tousaka Aoi, both paid great attention to their appearance. Only Tsuruya and Shinji, who were unkempt, needed help to take care of themselves.
Seeing Erza carefully adjusting Tsuruya's tie, Shinji's eyes began to flicker and a playful smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, which he did not stop until he got off the car.
"Hey, that's too much." Heya deliberately fell behind and glared at his son.
"It's not me who's overdoing it, it's you." Shinji lowered his voice, "I used to doubt whether Aunt Elsa liked you, but now I finally understand, this is not love, it's clearly love. Dad, if you meet such a good woman, just marry her."
Heye paused, his expression changing several times before finally turning into a sigh.
"Wait a little longer. Wait a little longer."
"The decision is yours. I just want to remind you not to wait until you lose something to regret it. You are luckier than your uncle. The Matou family is not so dirty and dark now, and you don't need to worry about anything." After saying that, Shinji quickened his pace and walked side by side with Sakura.
"Regret... worry..." Heye lowered his head, not knowing what he was thinking.
By the time he had calmed down and looked up, Shinji and Sakura had already walked away. Only the woman who had been his assistant for more than five years was waiting for him, just like she had done countless times when he got drunk and sent him home.
"What do you talk about with your kids?"
"Oh, he said he wants you to be his stepmother."
Elsa's face suddenly turned as red as her hair. "What are you talking about? Don't joke with children."
He also felt a little sore in the corners of his eyes for some reason.
Are you kidding me? If you joke too much, no one will believe you when you get serious.
It's time to calm down.