The reason Su Xiao asked the elderly priest for help in contacting the Einzbern family was mainly due to the elderly priest's special status.
If Su Xiao were to contact the Einzbern family directly, they might not respond, let alone help him establish contact with Emiya Kiritsugu, who was currently participating in the Holy Grail War.
The elderly priest was the supervisor of the Fourth Holy Grail War, and his words carried weight. His request would not be easily ignored by the Einzbern family. Su Xiao did this to try and gather more forces to deal with the three high-level contractors.
Approximately at the same time as the agreed-upon meeting with Umbrellaless Brother, Su Xiao left a list of phone numbers with the elderly priest and left the church.
...
At night, in a forest one kilometer outside Fuyuki City.
An owl perched on a tree branch, tilting its head to observe a human below. The scent of blood on the person aroused the owl's wild instincts.
"Hoot, hoot, hoot..."
After calling a few times, the owl took flight. It preferred smaller prey like mice and insects over such a large target.
Umbrellaless Brother leaned against a tree, his clothes tattered, and his face charred. He had a severe wound in his lower abdomen, which was critical. Although there was no heavy bleeding, the entire wound was burnt and charred, with a dark red energy surging inside, resembling magma.
Umbrellaless Brother took out a watch and checked the time. He sighed helplessly. There were still three hours left until his appointment with Su Xiao. Considering Su Xiao's cautious nature, he might arrive at the last minute. With his current injuries, he wouldn't be able to hold out for three hours.
"Kouen..."
Umbrellaless Brother tried to push himself up from the tree, but his efforts failed. After escaping from Arson and others twice, he had exhausted his recovery items.
The first time was when he escaped during Arson's pursuit of a small adventure group, and the second time was when he escaped with his powerful defensive and escape abilities. Although he had successfully escaped twice, there wouldn't be a third time.
Umbrellaless Brother's breathing grew weaker. He held a ring in his hand, his wedding ring. Thinking about his three-year-old daughter in the real world, his heart ached.
"Xixi, I wish I could watch you grow up..."
Umbrellaless Brother coughed a few times, the pain from his injuries making his complexion even worse.
Crack! A branch not far away was snapped, and Umbrellaless Brother's gaze sharpened. He struggled to stand up. If it was an enemy approaching, he was prepared to fight to the death.
From the bushes emerged Bubu Wang, and when Umbrellaless Brother saw him, he smiled.
"Just in time... really timely."
As soon as he finished speaking, Umbrellaless Brother collapsed to the ground.
"Bubu, share the aura with him."
Su Xiao, who was sitting on a tree branch not far away, spoke. He had arrived about half an hour ago but had stayed hidden to observe if Umbrellaless Brother was being pursued by enemies.
Once he confirmed that there was no one tailing Umbrellaless Brother, Su Xiao jumped down from the tree and approached him.
At this moment, Umbrellaless Brother's pupils were gradually dilating. Upon realizing the severity of his injuries, Su Xiao furrowed his brows.
An hour later, inside a villa on the outskirts of Fuyuki City.
A weakened Umbrellaless Brother opened his eyes and was horrified by the scene before him.
Umbrellaless Brother was lying on an iron bed. Under the illumination of the light, a man wearing a mask and medical gloves was looking down at him from above. On a wooden table beside the man lay medical instruments covered in fresh blood.
The man held a syringe, apparently preparing to inject him. Seeing this, Umbrellaless Brother opened his mouth but couldn't utter a word.
Umbrellaless Brother was terrified. The scene before him resembled something from a horror movie—sealed room, a psychopath dissecting or modifying him.
As his memory gradually cleared, Umbrellaless Brother let out a sigh of relief, realizing that Su Xiao was the one who saved him.
"Byakuya, thank you for saving... Frank!"
Umbrellaless Brother was about to express his gratitude but, when he tried to sit up, he found that he had been injected with a large dose of anesthesia. More importantly, some of his vital organs were hanging in the air, like his kidneys and liver, connected to a tube leading to an iron box at the bedside.
"You... are you going to dissect me?"
Umbrellaless Brother stuttered. He didn't know Su Xiao well, and if this man turned out to be a psychopath, it would be bad.
"No, this is to prevent you from turning into a 'vegetable.'"
"Huh?"
Umbrellaless Brother didn't understand what turning into a 'vegetable' meant. In fact, taking out his organs was to prevent them from becoming like trees.
Umbrellaless Brother had a strong constitution, and Su Xiao had diluted the first formula before injecting it into him several times. Given his injuries at that time, it was a last-ditch effort. Initially, there were signs of tree transformation, but after the shield tattoo appeared on Umbrellaless Brother's arm, the transformation lessened.
"You can rest for a while."
Su Xiao injected the syringe into Umbrellaless Brother's body again, and his eyelids grew heavier.
"Wait, I feel like I can still be saved."
"Still being saved..."
Umbrellaless Brother lost consciousness as Su Xiao continued the surgery. With experience from helping Nagato perform surgery, Su Xiao was more familiar with surgical procedures, especially considering the robust physique of contractors.
After an unknown period of time, Umbrellaless Brother's fingers moved slightly, and he gradually opened his eyes. As his consciousness returned, he felt an unbearable pain.
"Ugh..."
Umbrellaless Brother groaned and instinctively tried to touch his abdomen. However, when his hand came into contact with his stomach, he froze. The sensation in his abdomen was not normal.
Umbrellaless Brother struggled through the pain and sat up. What he first noticed was a metal box placed on the bedside table. A tube ran from his abdomen to the box, connecting him to it.
"You... you..."
Umbrellaless Brother stammered. He didn't understand what was happening. His abdomen had turned pale, and there were small tree saplings growing on the surface.
Umbrellaless Brother's intestines had been burned more than three-quarters, and without extreme measures, he wouldn't regain his combat capability in the short term. Moreover, his chances of survival were less than one in ten.
After the initial panic, Umbrellaless Brother gradually calmed down. As long as he didn't die, he could recover any injuries when he returned to the Paradise of Reincarnation.
The door was pushed open, and a young girl with a tray walked into the room. When Umbrellaless Brother saw her, he was taken aback.
"Sakura Matou?"
Sakura stepped back a few steps, clearly a bit shy.
"Byakuya, that person is awake."
After Sakura shouted for more than ten seconds, Su Xiao entered the room.
"Byakuya, thank you for saving my life."
Umbrellaless Brother didn't mention the previous surgery; he knew that Su Xiao had saved him.
Su Xiao walked to the bedside and nodded after a brief examination of Umbrellaless Brother.
"You still thought you'd kick the bucket. Tell me, what's the situation with those three individuals?"
