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 Umbreless 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 arge target.


    Umbreless 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.


    Umbreless 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 thest minute. With his current injuries, he wouldn''t be able to hold out for three hours.


    "Kouen..."


    Umbreless 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 sessfully escaped twice, there wouldn''t be a third time.


    Umbreless 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..."


    Umbreless Brother coughed a few times, the pain from his injuries making hisplexion even worse.


    Crack! A branch not far away was snapped, and Umbreless 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 Umbreless Brother saw him, he smiled.


    "Just in time... really timely."


    As soon as he finished speaking, Umbreless Brother copsed 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 Umbreless Brother was being pursued by enemies.


    Once he confirmed that there was no one tailing Umbreless Brother, Su Xiao jumped down from the tree and approached him.


    At this moment, Umbreless Brother''s pupils were gradually dting. Upon realizing the severity of his injuries, Su Xiao furrowed his brows.


    An hourter, inside a vi on the outskirts of Fuyuki City.


    A weakened Umbreless Brother opened his eyes and was horrified by the scene before him.


    Umbreless 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 many medical instruments covered in fresh blood.


    The man held a syringe, apparently preparing to inject him. Seeing this, Umbreless Brother opened his mouth but couldn''t utter a word.


    Umbreless 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, Umbreless Brother let out a sigh of relief, realizing that Su Xiao was the one who saved him.


    "Byakuya, thank you for saving... Frank!"


    Umbreless Brother was about to express his gratitude but, when he tried to sit up, he found that he had been injected with arge 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?"


    Umbreless 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?"


    Umbreless Brother didn''t understand what turning into a ''vegetable'' meant. In fact, taking out his organs was to prevent them from bing like trees.


    Umbreless Brother had a strong constitution, and Su Xiao had diluted the first form before injecting it into him several times. Given his injuries at that time, it was ast-ditch effort. Initially, there were signs of tree transformation, but after the shield tattoo appeared on Umbreless Brother''s arm, the transformation lessened.


    "You can rest for a while."


    Su Xiao injected the syringe into Umbreless Brother''s body again, and his eyelids grew heavier.


    "Wait, I feel like I can still be saved."


    "Still being saved..."


    Umbreless 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, Umbreless Brother''s fingers moved slightly, and he gradually opened his eyes. As his consciousness returned, he felt an unbearable pain.


    "Ugh..."


    Umbreless 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.


    Umbreless Brother struggled through the pain and sat up. What he first noticed was a metal box ced on the bedside table. A tube ran from his abdomen to the box, connecting him to it.


    "You... you..."


    Umbreless Brother stammered. He didn''t understand what was happening. His abdomen had turned pale, and there were small tree saplings growing on the surface.


    Umbreless Brother''s intestines had been burned more than three-quarters, and without extreme measures, he wouldn''t regain hisbat capability in the short term. Moreover, his chances of survival were less than one in ten.


    After the initial panic, Umbreless 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 Umbreless 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."


    Umbreless 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 Umbreless Brother.


    "You still thought you''d kick the bucket. Tell me, what''s the situation with those three individuals?"