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User:Fiohnel

2011-09-01T13:01:21Z

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Fate/Zero:Heart Of Freaks

2011-09-01T12:58:22Z

Fiohnel: /* Heart of Freaks */ Fixed few typos

===Heart of Freaks===

Even monsters which possess the heart of a man-

There was no need for a man to possess the heart of a monster.

Just that – he wanted a monster.

A monster which surpassed everything.

However, it was difficult to make a monster.

Difficult, difficult…

In spite of that, he tried his best, and realized.

What I hoped for was not the action itself,

''but the monster itself. ''

An old-fashioned Mustang – rented cheaply from a rent-a-car shop – was travelling in the endless wilderness at a high speed, unchanged since a few hours before. The car stereo was neither banging loudly with music, nor could any young, lovely voices be heard from the car.

An Asian young man was driving the Mustang. Although he was driving on this immensely long road, there was no trace of fatigue on his face. – That said, he did not appear to be enjoying himself as well.

His expression was cold. Neither bored nor upset – it was just cold.

He had once experienced hell before. Even as he was heading to hell now, all could be seen in his eyes was the extensive battle experience.

His name was Emiya Kiritsugu.

America…this place is pointlessly vast.

That was Emiya Kiritsugu’s first impression of this country called America.

It was more than five hours since they purchased the necessary supplies at New York. They were driving along the empty highway.

There was nothing but the continuous, dull road. Activating his prana by a little, Kiritsugu drove away the drowsiness he felt…… if an accident were to happen at such a place like this, it would mean nothing but trouble.

Originally, she was the one driving. Thinking about that, Kiritsugu shot a glance at the woman sleeping at the front seat. The sleeping person seemed to be frowning in displeasure, as if she was deeply in thought about something……but Kiritsugu knew that she was just sleeping.

My, my – he sighed. And then, as if guessing his feelings, she opened her eyes, and said.

“What is it, boy? Is there something on my face, or did you feel itchy?”

“……Can we switch driving soon?”

To face the words of Natalia Kaminski head on (except in battles), would just be tiring and pointless – as the number one disciple of hers, Emiya Kiritsugu understood that fact very well.

“No. I am tired. While I was negotiating just now, you were just standing beside right?”

Negotiating…huh, Kiritsugu shook his head.

“……I had intended to keep protecting you.”

The party they were negotiating with was as a matter of fact, a lowly gang. Over here, when you point at the weapons you want, they would show you the thing, and raise the price – such was the way they do things here.

The negotiations broke down, and what’s left was the weapons they had chosen – there were no bodies left.

“I had pulled the trigger too early.”

Silence. Embarrassing, but it was as Natalia had said. At the speed at which she pulled the trigger, she had won.

Actually, she should not have been able to win by reflexes.

Natalia Kaminski was the descendant of a half succubus from her ancestors. As an apprentice, Emiya Kiritsugu had started off from an extraordinary spot.

At first, she had surpassed Kiritsugu in everything – there was no chance he could win. Supposing there was one, it had to be an area which he did not learn from her, but had mastered it by himself.

“Besides, we had come all the way to America, and even now you haven’t told me the target’s name.”

“Hmm? Ah, come to think of it, I’ve forgotten about it.”

“Don’t forget such important things.”

“Sorry, sorry,” Grimacing, Natalia took out a picture.

“The plan is to meet the fellow who had made this.”

“……huh.”

For an instant, his heart leaped. The content of the picture seemed to be a combination of several human beings.

A body which was minced, then affixed together, then split apart. In the centre, there was a huge, pitch black hole.

“This was taken more than twenty years ago. They discovered this ''thing'' at Bavaria, north Germany. This picture is not clear, but apparently this thing was running on ''eighteen horse legs''.”

“Horse legs, you said?”

Natalia smiled bitterly.

“A low-grade product huh. The man who made this was a magus called Heinrich Zepter.”

“What’s his aim of making such a thing?”

“Behold. “Resurrection of the dead”.”

“Resurrection……?”

Those involved in thaumaturgy would think about it at least once – the miracle of resurrecting the precious beloved ones.

“When I said “Resurrection of the dead”, what were you thinking about?”

“That’s-“

That’s the retrieval of the lost body, and the lost soul. And to recover the lost time.

Saying that, Kiritsugu recalled the faces of the man and the woman, but shook that thought off the next moment.

“Heinrich’s version of “resurrection of the dead” is a bit different from yours.”

Usually, the miracle called “resurrection of the dead” referred to what Kiritsugu thought previously – the “revival of the soul and flesh”. This was not something that could just be ignored. If the soul was not revived, and it was just a moving body, it would the same as a decaying corpse-eating ghost.

“If you manage to revive the body, then it’s good enough; the soul is not important – See, isn’t that heresy?”

“I don’t get it. Reviving only the body, what’s the point?”

“I’ve no idea. Maybe the creator doesn’t even know.”

“Why?”

“For generations, the Zepter family has been immersed in the miracle of the resurrection of the dead. Initially, they were concentrating on reviving bodies flawlessly. After that, they worked hard at joining body parts together. And finally, they tried to create living beings by joining different body parts and giving the creature bodily functions.”

– In the end, it wasn’t even “resurrecting the dead” anymore. Instead……

“Yup. They had wandered far from their intention. This is no longer “resurrection of the dead”, but the “creation of monsters”.”

Since a few generations ago, there were already signs that the Zepter family had been going on recklessly.

Flawlessly resurrecting the dead – but if the person was senile, or had died from an unexpected accident , it was impossible for their body to be perfectly revived to that before their death.

Because of that, if revival was necessary even if the limbs were severed – no, it was not limited to their limbs being attached to the torso, to revive the state of being short of a limb –

But, because of that, further advancement in the resurrection technique was required. The technique to join separated body limbs was necessary; to be able to join the nerves and enable the body to move. If the parts were insufficient, a technique was required to make up for those parts.

What was necessary was the technique to fully operate the body. In order to combine, synthesize, join, and operate all body parts, regardless of their states.

“And, were they reprimanded by the Association?”

“If an entire village was used as part of the experiment, even the Association would lift their heavy butt up and take some action, huh.”

“……”

''An entire village'', at those words, Kiritsugu’s eyes clouded slightly. Formerly, he had seen an exact scene before – a hell where everything was literally laid waste.

“But Heinrich escaped death, and his whereabouts were not known hence…but.”

“He was discovered at America?”

“Exactly. The monster he created appeared in a village, and raged about violently.”

“That monster was?”

“American policemen are excellent. It was an unknown creature, but they killed it right then, and exterminated it successfully. Admirable clarity and diligence.”

That’s called excellent? – Kiritsugu thought, but he did not voice it out.

“And then, I received a call from the magus who had gone to recover the corpse. As a result of the investigation, it has been confirmed that Heinrich is at that village. And hence, here we are.”

“Finally I understood the mission.”

“That’s right. It’s to kill Heinrich Zepter, the magus who had wandered off from the right path, a.s.a.p. Any question?”

“No.”

Answering disinterestedly, Kiritsugu stepped on the pedal and accelerated.

After an hour, with the sun setting at the west, the village – “Present Mountain” – appeared abruptly.

There was a scribble at the entrance to the village. According to it, there were two thousand people.

Travelling on the unpaved road, the car jolted as it went on the stones.

“There’s a hotel over there. Let’s set up our base over there first.”

Nodding, Kiritsugu stopped in front of the hotel. The instant they opened the door and breathed in the dusty air, they realized they were being watched.

There was no killing intent – they were merely being observed.

“Oh my…”

Natalia muttered while removing their luggage from the car boot. She easily lifted the case filled with various weapons.

“Natalia, what do you think?”

“Well… Let’s hope they’re just curious. But we’ll have to consider the worst case scenario too.”

“We have to fight two thousand people?”

“The worst case scenario is, if he flees into the American wilderness barefoot.”

Saying that, Natalia smiled. She removed something small from the case she was holding, and handed it to Kiritsugu.

He caught it and felt that it was heavy. Activating his magic circuit, he almost felt at ease, but couldn’t as they were steeping up the staircase into the enemy’s territory.

Both of them entered into the hotel. The staff at the counter eyed them suspiciously.

“We’d like to put up for the night.”

“100 dollars per night.”

“30 dollars seem fine to me.”

“100 dollars per night.”

“……OK. 100 dollars a night.”

Natalia gave him two hundred dollars. Still looking at them suspiciously, the staff member put the keys on the counter.

“Room 208.”

“Kiritsugu.”

Nodding, he followed her and went up the stairs. At the last room on the second floor, there was a rotten door.

“Is there even a need for keys?”

Dumbfounded, but Natalia opened the door. Dropping the heavy case onto the bed, he frowned through the settling dust.

“Natalia, what’s next? Are we really staying for the night?”

“If the villagers allow us, that is.”

Saying that, she promptly took out the so-called modern weapons – firearms, ammunition, and grenades – and some magecraft equipments which looked like old-fashioned wands and animal furs, tied together by ropes.

Following suit, Kiritsugu started taking out weapons from the case.

By the way, at this moment Kiritsugu was still undergoing training. Hence, he had yet to arrive at that stage where he could use his “Origin” effectively and kill magi. Because of that, he still did not have his trump card in his later years – the Thompson Contender, and the Origin Bullet, nor had he acquired his Innate Time Control ability.

Basically, his equipments were Natalia’s ideas, which functioned as her backup. His role was to release bullets at a huge amount, and also as a long-distance, one-hit-KO sniper.

From his case, Kiritsugu took out a Calico submachine gun. Putting that into the side pocket of his holster, he took the Weatherby Mark V Rifle from Natalia; and frowned.

“Am I really supposed to use this?”

Due to its tremendous force, it was not a weapon commonly used at the start of a battle, against the general magi.

“He is our enemy. We’re not just fighting some monster. So, with this, we can even destroy dinosaurs from the old age.”

Naturally, in the world of magecraft, there were creatures which could not be destroyed by this rifle – fantasy species. Still, it should be sufficient against the magus who would probably become their enemy.

Their opponent was a heretic magus who manipulated flesh, and created monsters…

But even if he were to stop using his magecraft, and begged for his life with tears flowing down his face, Kiritsugu would still pull the trigger on him without hesitating.

Kiritsugu gripped the thick rifle barrel tightly. Its weight gave him the feeling of holding a dangerous weapon.

“……”

The expression on Natalia’s face changed from a distant look to a knife-like sharp look.

Before Kiritsugu could ask anything, she indicated with her fingers – “it moves”.

“This room moves. I felt it.”

A murmur.

Kiritsugu realized it too. At the same time, he understood what he must do.

Quickly, he took out the directional anti-personal landmine from his case, and set the wire near the door. The instant the door was opened and someone stepped in, they would be ambushed by 700 iron spheres.

Without making any noise, Natalia broke down the wall of the room, and made a hole fit for a person – not exactly breaking down; she had slashed it into smithereens. Obviously, it was a technique which could only be done by the strengthening of her body abilities with prana.

After indicating that it was done, Natalia slipped through the hole into the room next door, and held her breath.

The sound of footsteps. Even Kiritsugu – still an apprentice – could sense the overflowing animosity.

Natalia stood in front of the door. Kiritsugu assumed the stance of a backup, and gripped the Calico submachine gun tightly.

There was a knock on the door next to their room. Natalia and Kiritsugu were both silent. The knocking sound gradually ascended into violent banging.

Kiritsugu gently placed his ear on the wall. He should be able to hear the sound of claymore mine being set off.

One of them was kicking the door hard.

The moment the door was kicked open, a thunderous sound could be heard, and the entire hotel shook.

Almost simultaneously, Natalia moved into action. With a single hit, she knocked down the door, and leaped over the remaining villagers who were armed with old-fashioned rifles and chopping axes.

Kiritsugu ran to the wall near the stairs nimbly, but stopped when he heard something. Recognizing the manager at the desk just now – now armed with an old-fashioned revolver – Kiritsugu opened fire without the slightest hesitation.

The staff members who were running up the stairs were bathed in bullets. Convulsing, blood splattered from them and they dropped dead.

“Let’s go.”

“Okay.”

Kiritsugu agreed with Natalia.

They sneaked out from the hotel backdoor, and observed from afar the villagers who had gathered at the hotel due to the explosion sound.

They were expressionless. Not surprised, not sad, not angry – they were merely gazing at the hotel, with their mouth closed. They were armed with rifles, pistols, scythes, axes, and other dangerous weapons.

Eventually, they moved sluggishly, and then ran right into the hotel. There were no fear, nor hesitation; not even anger.

After observing that, Kiritsugu handed over the binoculars to Natalia. Noticing that, she cursed softly.

– Usually, if a magus hid within a close-knit village community, he would probably take two different measures.

One, total isolation. Not getting involved with anyone or anything, hiding all the time even if he were to be criticized by those around him – the technique used by magi who loved tranquillity.

And the other cruel way was to place the entire village under his control.

Even in a tight country like Japan, a “village” community can be easily established. Consequently, if the entire village was placed under magecraft control, the probability of the magus being exposed would decrease drastically.

The measure Heinrich Zepter took was the latter. The villagers were completely expressionless. The reason they were cut off from their feelings was not that they could withstand something bad, but so that their brain activities could be restricted by a third party.

Probably so that news would not be leaked out – the location of the king of this village, Heinrich Zepter.

“Damn. If that’s the case, we won’t be able to find any clues by asking around.”

“How about capturing someone and question him with magecraft?”

At Kiritsugu’s suggestion, Natalia expression became more troubled.

“Our opponent is a kind of magus. He would have undertaken security measures for himself lest his location is revealed…”

“At this rate, the kidnapping won’t work.”

“……No choice about that. We’ll try what we can.”

Natalia sighed.

The two of them sneaked out of the backdoor of the hotel, and ran away crouching. After a while, they arrived at a place like a stable. Kiritsugu quickly clasped the mouth of a man who was taking care of the horses lazily, and held a knife at his neck.

“Don’t move! Keep quiet!”

However, even after he had done all of these, the man did not seem resentful, or surprised, or afraid – his face was perfectly blank.

Holding the mouth tightly, Kiritsugu tried to make the man understand that they meant business; but he wasn’t sure if that man understood it or not.

“We are looking for a man called Heinrich Zepter.”

In spite of that, Kiritsugu still asked. To prove that the knife wasn’t fake, he lightly cut the man’s face.

“You don’t have much time left. Answer!”

The man nodded slowly. He pointed at an easterly direction from the stable. After that, he lifted three fingers.

“Three kilometres from here to the east? Or is it 300 metres?”

He shook his head, then nodded – looks like the latter was correct.

After that, the moment when Kiritsugu tried to kill the man with the knife–

The man’s back moved slightly.

“Boy, move!”

At those words, Kiritsugu stopped trying to stab the man, and rolled instantly to one side. At the same time, a third arm appeared from the back and slashed at the space where he was at with great force.

It was a strange arm. It was long and powerful, in spite of the appearance of a dried-up mummy-like arm.

The arm swung and attacked Natalia directly. Like a ball, she was sent flying and hit the wall.

“Natalia!”

At his shout, Natalia commanded him without any doubt.

“Shoot him!”

Instantly, Kiritsugu acted – holding the Calico submachine gun in one hand, he pressed the trigger with the other.

With a strong determination which caused the rifle to blur slightly due to recoil, Kiritsugu rained more than 20 bullets on the man.

Without even groaning, the man collapsed.

“……?”

Kiritsugu felt that something was amiss. Obviously, it was not his first time shooting a person; but he felt as if he had just gunned down something different.

“Boy, look!”

Natalia kicked the body over, and Kiritsugu understood why he felt that way.

“He didn’t bleed at all.”

“Yeah, it’s that. Something like a corpse-eating creature. From the outside he appeared to be alive, and he could think a bit too. But the inside is- “

Removing the knife from the ankle, in one go, she cut open the body from the chest to the stomach, and revealed its contents.

“ –empty. Look at this. There’s only the lungs and the heart. The rest were already removed……hmm, is it because those were the only necessary parts required to live and talk?”

“Natalia, now’s not the time to be impressed. Let’s leave here quickly.”

“That’s right. The villagers should be rushing here after hearing that loud noise-“

Something huge squirmed behind Natalia. She saw the panicked look on Kiritsugu’s face, and felt a strong killing intent, as if something was going to attack her from the back.

Crouching, Natalia displayed her superb body reflexes by aiming a powerful kick behind her.

“Hey, hey.”

Even Natalia became dumbfounded, and gazed at the creature in front of her.

It was a horse.

There was nothing unusual about it being a horse.

And there was nothing unusual about her attacking it.

The only unusual fact was that the twin-headed horse was that, it was ''perfectly fused together''.

The place where they were joined was sticky, like molten chocolate. Among the eight legs, two of them were like the man just now – full of wrinkles like a monster.

“……A fine taste its maker has.”

Grumbling, Natalia kicked the huge creature again. Catching the trembling horse, she strengthened her arm with prana, and severed the horse.

However, the horse raged about, trying to kick Natalia. Somehow, whilst she was trying to hold the horse down, an arrow was shot at her.

Still, Natalia’s senses were extraordinary. The instant she sensed the approaching arrow, she held the horse’s neck up with both hands, and released a powerful kick – the arrow which was approaching was broken mid-air.

Kiritsugu perceived the villager who was aiming at them with bows and arrows on the rooftop. Without waiting for Natalia’s orders, he swiftly aimed his rifle at him and fired.

Along with the rattling sound, his shoulders felt numb. A large hole appeared at the man’s chest.

“……Damn it!”

It was her negligence, otherwise the creature was stronger than she thought. The twin-head horse escaped from Natalia’s grip.

The horse ''glared at both of them loathingly'', and retreated swiftly. They were amazed, but moved quickly.

“It’s going to…climb the wall!?”

The huge horse was surprisingly quick-witted – it nimbly climbed up the wall of one of the village houses.

Kiritsugu quickly aimed his rifle, and shot at it. It hit the wall planks – it felt like a direct hit.

Whilst limping, having climbed onto the rooftop, the twin-headed horse turned one of its head aside and started galloping on the roof.

''“……Do you have two hearts?”''

Kiritsugu wanted to curse himself who had looked past the obvious fact.

Wait! At Natalia’s anger-infused shout – but with a high-pitched shrill, the horse had leapt and galloped towards where the villagers were gathering.

A leap like that of a life-sized frog. Natalia could probably chase after it, but at that moment it was obvious that she would bump into those villagers.

“What are you going to do? Are you going to attack?”

At Kiritsugu’s words, Natalia showed a moment’s hesitation. It was something rare for a woman who made decisions spontaneously. But, thinking about it, there were only two choices in this situation –to escape or to attack.

At least, those were the only ideas which came to Kiritsugu’s mind. To haphazardly discover the headquarters of magi was the height of their folly.

However –

“No – we won’t attack.”

“So, we escape?”

“No – we won’t run away.”

Natalia presented a third option.

Looking at Kiritsugu, she grinned broadly and said.

''“I will die. And then, you bring the horse to Zepter’s.” ''

Which made Kiritsugu dumbfounded.

After receiving the reports of the twin-headed horse, in great numbers the villagers brought the animal to a stable. They numbered to about half of the entire population. And then, they discovered a woman who was walking unsteadily.

Someone inserted an arrow into a bow, and released.

Someone pulled the trigger of an old rifle.

And it all ended. Being shot at the elbow by the bullet, and the abdomen by the arrow, the woman collapsed slowly.

The villagers surrounded the woman’s corpse, looking at her.

“She’s dead.”

Yeah.”

“We should bring her to the doctor’s.”

“The doctor’s not around.”

“Umm. Sawyer is here.”

“There’s no proper facility here. Let’s leave her with Sawyer and the others.”

“Let’s do it.”

“There might be another one out there.”

“Find him too.”

Drowning her consciousness, without taking any breath, with her heart perfectly still, Natalia was literally “dead”; only her hearing was still functioning.

Consequently, the depths of her consciousness responded to the word “doctor”, and came to a conclusion after pondering –

Doctor, i.e. “the one who heals them”, had to be Heinrich Zepter.

''Okay, bring me there, to Heinrich Zepter’s place.''

Kiritsugu had sneaked into a deserted house, and heaved a sigh of relief after feeling Natalia’s prana left. Looks like the wall could be broken down. It was fortunate that the villagers did not take any reckless action like dissecting the corpse on the spot.

But, now’s the critical moment for Kiritsugu. First of all, he must locate where Natalia’s prana was headed to by dowsing.

That was relatively easy, but the problem was how to get there. To get there by slipping through the two thousand villagers without being noticed.

“Oh well, that boy should be able to work something out.”

Natalia said that while sniggering, at the same time heading to the place of death.

“Naturally, he’ll be able to do something.”

Whilst mumbling that, Kiritsugu focused his nerves more. Hanging from a string, a shining stone started moving without being touched. Before long, the stone pointed towards a point right ahead.

“……East huh?”

After making sure there was no one nearby, he slipped out quickly from the exit of the house.

Being carried by the villagers, Natalia was transported to the doctor’s house.

She predicted – that Zepter would not believe the villagers’ careless declaration of her death.

She predicted – that at the instant Zepter saw her, he would try to kill her.

She predicted – that because of that, instead of giving his recognition towards her, he had to move first, and take control of the situation immediately.

She predicted – that the villagers would say “The doctor’s not here. Is he away?” Anyway that would be convenient. Since there were a thousand of them over there, they would not be too difficult.

A question – Who was “Sawyer”? The doctor’s representative? Then he must be his apprentice or assistant. In any case, if he’s someone who continues practicing his craft, then he must be taken care of too.

A wish – She wanted the villagers to not linger at the doctor’s place after dropping her off, but to return home promptly.

She heard the sound of a door opening somewhere.
She heard the creaking sound of the floorboard from someone treading heavily on it.

Natalia grasped that she had arrived. Because she was not breathing, she could not smell the odour, but by sensing with her skin, she could understand that she “had entered into the house”.

She suppressed her prana as much as she could. With the information she had been relaying, Kiritsugu should have already known the location of this place. Her strategy was based on that assumption.

“Sawyer……bring the ingredients here.”

''“They’re ady dea."'' (They’re already there.)

A thickly accented voice. Looks like this is the guy called Sawyer.

Together with the sound of dragging feet, she could also heard the sound of some metal scratching the floor. However, she still could not open her eyes.

The villagers were leaving. The sound of footsteps gradually faded, and with a long creaking sound, the last person shut the door and left.

After confirming that for a few seconds – firstly, she activated her vision. Without moving her head, her eyes observed her surroundings. Just like what she expected, there were no medical tools, but on the wall were all types of magecraft tools, a dissecting hammer, knives, and machetes. In the glasses on the shelf, with five arms and sharp fangs, foetuses were looking at her with blank pupils.

On the crowded floor were heaps of magecraft books– there were not rare books, but still very expensive – strewn all over and stacking high up. The wall, the bed, the lighting; everything was shabby, but without a doubt, this was a magus’s workshop.

Natalia firmly believed that.

This place was Heinrich Zepter’s residence.

“……What? You’re still alive?”

Simultaneously, she jumped from the bed – activating her magic circuit, she broke Sawyer’s neck, who was still taken aback.

“Oh?”

After breaking his neck, Natalia realized something. Sawyer’s face had assumed a mysterious expression, like that of a surreal painting.

And then, in spite of the fact that Sawyer’s neck had been broken, he was still alive. Alive, and moving.

“What are you doing!”

Broken off and hanging loosely, without putting his head properly back, Sawyer attacked with a machete rusted from blood.

Evading that easily, she concentrated prana in her hand, and delivered a karate chop at his neck – his body was severed into half.

She stepped back from the gushing blood. This time, Natalia really believed that she had finished him off. The man in front of her – be it a magus, or a corpse-eating ghost, or any other creature, at the point when his heart was split away, he would lose all his bodily functions.

– That was supposed to be the case.

“Wh…….?”

She was stunned. Split cleanly into half, with blood and intestines still oozing out from it, the corpse ''wriggled''.

The remains of the body on the left and right helped and supported each other, as the body tried to stand.

“Move……gi…vide…videeeooo……”

“ – Whatever research he’s doing, I’d have never thought of such a disgusting monster.”

Sighing in shock, she kicked Sawyer – who tried to attack her – away.

“No……way…”

“Where is the “doctor” who created you? If you don’t tell me, I will cut you up until you can’t say a word.”

Picking up the machete, Natalia held it at Sawyer’s throat.

“Doctor…..THERE……”

With a shaking finger, Sawyer pointed at the bookshelf. Natalia thought there was an exit at the back of the bookshelf, but looks like that was not the case.

“Ttt, televv….television……”

Sawyer’s excited finger alternated between the television and the bookshelf. On the bookshelf were some nonsensical magecraft books, something like the clinical records of the villagers, and –

“Videotape……?”

''Television and videotape?''

For a moment, Natalia’s attention was diverted away from Sawyer who was squirming behind her – or rather, she did not sense anything aiming at her. Because of that, the instant she turned around, along with the sound of the wooden floor tearing, she could not stop Sawyer from being swallowed by a tremendous speed.

“……!?”

Panicking, she rushed towards a hole that had appeared out of t he floor – pitch darkness, as if leading towards the depth of hell. Nothing could be seen. She lighted a fire on a tobacco and threw it inside.

The small red light dropped into the depths of the hole before slowly disappearing.

“Well then……”

After being lost for a while, Natalia lit up the second tobacco, picked up the videotape and medical records, and sat in front of the television.

There were at least freaks in this village who could drag a dead body away in an instant. If that’s the case, obviously she would need to obtain information on how to go against it. The person in the playback of the video was the one she had expected.

“Transcending the video, or rather, I’m glad we finally meet, Heinrich Zepter.”

Murmuring that, Natalia smiled coldly.

Emiya Kiritsugu had confirmed that the building to which Natalia had been brought. Ahead of him was not just the building, but a building from which the deep stench of blood could be smelled; a place like no other.

The evil magus’s workshop was used for all sorts of biological experiments, and had taken in all sufferings, and despair. That was a sinister scene, indescribable by a single word.

At the sense of odiousness which surpassed his father’s workshop last time – a place where Emiya Kiritsugu had despaired of the world – whilst bearing the ice-cold cruelty, he slowly entered.

“You’ve come.”

He nodded at Natalia’s words. Inasmuch as being under such circumstances, she was settled on the sofa, watching the television. He almost blurted out words of incredulity, but after noticing her pointing at the television, he turned towards the screen.

“Zepter……?”

“Yes. Boy, looks like this is a ''love-letter from hell.''”

A long-haired man was on the screen. His beard covered half of his face. From his sunken eyes shone neither madness nor nothingness, but rationality.

“- Hunters from the Association. My name is Heinrich Zepter. The man you are after.”

There was no hint of triumph from his voice – he was just informing them of the fact out of plain indifference.

“Years after all of you look at this video, I am no longer in this world in 1978.”

“……Not in this world? Are these his last words?”

Kiritsugu frowned.

“A magus? Last words……?”

Natalia whispered.

“It is true that the Zepter family, had been lost from the right path. We were able to resurrect people – to revive the body, to revive the knowledge stuck in the brain, and| to restore even the destroyed magic circuits|. Since we have come this far, what remains is just to research into ways to call back the soul of the dead. But still, we specialize not in the spirit, but in the revival of the flesh.”

He shook his head as if he was bored.

“A finger, a strand of hair, claw, eyeballs – this is the technique to resurrect the body flawlessly from all of these. Alternatively, replacing a lost arm with another person’s, and to make the body recognize it as its original. And finally, to be able to induce the recognition of new parts of the body, and to make it move.”

He was silent for a moment, and muttered.

“……Having done all of these…so what? It’s boring, and no matter what words I use to describe it, this is ''no more than a mere toy''.”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

Natalia murmured – and Kiritsugu agreed as well.

This technique was indeed something to be praised. If that was not something magical, but something developed from purely scientific techniques, that would no doubt have a huge impact on the world.

However, from the magecraft’s point of view, that was just a simply useless technique. Who would want a technique which mass produces the living dead?

At this point, Kiritsugu realized something.

Until a moment ago, his image in the television – there was definitely a glint of intelligence in his eyes. There was also a note of rationality in his voice.

But, as he progressed in his explanations, they gradually disappeared.

“ – Yeah, nothing more than a toy. But, though we – no – I seek the origin like other magi……''I am helplessly attached to those toys.''”

“……”

Madness was seeping from the entire body of the man in the screen. With a stiff smile, it was as if darkness was overflowing from the opened mouth.

“That’s right. I am helplessly attached to them. I had fallen in love with them. ''The creatures that I invented give me joy from the bottom of my heart!''”

Looking at his boyish smile, Kiritsugu thought to himself – he had fought with magi who had strayed from the right path, many times. With an attitude which appeared to be a kind of ascetic monks, they carried out their actions of extreme brutality – but compared to them, Zepter was a ''truly interesting person.''

Kiritsugu even felt like he was being caught at his heel, and being slowly dragged away by this person. His vision dimmed, and started swaying…

“Boy, don’t be overwhelmed by it.”

Saying that, Natalia pressed the tobacco she was smoking, against Kiritsugu’s hand.

“……tsch!”

At that instant, his consciousness returned along with the pain he felt.

“You can get drunk on wine, but a hunter caught up in madness should be disqualified, don’t you think?”

At her severe admonishment, Kiritsugu could not help but to grimace.

“Just now……”

“It was not magecraft. It was just a hint. That’s probably why you didn’t understand huh……That was ''pure madness.'' His aim, his course of life, his interest and hobby are united. From a magus’ point of view, this is the worst handicap to us.”

Motive – to play with corpses.
Course of life – to play with corpses.
Interest – to play with corpses.
Hobby – to play with corpses.

“There are six hands, and they are moved simultaneously. Four legs, breaking into run simultaneously. Two heads, thinking at the same time, being embedded in the body and giving sight to the outside world…..Yeah, ''it’s really fun! It’s the best!”''

Kiritsugu was the first to realize this.

“Natalia……the floor in the screen, is it not moving?”

“Eh?”

Murmuring, Natalia shifted her attention towards the floor in the screen. Indeed, it was moving. Wriggling convulsively, as if it was a living thing.

“I invent monsters, invent invent and invent. It’s a shame, but at the same time, I know that I have strayed from the right path of humans and magi in the pursuit of my interest. That’s why I came to America; in this forsaken land, so that I can use the land and its people and carry out my research to my heart’s content. “

“……that research, as much as he wants?”

Seeming satisfied with himself, he took a deep breath.

“Yes, I am helplessly satisfied. Fusing babies and old people, creating three-headed man…… Even Hekatonkheires – I can recreate a miniature size of him. That’s why I am satisfied. Now, there’s only one thing left from my imagination.”

Right now, it was not just the floor trembling, but the entire place itself. Gulping, Natalia and Kiritsugu watched on.

“''And that’s to turn myself into a monster!'' – Isn’t that a cool ending??”

Together with his words, Zepter was wrapped in something huge, and together with a shout of sheer delight, he was swallowed completely.

The video stopped, and noise appeared on the screen. The two of them stood up, and started moving.

“That guy ''turned himself into a monster''?”

Kiritsugu asked, and Natalia nodded.

“……Well, it didn’t mean anything. For a magus who had strayed from the right path, it’s not surprising however mad he ended up in. Usually, it is logical to associate such people with absurdities; thus such things are recognized as the norm.”

Natalia turned over abruptly, and said to Kiritsugu.

“This applies to you, and me too. |If we strayed a little from our paths, we will fall.| Like the Zepter family, while they cut themselves from the outside world and carried on with the experiments, without realizing it, they walked on a wrong path before long. That madness will visit you in the blink of an eye, and take away your sanity.”

Kiritsugu was silent.

Natalia’s technical and magical lessons – all of them were important, but he thought that her words right now were more important than all of those.

“Insanity will disguise you. Those who have been controlled by it can even seem to be civilized gentlemen.”

“- So how do you see through the mask?”

“Don’t judge a book by its cover. It’s okay to trust your instincts, but don’t rely on your desire alone. And also, don’t get lost.”

Both of them gazed at the gaping hole on the floor –

It seemed like the path to hell.

“All right……time for the hunt.”

Kiritsugu nodded, and holding Natalia tightly, both of them jumped.

5 meters.

10 meters.

15 meters.

When they dropped to 20 meters underground, Natalia finally caught sight of the ground. She pushed her free hand against the wall. Scratching the wall with her nails, she slowed their descent.

Whilst feeling the tremor from her back, Kiritsugu wondered if they could ever ascend from this place again, and started exploring escape options.

Natalia’s ascent stopped, and Kiritsugu got off from her back.

“……It’s really vast.”

Natalia nodded and smiled at Kiritsugu’s words which were similar to her feelings of America.

They had arrived at a huge natural cavern. It was hard to tell how wide this place was.

But this cavern was unmistakably as vast as the entire village. And then, despite the pitch darkness which seemingly negated all existence, both of them confirmed something else.

''Something is here…''

Something incredibly dangerous, heretic, repulsive, and frightening.

At the very least, something not human – the associates of non-humans.

And.

|Because of that, both of them had to face each other.|

Once again, both of them were magi (aliens) who had departed from the boundaries of normal human beings.

With magecraft, Natalia created a small lamp, and Kiritsugu started walking forward.

After walking for a while, Natalia could smell the stench of something decaying. An odour of repulsive decaying meat. The sound of meat squashing against meat could be heard from the darkness ahead.

Immediately snuffing the lamp, they walked on whilst getting used to the pitch black.

And then…they saw it.

To illustrate, it was like a gigantic queen ant.

From the incredibly huge oviduct, ''a human was being born''. Wrapped in gooey liquid, it fully clothed – and it was a face that they remembered.

The man Kiritsugu should have killed.

“This guy, is he the hotel-“

“Yeah, the hotelkeeper who received us.”

Wiping the viscous liquid with his hands, he stood up unsteadily, and headed deeper into the cave.

“Which means, the villagers who had attacked us so far……”

“''All of them were this man’s children.''”

It was undoubtedly a creature beyond Kiritsugu’s wildest dreams. Seeing that figure, it was hard to even maintain his sanity. His steel-like resolve, the rifle in his arms, and above all, Natalia’s extreme composure – all of these had rescued him from the abyss of insanity.

Quietly containing the madness, he waited for instructions; and thought about possible instructions.

“Well then. The unpleasant, Beelzebub-like monster ahead of us, is our target – Heinrich Zepter. But……what do you think we should do?”
“We must kill him.”

“Correct. Now boy, how are we going to do that?”

“Destroy him completely with fire. Luckily, we have a sufficient supply of explosives. We strike him in one shot, before he can react.”

Natalia nodded.

“Your suggestion is good. If we go easy on them, they will be joining the villagers too.”

“So…”

“There’s only one problem. Is that thing as ugly, thick-headed and stupid as it looks on the outside? Or, does it still have Heinrich Zepter’s intelligence?”

“If he still has intelligence, then…?”

“Then he would have already known for a long time that we are here, and that we are thinking of how to attack him; things like that. And then, he would have already thought of how to counterattack. We would either be mutilated and killed, or being kept as slaves. One of them.”

“……”

“But, we will survive this. If anything happens, there are ways…”

“Retreat?”

“Nono, we won’t retreat. I want to set up some preventative measures.”

Saying that, Natalia took out a weapon from Kiritsugu’s backpack.

“What are you going to do with it?”

“I’ll hide it first. It’s our ''trump card''.”

Natalia grinned fearlessly.

“Boy, are all the preparations done?”

Nodding, Kiritsugu set up the Weatherby Mk V rifle. Just like what Natalia said, this gun was perfect to attack the creature.

“Well then, I’ll be back.”

She stood up, and walked briskly towards the monster in front. The compound eyes stared at once at her.

Not bothered by it, and without a hint of fear in her, Natalia bowed formally.

“Hi, Heinrich Zepter. Nice to meet you.”

The monster was silent. Then, without opening his mouth, he spoke to Natalia in her mind with telepathy.

“It’s an honour to meet you too, Natalia.”

“……How do you know my name?”

“''The entire village is me.'' There’s nothing not known to me. Not even that lad hiding over there, aiming at me.”

“……”

Kiritsugu was silent. He had the rifle readied, and was waiting for the signal.

“I see, you have indeed succeeded. ''That is a limitless body, approaching even immortality.'' But still, you are a human.”

“- Indeed. I, Heinrich Zepter, am certainly a sane human, and am loving this body.”

“Well then, do you intend to manipulate these villagers which are parts of yourself, and to live a peaceful life like this forever?”

“No way. I am still a human – a magus. Thus, I have desires too.”

“It’s not that you want to be recognized…You want to reach the Origin? To use your immortality to reach the territory so desired by everyone?”

Zepter’s subsequent sneer at her words could even be sensed by Kiritsugu.

Origin – the goal more or less all magi were seeking; the swirl of the beginning and end of all things.

“I want to ask something too, magi-hunter. ''Why don’t you seek that?''”

“Because there’s no need to desire it. I’m not satisfied like having the entire world to myself, but I am not so hungry for it to the extent of being willing to throw the world away.”

“It’s the same for me. I love this chaotic world. So what if I understand the beginning and end of this world?

‘All things are there’, all these sayings are boring. What I wish was just ''how far I can transform myself – something as simple as that''.”

“Oh? We get along well, don’t we?”

Grasping her fist, Natalia activated her magic circuit, and activated an extremely powerful magecraft – obvious to even bystanders.

“- Yeap. That’s why in this world one person would be enough!”

The instant he received the signal, Kiritsugu did not hesitate and pulled the trigger. A thunderous roar resounded in this cavern, blowing away Zepter’s compound eyes.

Natalia started running swiftly. Innumerable hands surged forward to contain her.

“ – Too naïve!”

Her right light shone, and sliced the arms away.

The nightmare which could hoodwink men and suck their soul till its dry – Natalia, whose ancestors were succubus, possessed a special type of power.

Which was – a boost to release all her preserved prana in one go. Like fighter jets Increasing its propelling force by 50% by means of afterburners, Natalia’s strength in her arms, legs; her endurance, her instantaneous force – all her bodily abilities were greatly amplified.

It’s something similar to the enhancement of the body by means of rune magecraft, but for a much shorter period. But to compensate for that, Natalia used extreme violence.

Berserk – Natalia had absorbed parts of the souls of her close magi acquaintances to prepare for this battle.

She swung her arms and severed.

Her legs pierced into the body, and kicked it open into the intestines.

The strong gastric acid gushed out – she avoided the downpour-like liquid with minimal steps.

At the same time, with a machine-like accuracy, Kiritsugu had been pummelling him with the rifle. The Weatherby Magnum bullets – which boasted of a monster-like weight of 500 gram per bullet – continued blowing Zepter’s flesh away.

He was not tough, but quite weak. After all, his flesh was made from men and beast bodies. But, because of that, his body scattered and absorbed the bullets. It was as if shooting at a block of mud. Even if hit by the bullets, it would revert back to original immediately.

Subsequently, Kiritsugu felt impatience creeping upon him. However, in spite of that, the hands which were pulling the trigger, and the eyes which were targeting it – none of those would let the monster live.

And then – Natalia’s movements slowed abruptly. Kiritsugu’s ultimate fear had happened.

The price for granting the berserk-like strength to her body – the supposedly enormous amount of prana stockpile had been cut off suddenly.

Natalia had switched back to her normal consumption of prana.

It didn’t mean that her prana had been cut off completely. The prana consumption had decreased, and naturally, her body abilities weakened steeply.

Zepter did not miss that opportunity. She was caught by 10 remaining hands. His compound eyes stared at her in unison. Her breath quickened and she perspired, but yet Natalia laughed.

“… ''Welcome to my village.''”

At the same time those words were uttered, a huge hole cracked in the middle of Zepter’s abdomen… and Natalia was swallowed “inside”.

“Natalia!”

It was impossible for her to hear him. But, understanding this fact, Kiritsugu still shouted out to her.

Zepter changed his target to Kiritsugu.

“Well then young man. You hold the future in your hands. You’re next. ''Come and live within my body''.”

The huge wall of flesh approached Kiritsugu, who was standing still. |That’s it huh|, Kiritsugu had resigned to his fate.

At that moment –

Zepter’s oviduct swelled suddenly, and erupted in flames.

“Wh-a…!?”

Confused, Zepter forgot about Kiritsugu who was in front of him, and thrashed about. Kiritsugu recalled the weapon Natalia removed from his backpack earlier on - ''the TH3 incendiary hand grenade.''

– Do it now!

At those words, Kiritsugu readied his rifle reflexively. At that instant – Zepter’s abdomen was blasted into smithereens, and Natalia tumbled out from it.

And, Kiritsugu saw it. ''He was in the abdomen.''

He was as thin as a mummy, but from his blank eyes, he was definitely the person Kiritsugu had seen before in the pictures.

Their eyes met, and those eyes squinted in shock and fear.

The trigger was pulled – and the Weatherby Magnum V Rifle annihilated that face. The magic circuit – which had been holding the body together – lost contact with Zepter’s brain, broke off and stopped functioning.

As a result, the body became wobbly like a lump of meat, and crumbled down.

“Ahh, it stinks! Smells like vomit.”

Standing up abruptly, Natalia flinged the scattered muscles and arms around her, and started searching for her target.

“Boy, you help me too. The magic crests should be here somewhere.”

The secrets of magic which the Zepter family engraved onto their own bodies. If one was to sell that, he could live very comfortable for quite a while.

After all, Natalia was quite extravagant with her spending (she would buy houses or shelters here and there on a whim; she called them “hiding places”). So if that could last for two months, it would be great.

In the end, the one who found the magic crests engraved on the mummy-like corpse was Kiritsugu.

“……”

He was about to call out to Natalia, but he hesitated. This heretic magecraft was too dangerous. It wasn’t about reviving the dead, but creating a new living being from the dead. Is it okay for such magecraft to be inherited, by any random person?

Those were his trains of thoughts.

He thought quickly.

''You’re gonna betray your teacher?'' A small voice resounded in his mind.

But, that was countered by another voice…

– Hey Kerry, what do you want to grow up to –

No longer hesitating, Kiritsugu inserted that hand deep into the rotting flesh.

“Found it?”

“Nope…..nothing. I couldn’t find it.”

He lied naturally, not revealing anything abnormal. He was even surprised at himself, who was able to lie perfectly and naturally.

Natalia heaved a sigh.

“If we continue looking, we should be able to find it. But it’s likely that we suffocate from this decaying flesh before that.”

“So we’re giving up on the search?”

At Kiritsugu’s question, Natalia nodded reluctantly.

“Before we go back, let’s incinerate all these.”

He walked on into the cavern, and turned back. The magic crests were somewhere in this pile of rotting meat, but…

Kiritsugu threw the incendiary hand grenades successively. The meat started burning abruptly; the flames incinerating all that’s left.

“This should do it.”

In the end, Kiritsugu whispered that.

After exiting that cavern, they affirmed that the two thousand villagers had turned into lumps of meat. Death, death, death – no, that wasn’t even death. What’s left here was just ''the shadows of humans – mere refuse.''

– And, at this moment, Emiya Kiritsugu was driving in the car.

Until a moment ago, Natalia had been grumbling “What a huge waste of effort! A huge deficit!”. But probably being exhausted by the overuse of prana, she went to sleep again.

Whilst looking at her sleeping face, Kiritsugu thought about it.

Is it correct to do something for your own sake? He had no doubts about that. A heretic magus who sucked away the lives of two thousand people – There was no need for such crazy man’s crazy magecraft to be passed onto someone else.

That magecraft…must be destroyed.

What troubled him was that he had lied to Natalia. Moreover, despite her sharp intuition, she did not realize it.

Stepping on the gear, Kiritsugu accelerated the car further. ''Oh well, I’ll wait for the next job. I’ll definitely save someone the next time.''

Nothing was left behind in the village after Natalia and Kiritsugu left that village. The buildings were completely destroyed, and the name disappeared from maps. A few days later, even “death” disappeared from it.

“Present Mountain” – no one remembered this village anymore.

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Fate/Zero:Epilogue: Five Years Later

2011-09-01T12:55:47Z

Fiohnel: /* Five Years Later */ changed "Kiritrugu" to "Kiritsugu"

=== Five Years Later ===

It was a night with a beautiful moon. Emiya Kiritsugu gazed out at the moon as he silently stood by the window.

Although it was already winter, the temperature wasn’t very low; it was just cold enough to let the skin feel the slight prickle of a chill. It was the ideal weather to view the moon.

A boy sat beside him. He was also quietly gazing out at the moon with Kiritsugu.

His name was Shirō.

He was the only existence that Kiritsugu managed to save from the fire that made him lose everything.

It had been five years since then. Shirō, who was a kid, was also gradually growing up.

Kiritsugu adopted Shirō, who had no one left to rely on due to the fire, and managed to barely live on after tidying up the ruined house with the storage room that Irisviel had bought.

As for why he did that – even he himself did not know. He had nowhere else to go. Did he also have no more reasons left to keep living?

All the goals and beliefs the man named Emiya Kiritsugu had once possessed were burnt to ashes with that fire. The thing that returned from that barren field was simply a corpse that had retained a beating heart.

In fact, had he not saved Shirō, then Kiritsugu would perhaps have truly died a long time ago.

However, he met Shirō. He met this child who had fortunately escaped from the raging fire that had claimed innumerable lives.

That was the miracle which resurrected him from the shell that was once named Emiya Kiritsugu.

Even if he were to look back on it now, this had been a very wondrous life.

The man who had lost his wife and daughter again became a father –

The child who had lost his parents again became a son –

Now that he thought about it, he had repeated this unchanging life day after day.

Shirō was now calling Kiritsugu ‘old man’ while the latter hadn’t even hit 40 years old. Maybe the kid felt it was more natural that way.

But the truth was that the stamina still lingering within Kiritsugu’s body was nothing more than a spluttering candle in the wind. In truth, he was not much different from an old man after all.

After that, he peacefully and calmly passed his days as if he was living within the dream of another man.

On that day five years ago, a line had been drawn across his life, which had already lost everything. No one else had disappeared before Kiritsugu after that.

Be it Shirō, Taiga, Raiga-san or the youngsters in the Fujimura Group; none of them had left him since they met, and they were still together even now.

The meetings he used to have with other people were simply the beginning of separation.

However, such a happiness was not without a reason.

Because the things that he had lost in the past would never come back.

Kiritsugu had repeatedly used the excuse of ‘traveling overseas’ to get Shirō to stay home while he traveled to the Einsberns. He wanted to save his daughter, who had been left all alone within the City of Winter.

However, no matter how obstinately Kiritsugu repeated his visits, Jubstacheit was still unwilling to open the forest’s bounded field. That was understandable. All the efforts the Einsberns put into the fourth Heaven’s Feel came to nothing because of Kiritsugu’s last-minute betrayal. A man such as Kiritsugu would have to remain silent even if he was punished, but Acht did not do that. Did he want to put the traitor to exile like a stray dog and let it struggle on its last legs, and carry that shameful title for the rest of its life? Or did he plan to let Kiritsugu never see his daughter again and use that as the most severe punishment that can be inflicted? No matter what, it was already a fact.

Had he been the Kiritsugu of the past, the infamous “Magus Killer”, then he might have been able to forcibly break through this icy bounded field and rush to his daughter’s side. However, the current Kiritsugu had been touched by “Angra Mainyu” and had already been corroded by this curse. His flesh was getting weaker and weaker. His limbs atrophied, his sight began to fade, and he had completely lost the ability to use magecraft. He was not much different from a terminally ill patient. He couldn’t even find the starting point of the bounded field, and could only wander in the blizzard, waiting till death.

He understood all his attempts had been in vain – recently Kiritsugu had already faintly felt that his time was probably up. In other words, he probably hadn’t had much time left since the moment he became cursed by the black mud.

Therefore he had recently been staying home all the time, drowning in memories as he passed the time in a daze.

What had his life been about –

As he thought of this, he silently gazed up at the moon with Shirō.

“… When I was a kid, I used to want to be a hero of justice very much.”

Suddenly, he muttered this unconsciously.

Like a shipwreck that had sunken beneath the surface a long long time ago, those untouched and forgotten words suddenly escaped from his lips – that was right. He seemed to have said something like that to someone else some time ago, although he didn’t manage to fulfill it at the end. But just when did that happen?

However, when he heard Kiritsugu, Shirō suddenly showed an expression of displeasure.

“What? You’re saying you used to want to, then have you given up now?”

Since the boy harbored a deep admiration for Kiritsugu, Shirō seemed to hate having Kiritsugu say such self-deprecating words. Kiritsugu had often felt extremely ashamed toward this sentiment.

The boy thought his foster father was an incomparably great man. He did not understand Emiya Kiritsugu’s past – including that disaster which made the man lose everything. He simply and merely made Kiritsugu a goal to be admired.

The spirit of self-sacrifice and sense of justice that Shirō held in his heart were so great that it almost seemed twisted, and all this were displayed through the extreme respect and admiration that he showed to Kiritsugu. That was also the only regret in the days that the father and the son passed together. Shirō wished to become Kiritsugu. He wanted to follow the road that Kiritsugu had walked. Although Kiritsugu wanted to tell him how foolish such an idea was, he didn’t manage to say it even till the end.

If Shirō lived like Kiritsugu and walked toward destruction just like him, then these five peaceful years of life would become a curse at the end as well.

Is your aspiration still there? Shirō questioned back. This made Kiritsugu’s heart ache – that’s right, how wonderful would it be if it could gradually disappear with the passage of time.

Kiritsugu pretended to gaze out towards the distant moon, and hid the sorrowful memories with a bitter smile.

“Hmm, it is rather regrettable. Heroes have a time limit too, and it’s hard to fulfill once you become an adult. It would have been better if I realized that earlier.”

Had he realized it earlier – then he wouldn’t have been tricked by the sweet lie of miracles that flew the banner called dreams.

Kiritsugu had once released a demon powerful enough to destroy the world because of his aspirations. It was too late when he finally realized his mistake. Countless people had died because of it, including Shirō’s own father and mother.

And that harbinger of Hell was still lurking beneath Mount Enzō even now. After that battle, Kiritsugu had repeatedly visited that place with dynamite, and spent years to map out the situation of a few leylines. He had meticulously created a ‘bump’ at a location leading towards Mount Enzō. That might be the last time for him to use magecraft in his life.

The prana produced from the junction of numerous leylines will collect upon that ‘bump’ with time. When its limit is reached, a localized earthquake will be triggered deep within Mount Enzō. It would take a minimum of 30 years and a maximum of about 40 years for the ‘bump’ to break. If all his calculations were correct, then the cavern within Mount Enzō would collapse and seal away the “Greater Grail” forever. Though he would not be able to live to see that day, Kiritsugu had done the best he could to prevent the fifth Heaven’s Feel 60 years later.

Shirō seemed to have been guided into a deep contemplation from Kiritsugu’s casual words. However, he seemed to have accepted Kiritsugu’s viewpoint, and answered with a nod.

“Really? Then there’s really nothing you can do.”

“True. I’m really powerless.”

Kiritsugu also answered with a slight hint of heartfelt pain.

Nothing you can do –

There wasn’t much lament or sorrow in that phrase. Kiritsugu gazed up at the night sky.

“ – Ahh, what a beautiful moon – ”

It was as if this was the only night in his life that had such a beautiful moon, and Kiritsugu was overjoyed with sharing such a beautiful memory with Shirō.

“Hmm. If you can’t fulfill it anymore, then let me fulfill it for you.”

The youth promised casually in the elegant night. He said that he’ll achieve something, which Kiritsugu had longed for but could not fulfill, in Kiritsugu’s place.

In that moment, Kiritsugu remembered.

He had also made a promise like this. He had also said something like this before a person that was more important to him than anyone else.

Back then, he had firmly believed that the things within his heart will never be lost. But that confidence – had now been forgotten, forgotten until just a moment ago.

“Dad is an adult already, so maybe you can’t do anything anymore. But I’m alright. So entrust it to me, entrust Dad’s dream –”

Shirō kept saying those words that sounded like a promise. His words, together with tonight’s view, became an unforgettable memory that was carved into Kiritsugu’s heart.

That’s right. If it was under such a beautiful moon – then he would never forget.

Emiya Shirō’s very first thought and this precious and innocent prayer will definitely become the most beautiful memory, and be forever retained in his heart.

However, had the boy really inherited the dream of his foolish father, he would probably begin an endless lament and experience a bottomless despair.

But he would definitely be able to recall the self that existed at this moment as long as he remembered this night. He would remember this heart his young self had; this heart which was fearless, unknown to sorrow, and full of aspirations.

That would also be – the salvation that Kiritsugu, who had lost himself without knowing and had been grinded down by time little by little, had hoped for.

“Yes. Ahh – then I’ll be at peace now.”

Even if Shirō walks the same path as him, he would never become the same man.

All the scars in his heart seemed to have healed when he understood this. Emiya Kiritsugu closed his eyes.

Then –

This man who accomplished nothing in his life and did not win a single victory stopped breathing. His last moments were full of relief, and he passed away as if he had merely fallen asleep.

''– Kerry, what kind of a man would you like to become?''

She asked under the dazzling sunlight.

He would never forget her smile and her gentleness.

This world is so beautiful. How he wished that time would forever be stopped in this beautiful moment.

As he thought this, he spoke his promise without knowing.

''I’ll never forget what I felt today.''

– I, want to be a hero of justice!

<center>'''FIN'''</center>

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</noinclude>

Fate/Zero:Act 16 Part 9

2011-09-01T12:53:13Z

Fiohnel: /* -03:49:31 */ changed "Justizia" into "Justicia"

=== -03:49:31 ===

Saber walked through the flames that burned like purgatory.

The wounds that Berserker had inflicted on her were beyond that which could be cured by her regenerative abilities. The once shining platinum armor was also stained black in places by Berserker’s countless attacks. Her bloodless skin was white as paper. Her knees were weak, her ankles trembled, her breathing was rapid; with every step, pain wracked her entire body, almost making her lose consciousness.

Even though every step was difficult, Saber nevertheless did not stop walking forward.

She still bore the responsibility, bore the promise that she as a King must fulfill. There was only one way left to fulfill this promise, and that was to obtain the Grail. Therefore it was necessary that she go on; spurring on her wounded body, she gritted her teeth and walked forward.

At last, she reached the first floor. Passing through the entrance, she pushed open the main doors; an empty music hall appeared before her eyes. In the middle of the stage in front of her, the Grail floated encircled by flames, shining with eye-catching golden light.

"Ah…”

It was clear at a glance; this was undoubtedly the Grail that she desired so much to obtain.

The flesh body of the homunculus had reverted to the gold vessel that was forged from inorganic material. Saber did not know the process by which this was done, but she could tell, from the scene before her, exactly what had happened.

She was ‘the Guardian of the Vessel’, and had been determined to pass the Grail to Kiritsugu and Saber. If there was a possibility that the ‘Vessel’ could be stolen, then before that happened, she would definitely come forward to defend the Grail unto the death. Now, the ritual setting was missing Irisviel’s form; controlled by an invisible hand, the Grail was about to descend.

"Irisviel…”

Remembering her voice and her smile, Saber bit her lip with a sob.

She had sworn on her sword to protect her, but had been unable to do so. She had reneged on her vow.

Just like she had been unable to save her beloved home country.

Just like she had been unable to resolve the torment of a friend.

Self-reproach and humiliation tore at her heart. Flashing in her mind was the city eternally covered by falling snow, and the words of Irisviel as they had exchanged vows.

—Saber, you must get the Grail. For you, and your Master—

"...Yes, at least this promise I will keep. Only this promise…”

—was supporting everything of Saber now.

In this moment she still held the precious sword in her hand; she still breathed, her heart still beat. All this, for one reason.

Saber stepped forward resolutely. Exactly at this time—

"Too slow, Saber. Even if you were bitten by that domesticated mad dog, you shouldn’t have let me wait this long.”

A devastating golden form was standing in the middle of the aisle in the spectator stand, blocking Saber’s way.

"...Archer…”

“Heh heh, don’t make that expression. I know you’re envious of my riches, but do show more restraint. That undisguised expression is really tasteless. Like a dog that has gone hungry for too long.”

The enemy’s appearance did not come unexpectedly to Saber.

This municipal hall was the final gathering place for all the Servants that still remained. Even if the other enemies initiated attacks on each other, it would be too naïve to hope that they would perish together. There was still one battle left, and the adversary was undoubtedly one of Archer or Rider.

But—Archer’s intact armor and his leisurely presence, infused with prana, made Saber grit her teeth.

Undoubtedly, not a hair of this golden Servant had come to harm. Beyond unharmed, it could even be said that he was running at full capacity.

Saber had been seriously injured in the battle with Berserker. If she wished to defeat Archer, she could only pin her hopes on her opponent having been drained considerably in a battle with Rider. But at this moment, not even a single scratch from battle could be seen on Archer.

Unexpectedly, the King of Conquerors had been unable to exact his revenge for that one sword blow…Was this Servant, whose identity was still unknown to her, really so strong?

Now, even the last thread of hope had been ground out of existence, but in Saber’s heart still flared a flame of anger.

Chances of victory, or tactics—None of that mattered any more. Saber only thought it unforgivable—she could not forgive that even now, there was still someone who stood between her and the Grail.

"...You, get out of the way…”

Saber’s low voice was filled with hatred. The insane obsession caused her once clear jade eyes to fill with a murky yellow-brown.

"The Grail… is mine… !”

The many wounds on Saber’s body could not stop her; roaring, she swung her sword at Archer. But after having made only a single step, her left leg was immediately pierced through by a Noble Phantasm that shot out of the air.

Saber fell to the floor, but gritted her teeth to prevent herself from groaning. Looking around, she saw groups of weapons from the Gate of Babylon continually appear in midair, all directed toward her, ready to be launched at any time.

As soon as their owner gave the order, countless primeval Noble Phantasms would shoot in unison toward Saber. She had literally become the target of a thousand arrows (3). As her left leg had been previously pierced through, she could not even dodge.

"Saber… this sight of you crouched on the ground, fallen into this presumptuous obsession, makes you even more beautiful…

Archer’s blood-red eyes held an uncomfortable emotion as he looked at Saber, who despite being mired in a hopeless situation, was still intending to make a final struggle.

"I don’t know why you are so obsessed with some wish-granting Grail. Saber… the fact that a woman like you exists can already be considered a rare miracle, no?”

Archer’s tone was unnaturally calm, as if it was not a dangerous enemy that was before him. This calm made the cornered Saber suspicious.

"What… are you saying—“

"Throw away your sword, and be my wife.”

In this situation, in this circumstance, Archer’s words surprised Saber. She was stunned by the sheer unexpectedness of it.

"... Wh—what did you say… What are you going to do!?”

“Even if you don’t understand, don’t you feel happy to hear such words? It is not anyone else, but I, who have admitted your worth.”

Perhaps only Archer alone would think that such a conclusion was a matter of course. The golden Servant arrogantly lifted his head, looking before him at the first woman he had ever loved.

"Abandon these pointless ideals and vows. These things will only restrict you and bring you misfortune. In future you need only desire me and live under my protection. In that case I vow, on my honor as King of everything, that I will grant you all the happiness in the world.”

"..."

His presumptuous tone was enough to re-ignite the flame of anger in Saber’s conflicted heart.

"For this ridiculous motive… you are fighting with me for the Grail?"

A second Noble Phantasm exploded as it flew past Saber’s nose. The force of the impact blew Saber into the air.

"I am not asking your opinion, but informing you of my decision.”

Archer’s face showed a bloodthirsty joy, as if relishing the sight of Saber’s furious resistance.

So this proud Heroic Spirit had never seen his opponent as a competitor of equal standing with himself. The enemy was worthy only of being manipulated and humiliated; he liked to admire the sight of their surrender to him. Saber’s desperate retaliation, on which she had gambled her all, to Archer was only an ordinary entertainment.

"All right, let’s have your response. Although the answer is right in front of you, I am very curious as to what expression you will wear as you say these words yourself.”

"I refuse! I will never—“

Without waiting for her to finish, Archer’s lightning-fast Noble Phantasm once again pierced into Saber’s already injured left leg. Hearing Saber’s groans of intense pain, Archer could not but laugh loudly.

"You can’t say it because you are too shy? It’s all right; I’ll forgive you no matter how many times you get it wrong. First you must learn suffering, and then you will be able to experience the joy I give you.”

The Noble Phantasms floating in midair waved their sharp blades as if to intimidate, gradually pressing closer to Saber.

An uncontrollable anger roiled in Saber’s thoughts. Compared to being killed in humiliation it would be better to try to get back at the enemy, even if it meant her life.

There was no other way. If she concentrated all the strength left in her body, perhaps she could still eke out the prana needed for one last strike of Excalibur. It would not be surprising if a Heroic Spirit of such unfathomable ability could defend against the attack of an anti-fortress Noble Phantasm, but at this moment he completely believed that he would win, and that made him complacent; he had never thought that Saber would still retaliate.

And yet—if Saber launched a counterattack on Archer from this position, the impact would wreck the Grail on the stage. Even if Archer took the full impact and was reduced to charcoal, the Grail would also be inevitably destroyed. In that case, all her efforts would have come to nothing.

"What should I do…!”

Facing this difficult choice, Saber sank into a dilemma; at this time, she noticed that a third figure had appeared in the hall.

On the wall that was approximately two floors high, within the semicircle-shaped box that did not protrude outward. In the light from the fire, appeared a ghostlike silhouette wearing a long windbreaker. He was the true Master who had made the contract with Saber—Emiya Kiritsugu.

From within the hopelessness, appeared a ray of sunlight.

Kiritsugu still held the forceful commanding power of the Command Seals. If he could lend her this magecraft power that he possessed, that had the ability to make the impossible possible, perhaps she would be able to break this stalemate.

As long as Kiritsugu understood Saber’s current situation, it was almost certain that he would use the Command Seals. Fortunately, Archer had not yet realized Kiritsugu’s presence.

Kiritsugu raised his right hand, showing the Command Seals carved on the back.

It was completely up to Kiritsugu what kind of order he would give. But Saber had already made up her mind that no matter how strange the battle tactics he intended to employ, she would do her utmost to carry them out. As long as she could retaliate against Archer, any methods would be fine.

Even if his command was to block the sense of pain and use all her strength, Saber would ignore the pain of her physical body, and exert the greatest strength from within her body until there was nothing left. If he commanded her to undergo instantaneous movement to the side of the Grail, then she would be able to escape this extremely disadvantageous position. Perhaps through precise calibration of Excalibur, she would be able to bring Archer down without harming the Grail. Such is a Command Seal. If the Command Seals were used with the consent of both Master and Servant, then no matter how impossible the task, it could be completed. In this moment, Saber entrusted everything to this last hope, because only it could turn the tables astonishingly on the current situation.

—Emiya Kiritsugu uses the Command Seal to command Saber—

The low words shook her entire body from the depths of her soul. The voice that could not have been more familiar announced, clearly and decisively.

—Use your Noble Phantasm, and destroy the Grail—

How the significance behind these words should be explained, how she should understand them—Saber’s mind went momentarily blank.

"...wh…?”

The rising hurricane dispelled the surrounding flames. From the heart of the deactivated Invisible Air, the form of the golden sword appeared.

Even if Saber’s brain refused to understand, her physical Servant’s body loyally accepted the command of the Command Seal. The precious sword began to accumulate light, completely independently of its bearer’s intention.

"Wh—what is this—What do you want to do!?”

Even Archer was stunned speechless. He had thought that because he had his back to the Grail, Saber would never execute a counterattack on him.

"...N… no!”

Saber roared in anger; that was a scream into which she had put all her strength. The golden sword raised high suddenly halted in midair.

As the legendary King of Knights, and as a Servant of the most excellent class, the the outstanding Magic Resistance ability that Saber possessed could actually resist the restraint of the Command Seals, albeit just barely. She used all her strength to halt her action of bringing her sword down. The opposing forces of compulsion and resistance clashed intensely within Saber’s body; her slender form seemed as if it would be torn apart at any time.

This intense pain and unimaginable torment made Saber remember the last moments of Diarmuid Ua Duibhne. Now she experienced utterly for herself the bitterness and humiliation that the tragic Heroic Spirit had undergone.

At the same time that she opposed the strong magecraft, Saber stared at Kiritsugu who stood in the middle of the box, and shouted.

"Why?! Kiritsugu—Why did it have to be you!?”

Impossible. It was impossible that he had given this order.

Kiritsugu desired so much to obtain the Grail—then in this moment, why did he reject it? Did he want to let the ritual, that his wife had given her life to bring about, go to waste?

After realizing that Saber’s unnatural actions were the doing of the Command Seal, Archer finally realized Emiya Kiritsugu’s presence.

"Are you trying to ruin my wedding, mongrel?!”

The Noble Phantasms that had been aimed at Saber now suddenly turned in unison to target Kiritsugu’s box.

But without waiting for the Noble Phantasms to begin their attack, Kiritsugu again raised his right hand to show the back to Saber below him—there was still one last Command Seal carved there.

—I use the third Command Seal to command again—

"Stop!!!”

Seeing that her pride and hope were about to disintegrate into ashes in the blink of an eye, Saber shrieked out in tears.

—Saber, destroy the Grail—

That was an ultimate might that could not be resisted at all.

The tremendous force of the dual Command Seals ravaged and crushed Saber’s form, at the same time drawing out all the prana that still remained within her body, weaving it into the light of destruction.

The released beam of light made a cross-section of the entire hall, directly impacting the Grail that floated on the stage. Archer nimbly dodged this attack, but because he was in close proximity to the beam of light, its high intensity made him momentarily unable to execute the attack on Kiritsugu.

In the heat of the lightning, the golden Grail that had once been a part of Irisviel’s body now quietly lost its shape, then vanished. Saber closed her eyes, not daring to look directly at this sight—now the last hope had been destroyed. Her fight had ended.

Since things were thus, how could she look upon this tragic scene with open eyes?

In truth, she never did open her eyes again. The Noble Phantasm, that had been forcibly executed in opposition to her own intentions, had already consumed all Saber’s remaining prana; she could not even maintain her physical Servant form any more. Saber had lost the strength and the will to remain in this world. Of course, this was also because her Master, who was also part of the contract, did not intend to let her stay.

Maintaining her stance of bringing her sword down, Saber started to leave this world; soon, her physical body also vanished.

In the moment in which she gradually lost contact with the real world, the riddle of this character Kiritsugu was the last consideration that flashed in Saber’s mind.

The adoring father that doted on his daughter, the warrior that hoped to save the world, the killer that had lost all hope in justice; it was various conflicting pieces of humanity that he showed, but in the end he had betrayed everything, denied everything.

Until the end, Saber could be sure only of the callousness and ruthlessness of this man’s heart.

Until the end, he and she had never been able to understand each other and build up a relationship of trust—no, perhaps it should be said that only at the final moment had she realized that she had never understood his true thoughts.

And yet, that was also not altogether unjustifiable—

Within her gradually vanishing awareness, Saber mocked herself.

How was she to understand this man who had not crossed paths with her beyond having given her three orders? She had once been unable to understand even the hearts of those at her side.

Perhaps all of this was the long and euphemistic punishment that tormented the ‘King who did not understand others’ hearts’.

Even though Saber left the world carrying many injuries, without having realized the burden in her heart, perhaps not having to personally witness the tragedy that came after was also a sort of recompense to her.

The beam of light from Excalibur that had destroyed the Grail had blown away the ceiling of the stage, and sheared the entire municipal hall into two. The building, that had already been burned beyond recognition, could not withstand the blow. The structure of the upper levels had been destroyed; the roof, having lost its support, now dropped into the hall like an avalanche.

Following which, through the fragments of debris, Kiritsugu saw ‘it’ in the revealed night sky.

A black sun — that which he had seen when he had touched the black mud. The sign of the end of the world.

At that time Kiritsugu had not seen clearly that its physical form was actually a true ‘hole’. It is a space tunnel that connected with the Magic Circle of the Greater Grail, which had been hidden beneath the altar of the ritual of descent, deep underground in Mount Enzō to the east of Miyama. The insides of the Greater Grail, which had drawn energy from the leylines for sixty years and now had obtained the souls of six Heroic Spirits, had been filled to the brim and turned into an enormous prana whirlpool. That was the true form of that black ‘hole’.

The ‘Vessel’ that had been removed from the Einsberns’ homunculus was only the key to open that ‘hole’, and also the control that sustained the stability of the hole. Kiritsugu, who did not know anything about this secret, had made a fatal mistake; he should not have commanded Saber to destroy the Grail, but instead should have made her use Excalibur to burn down the hole in the sky. No longer controlled by the ‘vessel’, the black sun began to melt; the hole gradually shrunk, but before it closed completely, it was already completely impossible to prevent the black mud from flowing out from within the hole.

That was a neutral energy that had been used only to create an opening to the ‘outside world’, but due to Kiritsugu’s previous mistake, it was stained with the pitch-black color of the curse.

This cursed mud that was full of ‘Angra Mainyu • All the Evil in the World'. The destructive power could burn away all the life in the world—at this moment it descended like a great waterfall from above the Municipal Hall.

Archer, standing in the spectator stands on the first floor, could not find a way of retreat to escape this baptism.

"This… this is…!?”

The turbulent black waves carried away the helpless golden Servant. No, he was not simply carried away; the moment he had touched the black mud, he had vanished. Archer’s body had been broken down and absorbed by the black mud in the blink of an eye; he had become one with the tempestuous flow of mud.

The black mud consumed the first-floor spectator stand like a tsunami; Kiritsugu, who was standing in the box and had thus escaped misfortune, stared blankly at all this. The cursed waterfall that descended from midair did not show any signs of stopping; the black mud became a river as it passed through the entrance of the municipal hall, flowing out of the building and spreading out toward the surrounding districts.

Thus, the massacre began.

The people were all sleeping soundly; the mud of death sensed the presence of human life, and became a burning curse that attacked at their pillow-side.

It burned the houses, burned the courtyards. No matter if they slept, or woke and tried to escape, all the people burned without exception—that which had waited within the Grail for sixty years now mercilessly seized all the life it touched, as if celebrating its fleeting freedom.

After the event it was found that there were more than 500 casualties, and 134 buildings had burned down. This great calamity of unknown cause left a mark in the hearts of the citizens of Fuyuki that was difficult to erase.

After a while, the hole in the sky disappeared, and the black mud no longer poured forth. But the mud had brought a fire of enormous proportions; the people who had been unable to escape turned one by one into burnt black corpses. A magnificent red lotus of fire bloomed in the night sky; on the ground was staged an endless banquet of death.

Having escaped the gradually collapsing municipal hall, Emiya Kiritsugu personally witnessed the entire process.

The life that tended toward destruction—was so much like the scene that had tormented him in nightmares. But that before him now was undoubtedly real.

<center>※※※※※</center>

She dreamed a dream, and in the dream, the world was burning.

The young girl, wrapped in a duvet and trembling from fear, opened her eyes.

The bedroom, guarded by the warm firelight from the fireplace, was still as calm and peaceful as before. The chilly night outside the window could not be of any threat to the girl who lay on the bed.

Even through the thick glass, she could hear the howling of the icy wind outside the window; the wind crept quietly into the house through the gap between the window and the frame. It was surely this sound that made her think mistakenly that she heard the tormented cries of people as they burned and died.

— What's wrong, Illyasviel?—

This her mother spoke, gently caressing her face. Her mother’s voice and touch, which stayed at all times by the girl’s side, at once set her heart to rest.

The girl and her mother were both existences that had been designed in the image of the magus who was called the ‘Lady of Winter’. Thus, in the girl’s heart there was her mother, and her aunt. Even if one were to pursue all the way to the very earliest ‘Primeval Justicia’, it was recorded in the girl’s heart.

Thus, even if it was a night during which she was alone, sleeping soundly wrapped in a duvet, the girl would never be lonely. She need only call out, and she could hear her mother’s voice any time, see her mother’s form any time.

“Mommy… I had a scary dream. In the dream, Illya became a cup.”

Gazing relieved at her mother’s soft silver hair and gentle eyes, the girl continued to recount her nightmare.

“Seven very, very big things were put into Illya. Illya almost broke, she was scared but also could not run away… then I heard Justicia’s voice, and above my head appeared a big black hole… then, the world started to burn. Kiritsugu looked at the world, and cried.”

Yes, she dreamed of him too. The father that she had heard say was in a faraway foreign land, dealing with some troublesome work.

Having thought of this, the girl suddenly realized that her nightmare just now seemed to represent something bad; she became uneasy again.

"Mommy… Kiritsugu will be okay, right? He won’t be alone and scared?”

Looking at the girl worried for her father, the mother smiled gently.

– It’s okay. That person will definitely strive, for Illya’s sake. So that Illya will not have that sort of scary memories again, he will definitely realize his dream, for us —

"...Nn, that’s right, that’s right.”

She knows that that person is one who has a strong desire to win. So, once he has finished that important work, he will definitely come back here immediately. The girl spread her fingers, counting the days till that day came. Though it was cold sleeping alone, even thus, her mother was still by her side. She wouldn’t be lonely—until the day she could correctly understand this contradiction.

The girl waited from within the city eternally sealed within falling snow. The promise that she had exchanged with her father, was the treasure that she valued the most.

<center>※※※※※</center>

The sky at sunset was the color of blood.

The ground before her eyes was also the color of blood.

The corpses slumped on the ground were the people who had once believed in a young girl and supported her as King, offering up to her the songs of victory.

Due to traitors sowing discord, they had divided into two factions; each had seen the other as an enemy and carried out slaughter, and then, they had fallen together on this battlefield. King Arthur’s final resting place, the foot of Camlann Hill.

Waking from a dream of the other side of space and time, kneeling dejectedly once more atop the bloodstained hill, Arturia blankly gazed at the desolate scene.

In order to change this ending, she had entrusted her soul after death to the ‘World’; and started a journey in search of a miracle.
[[Image:FZ_v04_387.png|thumb|]]

She had initially decided not to return here; she had initially believed that she would never see this scene again. But at this moment, the young girl still knelt on this piece of land.

But this was not the ending. This was only one point on the endlessly cyclic path.

After being released from her contract, the Heroic Spirit named Arturia had not set forth for the ‘Throne of Heroes’, but had been brought back to this place Camlann, because she had not come to the end of her fate’s path; It was necessary that she meets her final end here.

In other words, before she had been summoned to be a Servant, she was not a standard Heroic Spirit who had become one after dying in reality.

At the last moment she had exchanged vows with the ‘World’, hoping to obtain the Grail, and the price was to turn her soul after death into a guardian—this was the truth about the Servant named Arturia.

The contract could only be fulfilled only under the condition that the Grail had been obtained. In other words, if Arturia did not obtain the Grail, then time would forever stop on this land; forever, where even death cannot be achieved. Before obtaining the Grail, she could only continue to participate in the fight for the Grail on the other side of time.

Therefore, Arturia’s time had been frozen in the moment before her death. Unless she obtained the Grail, she could only return again and again to Camlann. Over and over again, this scene would eternally reproach her, torment her.

On the slope of death, she still held the stance with which she had established the contract.

Her face covered with tears, gauntlets stained through with the blood of enemies, the lance in her hand piercing the heart of her own flesh and blood.

The traitor who had also inherited her own bloodline, the child of tragedy, Mordred. The entanglement of love and hate had caused her to lose everything, and the scene to be fixed at the instant when she killed her own flesh and blood with her own hands—

The instant in which the awareness of the ‘World’ had come, summoned by wretched and tormented cries, and established the contract with the hero who searched for a miracle—

This was the prison that forever bound Arturia, who had lost her time.

Within time that had lost its meaning, within an instant that was equivalent to eternity, she gazed upon the battlefield under the light of dusk, and waited for the next summoning.

She was always right; this she firmly believed in. Even thus, she had still overlooked the spark that had caused the tragedy before her eyes, just like she had overlooked Lancelot and Guinevere’s pain.

She could not figure it out, and she did not understand why she could not figure it out—this was the limit of the king Arturia.

In that case, could it be that the terrible scene on Camlann was not any trick of fate, but the necessary result of the king Arturia’s rule?

"Uu…”

Unable to stop herself, she began to sob.

She remembered those long and distant days. She remembered the girl who had never paid attention to the men as they contested each other in the noisy arena, and had instead faced, alone, the sword stuck in the stone.

At that time, what had she been thinking of?

With what kind of resolution had she extended her arm to grip the hilt?

The memories had long since blurred; even though the tears obscured her sight, she could not remember.

In that case—her mistake must have been made that day.

She let the tears run freely down her face. In this place where time did not run, no matter what she thought or what she did, it would not be recorded in history. Here, she did not need to place on herself the title of King. In that case, it mattered not if she showed weakness; it mattered not if she showed shame.

With these thoughts, she faced the ideals that had not been fulfilled; she faced the people who had not been saved.

She faced everything that had vanished because she was king.

"... Sorry…”

Though she was choked to the point where she almost could not speak, she still could not control the impulse to apologize. Though she understood that her apology could not be conveyed to anyone’s heart, the girl nevertheless repeated her regret.

"I’m sorry… sorry… I, someone like me…”

One day, after stepping over endless battles, she would finally obtain the Grail. A that time, all the mistakes that she had made, could be erased through a miracle.

As she was now—she should not be called a king.

Before the next time she was summoned, the girl would always— within the instant that was called forever, within the censure that was called eternal rest—weep and regret.

Enduring torment in eternal punishment.
Feeling cowardice toward sins that could not be repaid.

<noinclude>
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|-
| Back to [[Fate/Zero:Act_16_Part_8|Act 16, Part 8]]
| Return to [[Fate/Zero|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Fate/Zero:Act_16_Part_10|Act 16, Part 10]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Fate/Zero:Act 16 Part 6

2011-09-01T12:50:19Z

Fiohnel: /* -03:54:28 */ changed "megacraft" into "magecraft"

=== -03:54:28 ===

The battle tactic analysis concerning Kotomine Kirei – was conducted based on information from Hisau Maiya, who had fought him twice.

He threw Black Keys for ranged battle. A single throw, together with preparatory movements, can be completed in 0.3 seconds. As for continuous throwing, it had been confirmed that he can complete four throws in 0.7 seconds. He can also attack without obstacles toward unconfirmed targets. The power of the blades, half-spiritual entities, can penetrate iron. Chances of a hit – 100% when he is using illusions.

He used [[Fate/Zero:Translator's Notes#Baji_Quan_2|Baji Quan]] for melee fighting. Although the details were unclear, he was indeed at the level of an expert. He had seriously injured Maiya, who had a dagger, with just one blow. The destructive power of this kind of attack can snap a tree with two blows, and was extraordinarily dangerous.

The frock covering his entire body had been reinforced with bullet-proof materials and processed to protect against spells. It can defend against the impact and the penetration power of 9mm Parabellum bullets.

As for the result of pre-battle intelligence gathered from other fields – according to the magecraft teaching result report obtained from Tōsaka Tokiomi, Kotomine Kirei’s level of magecraft learning had not progressed beyond the degree of a beginner. His most outstanding skill was simply spiritual healing. If he were to use any effective measures during battle, then the only predictable one would be physical enhancement; his most adept skill, used to exert even greater physical strength.

Lastly, predicting his battle tactics.

Since Emiya Kiritsugu had thoroughly hid himself, the most information Kotomine Kirei could get to analyze Kiritsugu’s tactics would consist of rumors. The only battle in this Heaven’s Feel that forced Kiritsugu to use his ‘secret weapon’ was the fight against Lord El-Melloi. The bounded field of the Einzbern Castle at that time was still dense enough to prevent the Assassins from penetrating. Moreover, Kirei himself was tied down in the battle with Maiya and Irisivel during that time. In conclusion, it was impossible for Kirei to know about Innate Time Control and the ‘Origin Bullet’. It can be concluded that he would not have countermeasures for these.

– The above was all the information that Emiya Kiritsugu had gathered concerning the final decisive battle.

Firstly, their initial wave of attacks consists of Black Keys versus bullets. Of course, Kirei would be in an overwhelmingly disadvantageous position. However, if he wanted to rely on magecraft to compensate for his lack in weaponry, then it would be very possible for Kirei to rush up fearlessly and shorten the distance between them.

At last, the Executor waved the wing-like six Black Keys and rushed toward Kiritsugu from the front. It seemed that he had made the defensive preparations for Kiritsugu’s bullets.

That was exactly what Kiritsugu had wanted. Kiritsugu could ensure the success of his killing blow precisely because Kirei had made defensive measure. It was because he was firing the magecraft bullet from his Mystic Code.

With the belief that the early bird gets the worm, Kiritsugu fired toward his opponent. Kirei should have been able to completely predict the trajectory of the bullet from Kiritsugu’s killing aura and preparatory actions. As a humanoid Shura, an Executor of the Holy Church, the quickness of Kirei’s mind far surpassed that of a bullet.

Kirei initiated a large scale magecraft.

The Black Keys that he grasped with both hands instantly swelled up into more than twice their original size. The half-spiritual blades, which were woven with magecraft to begin with, had extra prana instilled into them and were completely ‘strengthened’. Although the forceful execution of this spell evidently surpassed the limit of the weapons themselves, it was enough to handle one bullet. Kirei crossed the six enormous swords before his chest and held them in fan-like formation. The mighty destructive power of the .30-06 Springfield assault rifle bullet was completely sealed off in an instant.

The bullet was deflected away together with flying sparks. At the same time the Black Keys, which had been filled with too much prana, could no longer handle the heavy load and shattered completely.

This extraordinary skill, which allowed swords to surpass bullets, now became a wrong move. It was truly shocking that Kirei, who shouldn’t even have a Magic Crest, could exert such a surprising skill. But more importantly, this would allow the fatal destruction of Kirei’s Magic Circuits, which were currently serving as a sack full of energy. Due to Emiya Kiritsugu’s repulsion towards the ‘Origin’, Kirei’s flesh would instantly be annihilated due to the magecraft running rampant in his body – that was what was supposed to happen.

A rapidly approaching figure clad in black frock suddenly appeared within the fragments of the six Black Keys, which were scattering away. Kiritsugu couldn’t help but gasp in surprise.

“Time alter——double accel!”

His body reacted sooner than his brain while he remained in shock. Kiritsugu chanted a spell.

Kiritsugu jumped backward at the last moment. Kirei’s right foot ferociously swept past the tip of Kiritsugu’s nose, and the left foot that followed up the attack didn’t land on Kiritsugu’s neck either. Kirei’s smooth roundhouse kicking attack completely missed its target under the confusion caused by Kiritsugu’s double-speed movement.

That was not within the scope of his predictions. The ‘Origin Bullet’ fired from his magecraft Contender gun was nullified – Kiritsugu couldn’t figure out the reason no matter what. Meanwhile, Kirei didn’t know the reason for Kiritsugu’s surprise. Even Kirei wouldn’t have imagined that the uniqueness of his magecraft had surprisingly nullified Kiritsugu’s killing blow.

Kirei had never been an orthodox magus. Kirei, whose Magic Circuits were yet to be developed properly, only obtained a source of prana through utilizing the spare Command Seals he received from Risei so he could instantly learn how to use magecraft. Although the characteristics of the Command Seals meant they were disposables which would disappear upon use, it had managed to save Kirei at the end. The moment that the magecraft was activated and the ‘Origin Bullet’ made contact to exert the effect, the Command Seal that served as the source of prana had simply disappeared from Kirei’s arm.

Having his one-turn-kill plan completely disrupted, Kiritsugu could only progress onto his next step. He did not expect the opponent to attack back. Although in terms of the result, Kirei’s attack would only be a waste of efforts, the overwhelming destructive power of his martial arts was evident. This man is a high-level martial artist, and Kiritsugu won’t have any chances of victory if he was pulled into melee fighting with him.

Kiritsugu ignored the damage Innate Time Control gave him as a side effect and maintained its activation and escaped Kirei’s range at once. Firstly, he had to increase the distance between them, otherwise he would have no chance. Kiritsugu would be able to deal with Kirei if the other simply threw Black Keys, but the current competition had become an authentic contest of ‘distance’. Kiritsugu was retreating, while Kirei was advancing. Since the ideal distance for them to initiate an attack differed between the two men, now they could only compete their speed on foot.

The power of mobility that Innate Time Control gave to him was Kiritsugu’s most reliable defence. Firstly, a certain distance was needed to fill the Contender bullets. As long As Kiritsugu was at a relatively close distance where his enemy’s fists won’t hit him, but at the same time won’t be able to predict the bullet’s path and thus escape, then he would be able to surely finish the enemy this time. Even if the bullet contained no magecraft, the bulletproof vests that the enemy wore which had been mentioned in Maiya’s report would not be able to stop the innate penetration power of these hunting bullets that can kill even large beasts in one shot. Though he understood that the continuous activation of Innate Time Control was nothing less than suicide, he had no other choices at this moment.

However – Even then, Kiritsugu still underestimated the man Kotomine Kirei.

It wasn’t due to Kiritsugu’s overly-fast speed or a miscalculation that caused Kirei’s roundhouse kick to go off the mark. Kiritsugu’s movement wasn’t so nimble that Kirei was completely unable to grasp it. Once he understood that Kiritsugu was only moving at twice the speed of normal human – Kirei also made appropriate calculations.

Therefore, Kiritsugu immediately experienced surprised for the second time.

The space between them was more than five steps. The tall Executor took a slight step forward, and shortened this seemingly safe distance. This step, which sneaked toward the enemy along the ground without announcing its speed, was called ‘the moving stance’. It was also one of the dangerous secret skills of Baji Quan.

The tall, frock-clad figure slid in front of Kiritsugu like a Reaper, while Kiritsugu was shivering all over. Baji Quan can exert its greatest power at this distance. Kirei’s fist smashed down heavily toward the enemy with the power to reach infinity in all eight directions…

Kirei stepped forward. The concrete floor boomed under the impact, and the heavily planted forward fist smashed against Kiritsugu’s chest like a rock. Using the ‘Eight Postures of the Buddha Guards’ style, Kirei’s single blow had the same power as a grenade exploding in front of someone’s chest. Kiritsusu’s body, which took the full force of the blow, flew out into the air like a strand of hay and slammed into the support pillars that crowded the room. He never had the chance to defend himself. His thoracic cavity tore apart under the heavy hit of Kirei’s iron fist, and his lung and heart were pounded into nothing more than a mesh of meat.

Kirei remained clutching his fist and experienced the feel of death on his hand, and at the same time sighed slowly. Even a fight to the death, in which every second mattered, took only one moment to decide the victor. He experienced an emptiness that he had never felt before the moment he attained victory. This had originally been an end that he had pursued with a crazed fervor.

This lethargy made Kirei’s focus dull. He didn’t know that the opponent would actually sneak in an attack at this momentary gap. Nor did he realize that he would be the next to experience surprise.

There was a piercing pain between his brows, and the splashing red covered his field of sight.

The sound of gunfire beside his ears made Kirei instinctively raise his arms to shield his head before he understood what was going on. A rain of 9mm bullets was mercilessly showered upon him. The sleeves, which were made of Kevlar and covered in protective sigils, barely managed against the force of the bullets. Kirei was stunned.

Even Kiritsugu did not expect himself to be revived. He had already been prepared to die when Kirei neared him. In truth, Kiritsugu’s heart and lungs had indeed been completely destroyed, and the best he could manage should have been a final struggle.

However, seconds before his blood-deprived brain was about to die due to lack of oxygen, the heavy and uncontrollable injury on his body had healed completely by itself. Of course, Kiritsugu didn’t use any healing magecraft. Nonetheless, Kiritsugu had no doubts concerning this shocking miracle. He immediately understood what was going on.

The Noble Phantasm, Avalon – the holy relic that had summoned Saber and had been kept by Old Man Acht, the sheath of the holy sword that had protected Irisviel’s body for so long. Kiritsugu obtained this sheath when he separated from his wife, this sword sheath that can prevent aging and possesses a mighty healing power. Since it had been sealed inside Kiritsugu’s body, who was Saber’s authentic Master, the sheath could obtain prana from Saber and exert its effect in full according to the contract.

Although Kiritsugu understood its ability, he had never confirmed it with his own eyes. Therefore, he did not expect the sheath to be able to heal fatal injuries. The current situation was completely unpredicted for him. Kiritsugu was indeed admirable; he began to consider battle tactics as soon as he realized that he had been revived. He didn’t open his eyes, and he suppressed the urge to cough as his body began to breathe again, and pretended to be dead while waiting for the chance to launch a surprise attack.

Unfortunately, the Contender in his right hand still needed a bullet to fill it. If he were really to attack the other at unawares, then he could only use his left hand to take out the short automatic machine gun from the holster on his chest and fire. However, since Kirei’s strategies against bullets were perfect, Kiritsugu must aim at his head if he were to have a chance at victory.

It was awkward angle, and he could only fire instinctively. Moreover, the target was very small. Kiritsugu, who was a master shooter, managed a hit even though these three obstacles presented themselves before him. However, though the bullet hit its target, Kirei’s head was not shot through. Only the skin on his brow was scraped. Bullets can easily be deflected off their effective angles since the skull is made of curves, and therefore it is a rule in real battles to avoid aiming at the head.

Kiritsugu adjusted the machine gun into full automatic mode after he understood his surprise attack had failed, and sealed Kirei’s movements using a tight wall of suppressive fire. At the same time, he used his right hand to take out the empty shell in the Contender’s barrel. Although it was hard to use only his left hand to control the machine gun’s kickback inertia, which was as ferocious and wild as an untamed horse, Kiritsugu’s right hand still managed to fluently carry out a series of movements. It was as if he had trained himself into a war machine.

What was more worthy of praise was his strength of mind. Even though his two hands were engaged in two completely different tasks, he actually managed to chant out a spell with a superhuman concentration.

“Time alter——double accel!”

The time within his body changed. Kiritsugu threw everything to the wind in order to maximally use the tiny gap that he had managed to steal from this strong enemy.

He drove his accelerated limbs and leapt up from the ground, jumping backwards to further the distance. The machine gun ran out of bullets. Kirei adjusted his pose. Kiritsugu threw away the machine gun and grabbed a .30-06 bullet with his now empty left hand. Kirei loomed near. With a near-flight speed – Kiritsugu filled the Contender’s open barrel with the bullet. He closed the barrel half-way, took aim –

A space of three steps separated him from Kirei’s iron fists.

The Contender once again let out a furious roar. Kirei had no time to dodge, nor did he have time to pull out Black Keys.

Actually, Kirei never intended to dodge.

Kirei once again activated his Command Seals the moment he stepped toward Kiritsugu. He strengthened his physical abilities – he accelerated his reaction time and multiplied the maximum power output of his right flexor, radius muscle, and [[Fate/Zero:Translator's Notes#pronator teres|pronator teres]] muscle. There was no time to strengthen the sleeve of the bulletproof frock. The rest depended on his skill.

Kirei moved his right arm again before the Contender shot out a bullet. His arm, having transformed into a lethal magecraft Mystic Code, carved a spiral in the air and a tornado roared into being.

This movement became a spiralling force. It had originally been a defensive skill to nullify the opponent’s fists, but it had been performed at an extraordinary speed after the prana of two Command Seals had been infused into it.

The bullet, which left the barrel at a speed of 2500 inches per second, was wrapped into the spiral that moved at a divine speed. Even so, the .30-06 bullet still kept a straight path. It tore apart the Kevlar sleeves and clashed viciously with Kirei’s hardened arm, emitting alien sounds like the clash of two mill stones.

The scattering sparks distorted the usual laws of physics. It was a supernatural phenomena where the approximately 3000 pound per inch kinetic energy bent its knees to the power of prana. Kiritsugu felt a chill creeping up his skin as he watched the second Contender bullet had its trajectory forcibly changed and flew off toward the distance.

Monster – he didn’t know how to describe this man apart from that word. At this moment, Kotomine Kirei’s battle prowess could probably be considered that of a desperate man. Just what kind of a willpower was required for a living man to drill his own body into such a terrifying lethal weapon?

A piercing pain suddenly invaded his entire body. With a moan, Kiritsugu stumbled. His body had reached its limit due to the continuous activation of Innate Time Control. The blood vessels all around his body had ruptured, and the bones in his limbs also began to fracture due to having borne an unimaginable burden.

However, Kirei did not follow up his attack during this pause. He remained where he stood and did not move, as if he was observing the opponent’s next move. Large amounts of blood gushed out of his right arm where the frock sleeve was torn. It was probably because he had used too much prana with his unskilled method. His right arm, which had been overly strengthened by magecraft, was severely wounded as the price for having blocked the Contender’s blow.

The two men kept their disdainful eyes on each other, and analyzed the situation as they each thought of their next move.

According to Kirei’s analysis, Kiritsugu’s strategy – consisted of a magecraft that can accelerate his movement and a healing power that could even revive the caster even if the heart was destroyed. In other words, Kirei had to admit that he could not win no matter how heavy a wound he may deal to the enemy, unless he could destroy Kiritsugu’s brain with one blow. As for himself… his right arm had been damaged from the muscle to the bone, and he could only manage one more blow even if he was prepared to shatter his entire right fist. On the other hand, although the wound on his forehead wasn’t deep, the blood that seeped out had affected the sight of his left eye. The bulletproof ability of the frock had also been severely reduced since he had been shot at multiple times, and only the protective sigils close to his body remained intact. He had twelve Black Keys and eight Command Seals left.

According to Kiritsugu’s analysis, Kirei’s strategy – consisted of an unknown prana source that can nullify his ‘Origin Bullet’, and his ultimate Baji Quan skills. Melee fighting would be extremely disadvantageous for him. As for himself… he had lost his machine gun and the Contender needed to be filed again. His remaining weapons consist of one dagger and two grenades. The heavy wound that his chest had obtained at first had all but healed and won’t affect his movements, but he didn’t know about the damage caused by Innate Time Control –

Kiritsugu finally felt that there was something different when he attempted to tighten the muscles on his arms and legs.

He could move them; there were no difficulties. The bones which had definitely snapped a while ago were now in perfect condition, as if they had never been damaged – no, he could still feel the echo of that pain in his body, but there were no injuries.

“… I see.”

Kiritsugu finally understood the true worth of this trump card within his body. It seemed Avalon not only could heal injuries dealt by his enemies, but also the damages dealt by himself. This discovery gave Kiritsugu, whom had fallen into a desperate situation by fighting with an unimaginably strong enemy, the greatest confidence in the world.

Which means –

“Time alter——triple accel!”

Kiritsugu boldly leapt toward Kirei at the same time that he muttered that forbidden spell. His completely unpredictable acceleration caught Kirei off-guard. One blow from the hardened walnut wood smashed Kirei’s right radius and ulna. This time, his right arm was completely ruined.

As the same time that he struck out viciously with his right arm, Kiritsugu drew out the dagger by his waist using his left hand. He concluded that it didn’t matter how great a threat Kirei’s martial art skills may prove to be; victory would belong to Kiritsugu as long as he kept moving at three times the speed of a normal human. Using Innate Time Control in this way would ordinarily be suicide, but he could now use it to its full potential as a strategic weapon thanks to the protection of Saber’s sheath.

Kirei dodged the upward stab as the dagger was removed from its sheath, and used his left arm to block the downward slash and backhand horizontal swing Kiritsugu followed up with. However, Kiritsugu edged toward Kirei’s left side using these three attacks, and prepared to use Kirei’s blind spot – due to his left eye’s ruined eyesight – as his advantage. As long as he stayed to the enemy’s left side, Kiritsugu would have all the chances in the world to successfully succumb Kirei from his blind spot.

Kiritsugu’s sharp blade crept nearer, but Kirei didn’t turn and used his left side of the body to block everything. Turning around would have been pointless; his broken right arm could not possibly block Kiritsugu’s dagger. Therefore, though it was very disadvantageous for Kirei to use his left side of the body to defend himself, he had no other choices.

The dagger attacked continuously as it flashed with a chilling light. Ordinary humans would never have been able to see Kiritsugu’s movement, and could only have captured the lighting-like residual images of the dagger. However, Kirei blocked every single attack using just his left hand. Kirei, who easily defended himself even when faced with attacks made at three times the speed of normal humans, terrified Kiritsugu. There were a few attacks that Kirei would never have seen coming with his eyes, but the Executor’s left arm made effective defences as if it had grown eyes.

“Could this be the idea of – ‘hearing’ a move!?”

Kiritsugu only had a vague impression of this phrase. It had been said that when a martial artist had reached a certain advanced state in his skills, he wouldn’t need eyesight to detect the enemy’s movement. He could predict the opponent’s next move purely on the brief moment when his arm touched that of his opponent.

Then the attacks from his blind spot had also been rendered pointless. Since the direction the attacks were coming from weren’t changing, Kirei could block them even if he couldn’t see them. This man’s skills made him someone who wouldn’t be at a disadvantage even when put under the duress of speed.

Kiritsugu’s arms, legs, and heart let out sad screams of excruciating pain with every swing of the dagger. The adverse effect of Innate Time Control was also mercilessly tearing apart Kiritsugu’s flesh. At the same time, Avalon was also fixing the damage. Regardless of how Saber herself had used it, the sheath was only ‘healing’ Kiritsugu while in his body; in other words, it was only nullifying the ‘damages received’. That meant the excruciating pain of torn tendons and snapped bones were tormenting Kiritsugu’s nerves every single moment.

Even so, Kiritsugu did not hesitate. There was no need to hesitate. As long as his body could maintain its functions, he didn’t need to pay any attention to what he was feeling. Kiritsugu bet everything on the effect of the sheath of the holy sword, and continued to accelerate against the normal time flow as if his life depended on it.

“Whoaaaaaaaaa!!”

Kiritsugu’s body was reborn at the same time as it was dying. Kiritsugu shrieked out of agony while he swung his dagger, aiming for the enemy before him. His blood vessels, which endlessly repeated a cycle of rupture and repair, shed out sanguineous mists with his every move.

Kirei suddenly changed his feet stance, and rolled forward towards his left. Kiritsugu had thought that the enemy’s ability to ‘hear’ a move had been pushed to its limit, but Kirei unexpectedly used his feet to hook one of Kiritsugu’s legs from the inside. This legwork was named ‘the locking stance’. Kiritsugu immediately stumbled backwards. After he finally managed to balance himself, he realized that a heavy blow from Kirei was fast approaching. However, since his weight had shifted backwards, he would definitely be hit.

If so – Kiritsugu squeezed out a spell from his throat that was frothing with blood.

“Time alter ——square accel!”

The explosive pain boiled into every part of his senses. Kiritsugu leapt up and backwards, and turned in mid-air to escape out of Kirei’s range of attack. At the same time, he threw out the dagger in his left hand with all the strength in his body. Faced with this shocking repeated acceleration, Kirei couldn’t dodge no matter how good his ‘move-hearing’ skills were. The dagger tore through air and flew toward Kirei’s thigh. The Kevlar fibres were pierced through and the sharp blade stabbed deep into flesh.

Kiritsugu maintained his four-time acceleration and continued to leap backwards as if there was a throttle equipped on him. He had moved about ten meters away from Kirei in the blink of an eye. Kirei took the opportunity to take out a Black Key and throw at him, but Kiritsugu dodged it with ease and began to refill the Contender at the same time.

He pulled it and opened the barrel.

Kirei rushed up. He paid no attention to the dagger, which was still sticking out of his left leg. Even the fact that the sharp blade was tearing the wound open wider as he ran did not cause him to hesitate any.

The expelled cartridge danced in the air; the light of the golden bronze sparkled.

Kirei pulled out four Black Keys with his left hand. That was the limit to the number he can wield in one hand.

Kiritsugu put the new bullet into the barrel. The bullet slide in easily, but this split second had seemed so long in the quadruple-accelerated time.

Kirei threw his Black Keys, not to the front, but upwards. The four sharp blades danced in the air beneath the tall ceiling of the large prop warehouse like boomerangs. Kirei didn’t plan to use the Black Keys for a normal attack; Kiritsugu didn’t know his intentions. Moreover, there was no time to ponder Kirei’s intention at this moment.

With one flick upwards, the gun barrel was closed. The Contender once again transformed into that heinous murder weapon.

Kirei was getting close. He again used his martial art stances to shorten the distance between him and Kiritsugu, but he won’t be getting any nearer. Right now, Kiritsugu would definitely be able to dodge him and fire at the same time.

The Black Keys landed from above him. Kiritsugu finally perceived Kirei’s tactics when the four sharp blades surrounded him in all directions like a bird cage.

Sealing his movements – if Kiritsugu wanted to dodge Kirei’s sudden advance, there the sharp blades of the Black Keys would be waiting for him no matter where he moved toward. Kirei’s intention had always been to seal Kiritsugu’s movements when he threw the Black Keys.

The only way to stay alive was to fire before he was attacked.

Kiritsugu aimed with Contender. There was no need to be anxious, no need to be fearful. All he needed to do was focus on firing at the enemy in front of him.

Kirei stepped on the ground viciously with his right foot and leapt forward. This leap equaled to about five normal steps. His left foot would likely be broken the moment he land, but it didn’t matter; the following blow would decide the victor. There was no need to hold back; his entire body had been fully prepared. His goal was to perform one of the Eight Grand Openings – The Standing Upward Cannon. The smashing upper hook would definitely shatter the opponent’s skull into pieces.

I will win – both men believed firmly in that.

I will die – both men understood that fact.

The fist and the gun that contained the will for a sure kill finally completed their last exchange.

Emiya Kiritsugu and Kotomine Kirei, who were deeply engrossed in battle, did not notice the abnormality above them.

Directly above the big prop warehouse where the two men were, Irisviel’s already-cold corpse was placed upon the raised stage of the music hall.

As the ‘Guardian’, she had almost lost all signs of life. The organs within her body had already reverted to the form of the Vessel of the Grail, and was waiting to recollect the souls of the remaining Servants.

After Archer’s victory, this vessel had finally absorbed the soul of the fourth Servant.

The sealing enchantment had already disappeared. Having gathered enormous amounts of prana, its residual waves brought scorching heat to its surroundings.

The corpse of the beautiful homunculus was completely consumed by the heat in the blink of an eye, and was reduced to ashes. That was not all. The golden cup that had contacted the outside air charred the floor and the curtains, and roaring flames enveloped the completely empty stage.

On the stage where the fire was raging ever wilder, the golden cup floated in the air as if it was upheld by a pair of invisible hands. The ceremony of the descent of the Holy Grail, which the Three Noble Families of the Beginning had desired so much, had begun silently even without the presence of a priest.

Then – a gap no wider than the width of a hair, so minute and almost invisible, appeared on the ‘Gate’ that remained tightly closed. Through this tiny gap, something beyond the Gate silently seeped into the Holy Grail.

That thing seemed very similar to ‘mud’. It was black, simply and only black, a ‘thing’ that seemed like mud.

The thing that seeped into the Holy Grail suddenly overflew by one drop, then another drop. It soon became a thin black line. Like a crack that had appeared on a dam, the black torrents soon completely overflew out of the vessel and drained toward the stage floor.

The strength of the stage floor could not bear that inky black substance at all. The dirty mud seeped into the brand new building materials, eroding them, and flew even deeper like how the water from melted snow seeps into land.

The moment that the trigger of the magecraft gun was pressed –

The moment the floor moaned from the heavy step –

In that moment, Kiritsugu only saw Kirei, and Kirei only saw Kiritsugu.

The two of them did not detect that thing, which dribbled down through the ceiling, even till the end.

At that brief moment between life and death, the two men were drenched with the black dirty mud that descended from above.

<noinclude>
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|-
| Back to [[Fate/Zero:Act_16_Part_5|Act 16, Part 5]]
| Return to [[Fate/Zero|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Fate/Zero:Act_16_Part_7|Act 16, Part 7]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Fate/Zero:Act 16 Part 5

2011-09-01T12:48:48Z

Fiohnel: /* -03:55:51 */ changed "plebians" into "plebeians"

=== -03:55:51 ===

– A woman was crying.

Her beautiful countenance became more ragged by the day with sorrow, and wrinkles of dilemma were etched into the ends of her brows; the woman was silently crying.

She blamed and questioned herself.

She was ashamed beyond measure.

As a sinner who shouldered all the guilt and blame in the world, she could only wet her face day after day with her tears.

Everyone was speaking wicked words of her – an unchaste wife, a traitorous queen.

Those foolish plebeians blinded by the glorious myths did not know the truth, but only surrounded her and reprimanded her all at once.

They did not even know that her husband was not a man.

In this world, only her noble visage made ‘him’ give out his true heart.

However, all ‘he’ could recall were her frustrated and sorrowful tears.

Yes, ‘he’ had hurt her.

Loved her –

Was loved by her –

That was the root of their fall.

Even she must have had discarded everything back then and consigned herself.

An ideal king was needed to save the country ravaged by chaos and war – and a noble and virtuous queen needed to be beside the king. That was the way the monarch was supposed to be in the dreams of the populace.

A woman’s life was so insignificant compared to this grandiose ideal.

Even if the king wasn’t a man, even if this marriage was between two women who hid the true gender of one and could never be consummated, this sacrifice was necessary to protect the country and its greater good.

Even so, ‘he’ still wanted to save her.

The first time ‘he’ had been granted audience in the court, ‘he’ had sworn silently in his heart that ‘he’ would do anything for this woman, and would even give up ‘his’ life for her.

It had been too late when she discovered that it was this thought of ‘his’ that had been tormenting her.

She had fallen hopelessly in love with ‘him’.

She had already discarded the happiness of a woman. Love was the greatest taboo.

Even if this romance was impermissible, there should still have been a path in which they could make their difficult resolution, shoulder their sins, and continue till the end.

What man would not fight against the entire world for the woman he loved?

However – ‘he’ could not do that.

She was not a ‘woman’, nor was she a ‘human’, but a mechanical part called a ‘queen’ that supported the king ruling the world.

'He’ was not a ‘man’, nor was he a ‘human’, but a mechanical part called a ‘knight’ that served the king with absolute loyalty.

'He’ was the man called ‘the Knight of the Lake’ – incomparably brave, courteous and chivalrous, elegant and flamboyant at the same time. ‘He’ was indeed the personification of the essence of chivalry, an existence that all admired.

Not only was this ideal knight worshipped by all, he had even been blessed by the fairies. This title was ‘his’ ultimate glory, and at the same time the greatest curse bestowed upon ‘him’.

The ‘perfect knight’ who served the ‘perfect king’ – this man could only live in this way that others had expected and trusted ‘him’ to, and so give up ‘his’ life for it.

'His’ life did not belong to ‘himself’, but to the people who honored chivalry and gave their lives for it.

And the king that ‘he’ served was truly too perfect, a hero that was absolutely flawless. The ‘Knight of the Lake’ could never harbor any thoughts of betrayal towards this ‘King of Knights’ who had saved ‘his’ home country from the depths of war.

'He’ swore ‘his’ absolute loyalty to the perfect monarch, and made a noble friendship with the monarch.

'He’ also knew that, behind this noble chivalry, there was a tormented and ignored woman who wept by the day.

Just which path had been the correct one? No one could tell now.

Should ‘he’ have been cruel till the end and stayed with ‘his’ ideals, or should ‘he’ have discarded loyalty and lived for love?

While ‘his’ heart was twisting in agony, time was passing mercilessly by. Finally, the worst outcome greeted ‘him’.

Villainous fellows had shattered the king’s prestige to pieces, and the betrayal of the queen was finally revealed to the world. In order to save the queen, who had been given the death sentence, ‘he’ could only go against ‘his’ king in arms – thus, ‘he’ lost everything.

A knight turned traitor –

'His’ disloyalty broke the balance within the Knights of the Round Table. Finally, this incident became the trigger of war and carnage, and the country shattered to pieces in the flames of war.

Men had often called ‘him’ with those mocking tones.

That stained name was carved deeply in the history of the past and would never be washed clean.

Therefore, she fell into a deep self-deprecation for having misguided that ‘perfect knight’, and was crying to this day.

In the end, the only thing ‘he’ had done for the woman ‘he’ loved – was to make her cry forevermore.

Had ‘he’ been born as a sordid man without honor, ‘he’ may have taken away the queen without a moment’s hesitation and destroyed the king’s prestige.

But ‘he’ was a knight, an overly perfect knight.

For the king who was ‘his’ rival in love, for the one who caused the woman ‘he’ loved to step onto that painful and difficult road – 'he’ had never had any feelings of hatred till the end.

Yes, who could possibly depreciate that famous king? That king, whose glorious name was passed down through the eons, was more courageous and noble than anyone else. That king had ended that troubled time.

That king, who had never lost a battle, was uncorrupted and just, honorable but never affected by personal emotions, and had never made a mistake in life.

After all, that king had never blamed ‘him’ throughout life. Even when the king had gone to exchange blows with ‘he’ who had been discarded by the Round Table, it had been a helpless act to make an example out of ‘him’ with the country as their witness, and never the king’s original intention. For ‘him’, who had committed the greatest sin of betrayal, the king had always treated him with a pure and noble friendship even to the very end.

That noble king was so ‘correct’. How could anyone hate or despise that monarch?

However – if that was the case, then to whom should ‘his’ regret and her tears be dumped upon?

The hatred ‘he’ brought to the grave was extracted at the end of time’s long passage, and tormented ‘him’ for an eternity on the Throne of Heroes that had no end… And then ‘he’ finally heard the call from afar.

Come, mad beast.

Come, stubborn vengeful spirit. That sound from the end of time had called.

That sound woke ‘his’ long-held wish.

Had ‘he’ not been a knight.

Had 'he' been a beast knowing no honor and had no reason, had 'he' been a demon fallen into the league of beasts, maybe 'he' could have avenged this hatred and regret.

Yes, madness was the road to salvation.

A beast would not be lost. Therefore, it would not feel pain. No one expected anything of it, no one entrusted anything to it. If ‘he’ could become a beast and direct the movement of ‘his’ limbs with nothing but ‘his’ own desire –

This wish became the connection that linked ‘him’ with the end of time, and placed ‘him’ on this battlefield that ‘he’ cared and knew nothing about.

'He’ had long ago forgotten ‘his’ name, long ago forgotten ‘his’ disciplined vow. ‘His’ body only existed to perform the murderous skills that ‘his’ hands had long been drenched in. The pride that took shame in this no longer existed, and the heart that regretted was lost as well. This was who ‘he’ currently was – the existence called ‘Berserker’.

There were no regrets. To fall, to be freed, that was what ‘he’ had sought.

Moreover, the merciless hand of Fate had even arranged such an ironic rendezvous.

"... Ar… thur…”

The call that slipped out of 'his' lips no longer meant anything.

Even so, this silver swordsman who now knelt in the torrential rain was undoubtedly that person whom 'he' had both loved and hated in the past.

That noble visage and that majestic and solemn face, which innumerable hopes and blessings had been bestowed upon, was now kneeling in front of despair. Now the king knew the truth that had been hidden for so long, knew the hatred that had been buried in eternal darkness. The king forgot the pride of a monarch and mourned.

– Do you hate me so much, my friend? –

Yes, that’s what I wanted to see – the beast in his heart cried, the knight in his heart sobbed. Savor it well. Now you know how many tears we’ve shed for your transient glory, how we have annihilated ourselves, wasted our days, and sat in emptiness waiting for old age.

Now was the time when his buried injustice would be revenged. The fallen black knight lifted his sword of vengeance up high.

– Do you hate me so much, Knight of the Lake?! –

Ah. Yes, that’s right.

At the time, had I not been a knight, but only lived as a man –

Had I not been a loyal subject, but hated you as a human –

Then, perhaps, I could have saved that woman!

<noinclude>
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</noinclude>

Fate/Zero:Act 15 Part 5

2011-09-01T07:03:42Z

Fiohnel: /* -04:10:33 */ changed "Justizia" into "Justicia" according to Act 15 Part 2

=== -04:10:33 ===

Fuyuki City Hall –

This structure, which had been built at the cost of eight billion yen, was considered the symbol of Fuyuki Shinto’s development, along with the Central Building in front of the train station. It covered an area of 6600 square meters and had 4700 square meters of usable space. Its complex design housed four floors above ground and one floor below. The two-story music hall could accommodate about 3000 patrons. The building's prestigious architect had created a novel design that made this modern City Hall as majestic and splendid as an ancient shrine. Fuyuki City's high ambition toward Shinto's development could thus be seen in physical form.

However, only the exterior was complete. The interior was still being decorated in preparation for the commemoration ceremony. Active and practical use of the building was still a long way off. In addition to the minimal level of safety precautions, the building still had no access to electricity. Deep in the night, with no workers on site, this pristine and splendid building became an unreal space, with an inhuman silence and an alien feeling flowing and drifting through its emptiness.

Civil planning did not take magecraft into consideration. It was a complete coincidence that the City Hall had been built on top of Fuyuki’s latest leyline – in other words, such a rare coincidence could only be attributed to the paranormal characteristics bestowed upon the area by the leyline.

Kotomine Kirei stood on the rooftop and calmly watched the magecraft signals he had set off as they scattered to smoke in the night wind. The only thing he had needed to do to infiltrate the unguarded building was break the lock. He had already made preparations for the ceremony and was ready to confront an attack. All that was left was to stay and wait for the remaining enemies to be attracted by the signal.

Battle was near, and yet he did not seem to be affected by the thought at all. Executors did not need to be excited with the prospect of bloodshed, nor did they need to jest to relieve the tension. They possessed the ideal characteristics of the tools of God’s will, and would gallop toward death with hearts knowing only the routine completion of yet another duty. Long years of such training allowed Kirei to display the calm and nonchalance of a practicing surgeon.

However –

“Hmph. Your face tonight is as cold as ever, Kirei.”

Archer, who was walking up to the rooftop with a relaxed gait, mocked him. Kirei laughed bitterly in his heart.

What did his face, emotionless as always, look like in the eyes of this Heroic Spirit who could see through everything? Even the shifts in his emotions that he himself could not detect were unable to escape from the Heroic Spirit’s eyes.

Although his heart had wavered in the beginning, Kirei was used to it by now. Yes, he was a cold man in truth – he understood himself as though he was analyzing the business of another.

The King of Heroes, who had just returned from the night market in the street, still wore his flamboyant and luxurious casual clothing. A residual tint of indulgence remained in those crimson eyes, and he showed no sense of urgency at the approaching battle. However, this Heroic Spirit would never separate his outer appearance from his inner feelings. The battle surrounding the Holy Grail only seemed like child’s play to him.

“What do you want me to do next, Kirei? Just wait here?”

One wrong command could make Archer question the worth of his Master. Kirei, who knew this very well, shook his head after having thought about it for a while.

“The ceremony will be in jeopardy if your power is released close to the Holy Grail. If you want to have fun, then attack head-on.”

“Mm, fine. But what do you plan to do if you’re attacked while I’m away?”

“Get Berserker to stall the enemies and I’ll use that time to summon you back. I would have to borrow the power of the Command Seals, though. You wouldn’t mind, would you?”

“It is permitted. However, I can’t guarantee the safety of the Holy Grail. I won’t be merciful tonight. This narrow little room may be completely destroyed.”

“That would be the worst outcome, but it would also be fate.”

Kirei nodded decisively, but Archer narrowed his eyes.

“Kirei, it looks as if you have understood the meaning of this war. But do you still not have a wish to bestow upon the Holy Grail? Not a single wish, even if you do manage to obtain the miracle?”

“That’s right. What’s wrong with that?”

“Although it’s yet to be completed, the ‘vessel’ is already in your hands. It may accept a ‘pre-ordered’ wish, you know.”

“… Hmm, I see. You’re saying that, if possible, a miracle can occur at the same time when the Holy Grail descends, right?”

Kirei sighed disinterestedly and thought about it for a while. In the end, he still shook his head.

“I still don’t have a wish. If I have to have one – then I wish for there not to be any innocent people meddling with us in the final battle. Unfortunately, there are residents all around us. I had wanted to fight for my victory somewhere desolate if possible.”

Hearing this completely boring answer, Gilgamesh said with derision.

“Hah, the thing hiding in your heart will only be truly understood in the presence of the Holy Grail.”

At the end of the day, even if those two were closer to the Holy Grail than anyone else, they also cared the least for it. For those two, compared to gaining the Holy Grail, it was more meaningful to chase away those who had gathered because of it.

“– Ah, there’s one more thing. If Saber appears before I return –”

As he was about to depart, the King of Heroes halted in his steps as if having suddenly thought of something.

“– Then let Berserker play with her for a little while. I saved that mad dog’s life just for this.”

“Understood.”

Kirei still could not figure out the reason why Archer was so bent on Saber. As for Berserker, who had longed to destroy the King of Heroes after their initial battle, things were different. The King of Heroes had allowed for Berserker’s continued existence after discovering his true name in his investigation of Matō Kariya. He had said, "It'll be entertaining to let that dog bite Saber.” The King of Heroes could always control his anger whenever it came to Saber; it seemed Gilgamesh was very interested in the King of Knights.

“Say, Kirei, how’s that doll, the one Saber protected at the risk of her life? I heard that whatchamacallit – Vessel of the Grail – is in it.”

“Ah, that's what you meant.”

Kirei did not want to mention its existence. His interest was gone at this stage; he did not even feel the need to remember the woman’s name.

“I just killed her. There was no longer any reason to keep her alive.”

<center>※※※※※</center>

Irisviel opened her eyes and looked around at her surroundings.

She felt very strange. Her consciousness was impeccably clear, and yet she could not think logically.

It seemed like it was not her mentality that had become muddled and nonsensical, but the world she was in.

Many scenes flashed past her eyes. When she beheld them, the only emotion that welled up within her heart was an unbearable sorrow and emptiness.

The scenes reflected in her eyes were eternally sundered from happiness or joy. That was the only constant in this kaleidoscope of confusion.

There was pain, there was humiliation, and there was regret, hatred, and loss.

Bloodshed and a desolate land. Betrayal and vengeance. Having devoted everything and yet receiving nothing in return – it was an expensive cycle that reaped no rewards.

The familiar snow-covered scene continued on.

It was recounting the story of a clan that had sealed all it possessed within a castle of deep winter.

And here she finally remembered – what she was looking down upon was the Einsbern family's thousand-year-long pilgrimage for the Holy Grail.

The primeval Justicia and the female dolls modeled after her… They were homunculi, fake living beings.

They were humanoid disposables created with the secret craft of alchemy and used to fulfill the unattainable lasting wish.

This lost and confused history of the Einsbern clan was written with their blood and tears as ink and their broken bones and frozen fingertips as pens. Their sighs and their despair made Irisviel’s heart clench tight.

If any place had existed such that allowed her to see all of this, then it could only be the epicenter of the entire conflict, within the thing that had witnessed all.

Irisviel finally understood. She was looking inside the Holy Grail.

It was the Greater Grail that embraced the primeval Justicia, the Greater Grail of Mount Enzō. All homunculi were manufactured to the standard of the ‘Lady of Winter’, using her as their model. Therefore, they shared the same pain.

– No, was that really the truth?

“Why are you crying, Mother?”

When she came to, Irisviel discovered that she was in the room of her child, protected by the warmth of the fireplace.

Icy wind and snow gathered outside the window and the storm roared past. A pair of tiny hands clutched her mother’s arms tightly in search of protection.

“Mother, Illya had a nightmare. I dreamed that I became a wine cup.”

Although her heart was terrified, Illyaviel’s two red eyes still looked at Irisviel with trust. Though her face looked the same as her mother's and all of her sisters', this child was different. She was more adorable than anyone else –

“There were seven big blocks in Illya’s heart. When Illya felt like she was about to break and was so scared but couldn’t run away, she heard Justicia-sama’s voice, and there was a big black hole above my head…”

Iriviel embraced her daughter tightly. Her silver-white fringe brushed past her daughter’s face, which was wet with tears.

“It’s alright, it’s alright… That won’t happen. You won’t see such things, Illya.”

There was one sad wish that only Irisviel possessed out of her innumerable sisters and could not share with anyone else – and that was the maternal love of a ‘Mother’.

Out of the many generations of homunculi, she had been the first to give birth to a child from her womb. Out of all of her kind, only she had been given a love for her child. But even so, the fate she carried was just as lamentable.

Illyasviel von Einsbern was the next Vessel of the Grail, and also a mechanical part swept up in the thousand-year-old cogwheel of delusion and stubbornness.

This shackle would not break until someone claimed victory.

The Third Magic, the Cup of Heaven – that achievement was the only salvation.

Many sounds rushed towards Irisviel. She chanted with her countless sisters.

The Holy Grail –

Please grant the Holy Grail into my hands –

Deep within the forest, where the used homunculi were discarded, the mountain of corpses composed of her kin chanted. Those rotten, maggot-infested faces overlapped with Illya’s young and small face, and emitted those painful sounds.

“It’s alright –”

Full of love, the mother hugged her daughter tightly in her arms.

“Illya, you’ll definitely be freed from this shackle of fate. I will finish everything. Your daddy will definitely fulfill this wish as well…”

At that moment, a question suddenly flashed past her thoughts.

If this was a dream conjured by the Holy Grail – since she could see the ‘Vessel’ within so clearly and it had taken shape – then what would Irisviel, who served as the outer cover, look like now?

It was as if the eggshell could see the innards of the chick.

If so, then this would be a giant contradiction. The shell was supposed to break when the chick hatched.

Then – who was the Irisviel that was dreaming?

The touch of Illyasviel’s slender body, which she was hugging tightly, was so realistic. Irisviel looked to her own hands, which were hugging her daughter.

Irisviel had already disappeared. If the chick had consumed the broken shell…

The falling snow outside the window suddenly stopped. What melted into the darkness of the night was a thick black mud that stirred up ripples.

She wasn’t scared, nor was she surprised; she only comprehended it calmly and gazed upon it. The mud seeped in from all corners of the room and dripped from the chimney, slowly soaking the ground under her feet.

Yes, the question of ‘who am I?’ was so minuscule.

She had been no one since the start. Even now, she was still ‘someone’ who used the personality of Irisviel, a woman who had already disappeared, as a mask.

Even so, Irisviel’s wish, hidden in her heart, remained true. It was the wish of a mother who thought of her beloved daughter and lamented the future of her child even as she drew her last breath and passed away. She had inherited the wish of this mother.

Therefore, she was the one who must fulfill that wish.

She was the existence that had been worshipped and anticipated because she was to grant everyone’s wish, because she was made to be the one.

“– It’s alright, Illyasviel, everything is about to end.”

Gently, she murmured beside the ear of the young girl, whom she was embracing for the first time.

“So let us wait here awhile. Father will definitely come. He’ll come to help us fulfill all of our wishes.”

The scorching mud that clung tightly to her had elegantly dyed her skirt black.

As she waited for the moment when the wish would be granted, the woman with her body entangled in the inky darkness smiled.

Dispel all sorrows and chase away all worries.

Soon, she would receive the power to fulfill wishes and become the omnipotent wish-granting vessel that could realize all.

<noinclude>
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</noinclude>

Fate/Zero:Act 15 Part 3

2011-09-01T07:02:40Z

Fiohnel: /* -16:05:37 */ changed "volunarily" into "voluntarily", "Kiristugu" into "Kiritsugu"

=== -16:05:37 ===

The scorching summer heat, unusual for the season, had nothing to do with Kotomine Kirei.

The ice-cold humid air sank into the darkness and was completely isolated from the bustling world outside. His location possessed all the ideal properties that would allow him to wait till night had fallen and then make his move.

The temporary hiding place that Kotomine Kirei, who had left the Fuyuki Church, had chosen was the blood-covered underground cavern that Uryū Ryūnosuke and Servant Caster had once occupied as their headquarters – that is, the water tank deep within the Fuyuki City sewage system. Moreover, this was the fated place where the Assassins he had summoned had been utterly humiliated. It was truly ironic that it was that memory which made Kotomine Kirei choose this hiding place.

The best testimony to the secrecy of this place was the fact that Caster, who had become the target of all Masters after Risei’s command, had managed to stay alive here after the chaotic battle in the Einsbern Forest. Rider and his Master were the only ones who had found and entered this place, but there was longer any reason for them to pay attention to Caster’s workshop.

After ensuring his own safety, Kirei reviewed the current situation of the war.

On top of having eliminated Tōsaka Tokiomi, befriended Matō Kariya, and secured the Vessel of the Grail, he had also managed to keep Saber and Rider in a stalemate whilst his own whereabouts were unknown to all –

All this was achieved within one day after his decision to return to the Heaven’s Feel.

Although luck did play its part, nothing in the world was meant to be perfect. Even Kirei himself was surprised at the fact that he had immediately changed the chaotic and senseless situation of the war.

Kirei had usurped and taken over the advantage Tōsaka Tokiomi had possessed at the beginning of the war. Archer, who had materialized into this world as the most powerful Servant in this Heaven’s Feel, was in Kirei’s hands. Berserker, who was a formidable enemy due to his natural differences with Archer, had also become Kirei’s puppet along with his Master. There was nothing else that could threaten Kotomine Kirei.

It didn’t matter who emerged victorious between Saber and Rider. The battle amongst Servants would end as soon as the victor was eliminated by Archer’s ultimate Noble Phantasm. On the off chance that both the King of Knights and the King of Conquerors managed to survive – or worse, if they came to an agreement and joined forces against him – then there was still the powerful Berserker to stop them. Although Matō Kariya was almost in ruins after the incident with Aoi, Berserker would automatically start attacking Saber and would not require his Master’s command.

Although Kirei knew that having three or four battle plans ready for the potentially unpredictable fight with Rider would be good enough, Archer did not agree to it. This battle did not belong to Kirei, but the King of Heroes. Kirei needed to respect the wish of the warriors if they desired a face-to-face rivalry. This was likely the biggest difference between Kirei and the other magi, who merely used Servants as tools.

He was opposed to using even a single Command Seal on Archer. He would only get the opposite result if he forced a man with such a huge ego to serve another’s will. The best way was not to control this Servant as a pawn, but to use him as if he were an environmental condition, like the weather or the direction of the wind. A sailor could not control the wind, but he could dexterously control his boat using the sail. That was his reasoning.

Archer had left for the moment because he didn’t like being locked up in this underground place. Kirei understood that Archer would rush back when necessary, so he did not feel uneasy in the leasts. Kirei did not regard this King of Heroes as a familiar, but as an accomplice with mutual interests.

In other words, there were more efficient ways to use the Command Seals he had taken from Risei’s hand. Even if Kirei possessed no Magic Crests, there were many ways for him to perform magecraft provided he paid the proper price. His chances of victory were high even if he were to fight an expert magus now.

The final battle tonight between Servants will decide the Holy Grail’s final destination. As an onlooker, all Kirei needed to do was wait for the right opportunity. As a Master, his main concern was actually a battle of strategies beyond that of the Servants’ – Kirei’s greatest enemy would be in that battle.

Emiya Kiritsugu. He would be the only one still capable of taking away the advantage in Kirei’s hands at this stage.

In his heart, Kirei had always looked forward to the duel with him. However, since the opponent was a thorough assassin, the kind of encounter that Kirei wished for would never come about. He would have to frequently consider the situation of the battle and continue to ensure his advantage if he were to create a scenario in which he could fight Emiya Kiritsugu face to face. If Kiritsugu took the upper hand, Kirei would definitely be finished without ever seeing what his opponent looked like. If that were to happen, then all would have been for naught.

Emiya Kiritsugu could not obtain information concerning this water tank. He was reassured of that. Had that not been the case, Uryū Ryūnosuke would have been eliminated even sooner than he had. He would not suffer a sudden attack from Kiritsugu as long as he remained hidden here. For now, all he needed to do was keep his opponent worrying and running around blindly. Kirei would be the one to decide the location of the duel.

Kiritsugu operated strictly according to logic. Kirei would predict his moves and turn that logic against him, misleading him until he had no choice but to voluntarily appear before Kirei – that goal was already finalized. All that was left was to wait for night to fall.

Kirei cast his eyes to a corner of the darkness when he heard a painful moan. The Einsbern homunculus that he had gotten Berserker to kidnap was lying there face-up. She wasn’t lying there naturally; a simple Magic Circle had been drawn around her to allow the surrounding prana to flow in. Although this location was not above a leyline, there was still leftover prana gathered here from when Caster had greedily devoured the souls of those he had sacrificed. Putting aside whether this supply made her comfortable, it was enough to stabilize her condition.

Of course, it would have been easy if he were to simply cut open her abdomen now and take out the ‘Vessel of the Grail’. However, Kirei wished for a chance to speak with her. That was why he was wasting his effort to provide her with prana.

“Can you hear me, woman?”

“…”

The homunculus opened her eyes, breathing faintly. Her empty gaze was without focus and her eyesight had evidently diminished, but she still recognized the voice of her nemesis.

“Kotomine… Kirei. Like I thought, you’re the one…”

“The victor of the Heaven’s Feel is about to be decided. Perhaps I will be the one to complete the ancient wish of your Einsbern house.”

Although he was not confident enough to declare absolute victory, such a conclusion was a conservative estimate.

“You still have an attitude and are so uncooperative. Are you so displeased with me?”

“Of course… There’s only one person I will entrust the Holy Grail to… and that would never be you, Executor.”

Although she found it difficult even to speak, the hatred and power in her voice made Kirei furrow his brows.

“I don’t understand. You’re nothing but a doll that carries the Holy Grail. The completion of the ceremony should be your only concern, rather than who may win the war. Why are you so bent on certain Masters in your current condition?”

“Yes, how could you possibly understand?... You’re the kind of person who doesn’t even have a wish to bestow upon the Holy Grail.”

The loathing mockery made Kirei even more baffled – was this woman really just a homunculus? Why did a homunculus, which didn’t even have a soul, possess such emotions?

“Kotomine Kirei… you’re an empty man who doesn’t even understand the meaning of battle. You’ll never win against that man… Be prepared; my knight, my husband will surely destroy you…”

“… Why are you talking about me?”

What made Kirei more baffled was the content of her words. How could this homunculus look into his heart with such accuracy? Tokiomi could not do that, nor could his own father or wife.

“Hah, scared? Fine, I’ll tell you… Emiya Kiritsugu has seen through you. He is alarmed by you and therefore regards you as the greatest enemy … Kiritsugu will fall upon you in a way more cruel and merciless than anyone else. Be prepared…”

So that was why – Kirei nodded with satisfaction.

If it was that man – if those who could understand Kirei truly existed – then that man must be the same kind of person as Kirei.

Emiya Kiritsugu did not let him down. Though the two of them had never met, he had nevertheless made the most appropriate evaluation of Kotomine Kirei.

“Thank you, woman. That is a blessing for me. The man Emiya Kiritsugu is truly just as I had imagined.”

However, a bout of mocking laughter answered Kirei.

“… You’re such a foolish man. You’re saying you understand Emiya Kiritsugu? … Hmph, don’t make me laugh. You aren’t even up to his heel in worth.”

“– What did you say?”

The sudden sound made his entire body shiver. He could not forget that sentence.

“True… Emiya Kiritsugu can see through you, but you’ll never see through him… Kotomine Kirei, you don’t have any of the things that man has in his soul.”

Kirei grasped her slender neck before more mocking words could flow out of her throat. The rage and confusion swirling within Kirei’s heart at that moment was incomparable to what he had felt back in the Einsbern Forest even if the fatal battle there was to be repeated.

“… I admit it. True, I’m an empty man. I have nothing.”

His roaring seemed to be calm at the beginning, or maybe traces of agitation only surfaced later on.

“But what’s the difference between Kiritsugu and me? Between me and that man who only devoted himself to senseless war – a man who never got anything out of it but only repeated his slaughter?! He departed so much from common sense and he got absolutely nothing. What is he, if not a lost soul!?!”

Kirei rebuked her desperately and hoarsely.

His inquiry was like the angry roar of an anguished soul that could not obtain the answer it sought even after having experienced every kind of trial imaginable.

“Homunculus, answer me if you can. Why does Emiya Kiritsugu seek the Holy Grail? What is the wish that man bestowed upon the all-powerful wish-granting vessel!?!”

As if provoking her, Kirei loosened his hands, which were grasped around the homunculus’s neck, and permitted her to breathe so she could answer him. There was an unspoken warning that if he received a vague answer, he would end her breathing forever.

Even so, this woman did not express even a sliver of terror. Kneeling before Kirei’s knees, she weakly gasped for oxygen in such a pitiful manner. But the look that she gave Kirei still contained the derision and superiority reserved for the victor.

It was almost as if Kirei was the one kneeling.

“Alright, I’ll tell you – Emiya Kiritsugu’s lasting hope is to save humanity. It is to end all wars and bloodshed and achieve eternal world peace.”

That only seemed like jestful nonsense for Kirei. After a few seconds, he burst out laughing.

“– What was that?”

“You can’t understand it. That is the difference between you and him. You believe in nothing while he does.”

Was this woman really talking about the man Emiya Kiritsugu? Kirei had doubts. What kind of man did Emiya Kiritsugu pretend to be while in front of this woman?

“… Woman, what are you to Emiya Kiritsugu?”

“I gave birth to his child as his wife. I’ve looked into his heart and shared his worries for the past nine years… unlike you, who has never seen him.”

Nine years. Perhaps he had passed such a long time in a lie? Kirei had such doubts, but he instinctively felt it would be impossible. What existed in this woman’s heart was undoubtedly her trust toward Emiya Kiritsugu. It would be unimaginable to form such a strong personality within her if she based it on an empty lie. This woman was originally only an ordinary homunculus after all.

The focus of his anger began to shift away from this woman before her. Kirei gave out a melancholic sigh and sat down onto the chair next to him.

“Irisviel von Einsbern, were you always a good wife in those nine years? Did you win Emiya Kiritsugu’s love?”

“… Why do you care?”

“I don’t understand the bond between you two – you took pride in having Emiya Kiritsugu as your husband and trust him as if you’re a real couple. However, if Emiya Kiritsugu is a man who seeks the Holy Grail, you should have been just a tool with which to fulfill his wish. He has no reason to give you something as unnecessary as love.”

“… I won’t forgive you if you laugh at him for being stupid.”

Those were the decisive words spoken by one who had something that could not be violated.

“… I have no parents, and I’m not a product of love. Therefore, I can’t understand what a ‘good wife’ is. Even so… the love he gave me is my entire world. No one can humiliate that.”

“Then, Irisviel, you’re a perfect wife.”

Kirei said as if making a disinterested judgement. It was not praise, nor was it sarcasm.

“But I can’t understand Emiya Kiritsugu because of that. Since he loves you as a wife, then why… why would he want eternal world peace? Why would he sacrifice his loved one for such a pointless aspiration?”

“… Such an odd question. For you, a man who has admitted that he has no reason for existence… You’re mocking others and saying their aspirations are meaningless?”

“Any sensible adult would have laughed at him.”

This was an anger completely different from before. Kirei’s heart swelled up.

“Combat is instinctive of humanity. Eliminating it is no different from eliminating humans. What else could be more pointless? This so-called aspiration of Emiya Kiritsugu’s – it shouldn’t have been called an aspiration to begin with, but the dream of a child!”

“… That is why he could only rely on a miracle…”

Irisviel tried her best to keep her cool and continued speaking.

“He lost everything for the aspiration he sought… He always suffered through his punishments for wanting to save those that could not be saved, and everything around him was robbed… I am also someone taken away from him. He has been forced to discard his loved ones many times…”

Kirei stood up from his chair and gazed at Irisviel with a bottomless and gloomy look.

“You’re saying it’s not just limited to this once – but that this is the way of existence for this man?”

“Yes. Kiritsugu is far too gentle. He doesn’t hold back on his love even though he knows he will lose those around him sooner or later…”

Those answers were enough for Kirei. He completely lost interest in the homunculus before him.

“… I understand.”

He grasped the woman’s neck with his strong fingertips and stopped her blood flow.

Looking at the other’s weak and painful expression, Kirei calmly said.

“I finally understand. So this is Emiya Kiritsugu.”

Kirei threw the woman, who had already fainted, to one side, and gazed emptily into the darkness.

In retrospect, Kirei had been wrong since the start– his question was answered, but his anticipation became disappointment.

Emiya Kiritsugu was not looking for the truth amongst meaningless repetition.

That man had simply consigned all meaningful things into nothingness.

It wasn’t that he had no wishes, but that he had such a ridiculous wish that he fell into a cycle of nothingness. His futile efforts and what he had wasted was so foolish that it was unsalvageable.

Perhaps Kiritsugu could see through Kotomine Kirei’s empty heart, and perhaps he would fear that emptiness and be alarmed. However, he would never be able to imagine the meaning of having such an emptiness. He could never hope to understand the fervent desire that Kirei harbored.

Emiya Kiritsugu’s life could be concluded as having repeatedly discarded everything.

The joy and happiness that man had discarded – even its fragments were important enough in Kirei’s eyes for him to protect with his life or even die for.

For a man like Kirei who continued to be lost and could not find a single piece of such joy and happiness, Kiritsugu’s life only existed in his dreams and his admiration.

His insatiable thirst and unrecoverable loss had been belittled and mocked in such a way – how could he endure this? How could he not hate this?

The dark feelings swelling up in his heart twisted Kirei’s smile.

He finally understood the meaning of this war.

He had absolutely no interest in the Holy Grail. It did not matter if he had no thoughts of fulfilling a wish.

But if he could break the dreams of this man, who had gambled everything upon this miracle, with his own hands – then even the Holy Grail, which was completely meaningless to him, had a use in being obtained.

The excitement of approaching battle made Kirei’s hands tremor. The rising desire of battle burned in his heart, as if he were about to take out his Black Keys right then and pierce through everything in front of him.

In the darkness muddied by the stench of blood, Kotomine Kirei laughed out loud. It was something that had never ceased in all these long years - the throbbing of his soul.

<noinclude>
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|-
| Back to [[Fate/Zero:Act_15_Part_2|Act 15, Part 2]]
| Return to [[Fate/Zero|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Fate/Zero:Act_15_Part_4|Act 15, Part 4]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Fate/Zero:Act 14 Part 4

2011-09-01T06:57:37Z

Fiohnel: /* -36:38:09 */ changed "Kirtisugu" to "Kiritsugu"

=== -36:38:09 ===

Matō Zōken –

The man before him was the mastermind behind the Matō family, a presence known but never seen. Kotomine Kirei’s senses couldn’t help but go on the alert.

There was a small, short figure that had deliberately chosen to stand in a dark corner of the night street, a place that bright lights could not illuminate. Contrary to his shriveled and aged appearance, this man was an extremely dangerous entity; Tokiomi had told Kirei this time after time. Although he had publicly declared that he was retired and no longer cared for the businesses of the outside world, he was an abnormality that covertly used the secret arts of magecraft to prolong his life and rule over the Matō house for generations. In a way, he was far more dangerous than the actual Master of the family, Kariya. This old man was someone who required special attention.

“Kotomine Kirei. I heard that you’re the son of that stubborn and honest Risei. Is that so?”

“That is true.”

Kirei nodded to show agreement when he heard the question asked by this hoarse voice.

“Hmph – what a surprise. It is often said that heroes come from the most unexpected places. There must be some truth to it. I didn’t think that man could sire a son as wily and deceitful as you.”

“What do you want, Matō Zōken?”

Kirei ignored the old magus’s provocation and demanded an answer.

“You should be on Kariya’s side, so why did you have to hide here and eavesdrop on us?”

“What are you talking about? I’m just a parent worried about his child. I wanted to see with my own eyes what kind of helper that child Kariya got for himself.”

He deliberately pretended to smile like a doting grandfather, but that skeletal, shriveled countenance was markedly different from that of normal humans. It was obvious that his face, with such a structure, would never have such a smile.

“I heard everything you said to Kariya to appease him. You seem to want to get rid of the son of the Tōsaka house.”

“That is true. That man killed my father –”

“Be quiet. Don’t repeat such a lie twice.”

Those deep-set eyes, buried in wrinkles, glistened with a keen light and stared at Kirei.

“Kotomine Kirei, you’ve gone too far with your petty trickery. You even dared to act behind Tōsaka’s back; you’ve overstepped your boundaries. You don’t need Kariya’s hand to kill Tokiomi at all, not since the moment you decided to get rid of him. You must have prepared for every eventuality – I’m not so old that I’m turning senile. You might be able to trick Kariya, but don’t you dare think you can trick me too.”

“…”

Kirei quietly improved his evaluation of this old magus in his mind, but he maintained his mask of calm.

“Your goal isn’t the son of the Tōsaka house, but Kariya himself. Isn’t it?”

“… If you doubt me so, then why didn’t you stop Kariya?”

A bone-chilling creaking sound, like the muted chirping of a hoard of insects, resonated. Kirei only understood it to be the sound of this old man’s suppressed laughter after a few moments.

“Hmm, how should I say this… you can say it is simply out of my curiosity. I want to see what methods you would use to ‘destroy’ Kariya. I am very interested in this.”

“… Zōken, can you really watch Kariya, who is fighting for the Matō house, have his chances of victory destroyed little by little?”

“Chances of victory? Kariya? Hmph, such things never existed. If that piece of trash can obtain the Holy Grail, then the past three bouts of slaughter would all seem like a comedy show.”

“I don’t quite understand. Isn’t the Matō house also one of the Three Noble Families of the Beginning, one that craves the Holy Grail?”

Hearing Kirei’s question, Zōken gave a cold snort.

“I think the Tōsaka son and those of the Einsbern house are all idiots. If they remember the details from the last battle of the previous war, then they should understand that there is something odd with this fourth Heaven’s Feel, and be alert towards it.

"I saw through the battle for this round from the start. Truth be told, just by looking at that despicable Caster at the start of the War, we should have been able to tell that the summoning didn’t call forth a Heroic Spirit, but an evil spirit far removed from heroes. Without a doubt, something has begun to err within the Heaven’s Feel system. We need to solve this problem first.”

This odd man, who had overcome ordinary humanity, had likely been present in every single Heaven’s Feel. This man Matō Zōken had grasped something that even the previous Supervisor, Kotomine Risei, had not known about.

“Then why did you let Kariya and Berserker participate? If you only wanted to watch from the sidelines, then why did you even prepare a Servant?”

“That’s not the reason. Although there were some dubious elements, it is still a grand ceremony held every 60 years, after all. It wouldn’t have been interesting to watch the children fumble around. Therefore, I found a unique method for me to enjoy the event.”

Zōken said with a tone of ridicule. His mouth tilted even more, and there were smiles all over his face.

“Of course, if that failure really grabbed the Grail, then there’s no better outcome. Despite what I say, I really am impatient.

"Just seeing how Kariya, who betrayed me, suffers in pain day by day – I honestly can’t get enough of it. I desire the Matō house’s victory, but I’m also tempted by the thought of observing Kariya’s defeated and helpless end. How conflicted I am!”

Zōken’s hoarse laughter was truly piercing to Kirei’s ears. How much better would it have been had they met on the battlefield and fought for their lives not with words, but with swords? He could not help thinking that even though he knew the other was a very dangerous old magus. It seemed that Kirei already found the existence of Matō Zōken to be unbearable.

Faced with the inquisition from Kirei, who was trying his best to hide the true feelings in his heart, Zōken lifted his eyebrows as if deliberately mocking the other man.

“Ahhh, how surprising. I thought you would've been able to understand my joy.”

“– What did you say?”

“I may look old, Kotomine Kirei, but my nose is still very sensitive. You have the same smell as I do. You’re like a maggot that crawled here, attracted by the piece of rotting meat that Kariya is.”

“…”

Kirei remained quiet, but slowly drew out his Black Keys from within his frock.

He now knew he could no longer persuade this old magus with reason, but they must fight to the death. Zōken had stepped into his range. He had entered the 'absolute territory' at the risk of his life. If he wanted to ensure his vitals remain safe, he could only use a killing strike, attacking the enemy head-on without any warning. If Zōken had thought of evading that strike at his vitals – an inevitably certain kill – Kirei would have no other choice but to confront him directly. Right now, Matō Zōken had already crossed this line - not with his feet, but with his words.

However, Zōken still faced the cold killing intent emanating from Kirei with a casual smile.

“…Oh? Did I overestimate you? I thought I’d finally managed to find a kindred spirit. It seems you still feel ashamed of your own heresy – hahaha, you’re still too inexperienced. Do you feel ashamed of these matters, such as a man would feel shame in indulging in self-pleasure?”

There were no shows of strength, nor were there any warnings. Kirei simultaneously threw out two Black Keys at his left and his right in the blink of an eye, so fast that his preparatory movements couldn’t even be seen. It was as if he was going to pierce this old man’s body like a piece of barbeque meat.

However, faced with those blades, Zōken remained completely unmoved. He was extremely nonchalant, and it was no empty boast. The silhouette of the old magus melted like mud moments before the two blades were about to pierce him through, and he once again became a shapeless shadow hiding in the corner.

Kirei’s entire body tensed up. A voice full of happy mockery sounded from somewhere.

“Ahh, scary, scary. You are young, but still a hound of the Church. It’ll definitely endanger my life if I mock you.”

Kirei took up another Black Key and stared at the throbbing shadow in the darkness.

Was it an illusion a moment ago, when he saw that he was just about to pierce Matō Zōken’s flesh? Or was it that Matō Zōken’s physical body didn’t even exist here? Any kind of extraordinary thing was possible when it came to this wily and devious old magus. If such trivial matters surprised Kirei, then he would not be suited to the role of Executor.

“Honestly. Until next time, young man. You must nurture your personality so that you can be on equal footing with me the next time we meet. Hahahaha…”

Zōken’s scent melted into the darkness and disappeared, leaving only a terrifying shrieking laughter. All that was left was the figure of Kirei, who stood holding his blade like a scarecrow.

“…”

Irritated, Kirei threw the Black Key, which had lost its target, on the roof.

He hadn't imagined that this old man was a monster with no usable potential whatsoever. There was no reason to keep him alive.

He was certain that Matō Zōken was a nemesis that he must eliminate sooner or later.

<center>※※※※※</center>

To escape the gradually darkening night, Matō Byakuya continued to drown himself in alcohol.

Nothing had happened last night, and it passed peacefully. But now he was resentful of the fact. Mighty waves rushed up after calm sea weather. Nothing dangerous had happened last night and it went past peacefully, which meant that dangerous happenings would be afoot tonight.

Byakuya clearly understood the truth behind the alien events that had been threatening the Fuyuki night recently. He was the eldest son and inheritor of the prestigious Matō house, the final remnants of a mighty bloodline that had begun a pilgrimage to seek the traces of the Holy Grail in the distant past. In truth, he should have been a part of this cruel and extraordinary war as one of its participants.

However, he had turned his back on his duty and drowned himself in alcohol day after day. Byakuya felt no shame towards his own behavior. On the contrary, he actually thought his was the correct and logical attitude in comparison to his little brother Kariya. Byakuya could say that with his chest thrust out in pride.

Byakuya could never understand why Kariya, who had been disowned by the Matō house a long time ago, had returned to his homeland and gone so far as to participate in the Heaven’s Feel. He didn’t even want to understand it. He couldn’t thank his little brother enough for having changed his mind. Had he not returned, the one reduced to such a state and forced to participate in the Heaven’s Feel would have been not Kariya, but Byakuya himself.

Whenever he remembered that figure, black like a vengeful spirit, that Kariya had summoned using the Summoning Circle and signed a contract with – Byakuya could only use alcohol to numb himself, to get as far away from the terror he felt then as possible.

How could anyone stay sane when he knew there were 6 other such things slaughtering each other in the night while devouring human flesh and blood? The current Fuyuki city was an authentic demonic realm. Alcohol was the only thing he could rely on to keep on living in this place while maintaining a calm mentality.

His only child Shinji was sent overseas in the name of studying. Byakuya himself was strongly against staying in the present Fuyuki. However, he had no legitimate reason to leave the Matō mansion. Zōken had given him the task of acclimating the little girl adopted from the Tōsaka house to the underground worm storage and training her to one day be worthy of becoming the next head of the Matō house.

Yes. Byakuya had already completed his task to near perfection as the current head of the Matō house. Zōken’s original plan had been to sit aside and observe this Heaven’s Feel anyways. After all, Kariya was simply a toy played in that old magus’s hand. Byakuya was the only one in the current Matō family who was walking along the right path. It wasn’t a matter of the number of Magic Circuits. Even if his abilities were only good enough to defeat a small child, Byakuya still firmly believed his path was the only one that could truly connect to the future of the Matō house…

He said this to himself and continued to gulp down large mouthfuls of liquor into his stomach while despising his little brother.

Becoming a magus of the Matō house meant becoming the puppet of Zōken – the mastermind controlling everything behind the scenes. Because Byakuya understood this, he had no sympathy for Kariya, who had once left the family but foolishly returned and willingly became the foster bed for the Crest Worms. He never had much familial love for his little brother to begin with. Kariya had talent that far surpassed his older brother, but left the family and forced the cursed destiny carried by generations of the Matōs all unto Byakuya. How could he feel sympathetic toward such a man right now?

Ahh, why was he still not sleepy today? Normally, he would have been dead asleep a long time ago. He hadn't drunk enough; he was not drunk enough. He wanted to forget what was happening outside of the house as soon as possible, wanted to skip through the night as quickly as possible – but someone took the wine glass on the table and poured all the ice water in the glass onto Byakuya’s head.

He fainted for a moment under the piercing cold, but his drunkenness was immediately dispelled and he regained consciousness. A merciless impact slammed into his cheek this time. Byakuya curved up into the blankets on his bed.

Byakuya’s mentality snapped. Even his cries of horror were suppressed in his throat and couldn’t be voiced. A wraith-like man whose appearance sent shivers down Byakuya’s spine was standing there, looking down on him.

He was dressed in a dirty, creased old coat, and the stubble on his chin said he hadn’t shaved in days. If judging by appearances alone, this man looked even more like a drunkard in a pub than Byakuya, who was inside his own house and dressed in everyday clothing. However, his eyes refuted all that. The temperature in that man’s eyes had already surpassed the realms of cruelty or mercilessness. It was only filled with the cold sadism and lethality of a wounded beast. After staring into those eyes, Byakuya surrendered all will to uncover the origins of this man or his business here and became a complete slave of despair.

Who this man was, how he had broken through the impressive layers of protective boundaries outside the house; none of that mattered now. This thing that now appeared before Byakuya was undoubtedly the reincarnation of the very horror that he had only managed to temporarily forget through the effects of alcohol for the past week.

“…Where is Irisviel right now?”

Byakuya was convinced that he must answer before he understood the meaning of the question, or else he would be killed.

– After a moment, he finally realized he actually didn’t understand the meaning of this question. Byakuya was instantly crushed by an overwhelming despair.

“I, I, I…”

Byakuya moaned unintelligibly. The man stared at him with an ice-cold gaze and slowly took out the weapon from his coat. He roughly jammed Byakuya’s right hand between the floor and the muzzle and pressed the trigger.

Byakuya’s right hand scattered in the wind with a thundering bang that could make anyone who heard it go insane.

A part of his body had just disappeared without reason. Byakuya was so shocked that he couldn’t speak. After a while, a scarring pain made him scream in agony.

“No, no no no I don’t know I just don’t know I don’t know anything! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh! My hand! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

“…”

There was no one with more experience with getting information out of people unwilling to provide it than Emiya Kiritsugu. Instinct honed over the years told him he wouldn’t get much of an answer even if he kept asking.

Matō Byakuya’s soul had already been ruined long ago. Although Kiritsugu didn’t know the reason, Byakuya had already forced himself onto a road of no return long before Kiritsugu came to visit.

In retrospect, Kiritsugu was the final straw that broke his back and made him crumble completely. This man before him would not hesitate to do anything to get rid of his present pain, including betraying Zōken. When they reached such a stage, everything humans said was a guaranteed truth.

It seemed Byakuya truly didn’t know anything about what had happened in the last few hours.

Which meant – the destination of Irisveil’s kidnappers was definitely not the Matō mansion.

He had spent hours breaking through the protective barriers in such a pressing and tense circumstance, and yet the result was nothing. Kiritsugu couldn’t help but grit his teeth in regret.

By process of elimination, only those from the Matō camp could have kidnapped Irisviel. Rider’s Master didn’t have the reconnaissance ability to discover the secret headquarters Kiritsugu had prepared, whereas Tōsaka didn’t need to contradict himself in this way when they had just formed an alliance last night.

Although the possibility of a new opposing force emerging apart from the seven Masters and Servants was very low, it was not impossible. However, such wild guesses wouldn’t get him any results at this stage. At the moment, he could only find this potential enemy amongst the three Masters who still had the protection of their Servants and needed Irisviel for the final stage.

It was almost four hours after the raid on the underground storage. Victory was slipping further away from Kiritsugu with every second he lost, and he had no time to stop and think thoroughly.

Kiritsugu didn’t even bother to look at Byakuya, who was sobbing with pain and terror, and left the Matō mansion.

Kiritsugu again used about three hours to break through the protective magecraft formations in order to enter the Tōsaka mansion, his next target.

His methods were already close to miraculous. The bounded field that Tōsaka Tokiomi set up was a first-rate security system specifically guarding against magi, and was created with magi in mind to begin with. It couldn’t be broken through by sheer magecraft even if attacked continuously for a whole year. Kiritsugu could overcome this bounded field in a short time precisely because he was someone who did not seek results by way of magecraft and fought against magi by perceiving traps wrought through magecraft.

However, no matter how comparatively quick he was, it was long enough to make Kiritsugu anxious in the current state. He had never wasted this much time on the battlefield. He had finally broken through the protection between the inner porch and the living room, but Kiritsugu was still tormented with a nameless anxiety the moment he arrived in the main lounge. Although he passed through the protective barriers at the risk of his life, it didn’t mean he was guaranteed to find Irisviel, just as had happened at the Matō mansion.

Saber, who started chasing Irisviel one step before Kiritsugu, must have also failed. He could still feel that the Circuits providing prana were not interrupted, which meant that Saber had not suffered any major attacks.

However, had she been safely protected, Irisviel would have definitely activated her signal conducting system and relayed Kiritsugu with detailed information on her current location. He still had not received that, which meant Saber’s pursuit had also been a wasted effort.

After carefully removing the seal on the window, he also removed the inner plug with glass-cutting tools. Kiritsugu had finally arrived at the inner parts of the Tōsaka mansion. No lights were lit within, and all was quiet. It was almost like an empty house with no inhabitants. However, because it was an enormous mansion, such conclusions were hard to draw. As an outstanding Master, Tokiomi was much more prudent than the eldest son of the Matō house. If they were to chance upon each other, then Kiritsugu must make the mental preparedness to fight him. Of course, he would definitely use Archer, and Kiritsugu would have to summon Saber here too. He would have to once again spend a Command Seal and forcibly summon her here.

Although he had wanted to avoid having a confrontation between Saber and Archer, whose true fighting strength remained to be seen, the current situation was too urgent for him to be able to choose his battle strategies. Even so, he wanted to start fighting after having confirmed Irisviel’s whereabouts. If it happened to be an unknown enemy who currently had possession of Irisviel, then Kiritsugu would be falling into a trap if he began to duel with the Matō or Tōsaka houses. What annoyed him the most was that he had to consider this possibility and be wary of it.

Suddenly, Kiritsugu’s sense of smell detected something unavoidable as he stepped into a dark room.

It was the stench of blood. It was undoubtedly fresh.

He focused his prana to his eyes and used night sight. He could instantly see the furniture and design of the room with impeccable clarity. It seemed to be a living room. There were also two sets of teacups on the table.

There was obviously a large amount of blood in the middle of the luxurious carpet.

Kiritsugu carefully checked the bloodstain, which had dried completely. Although the blood had not splattered widely, the amount shed didn’t seem to be from a light wound. With his experience, he concluded it could only have been a bloodstain left from a stab wound.

Kiritsugu searched through all the other rooms, just to be careful. However, his goal was no longer to have a better grasp of the situation, but to find the inhabitant here.

As a medium and the starting point of magecraft, blood was the most important ingredient in magecraft. It would have been unthinkable for a magus to casually let out his blood in his territory with no intent to cast a spell. Of course, it would be a different matter entirely if it happened to be the magus’s particular habit. However, according to Kiritsugu’s previous investigations, the man Tōsaka Tokiomi was not so careless.

His premonition became conviction when he reached the basement workshop without much trouble. A magus would never allow others to easily set foot into his workshop even if he was away from home, let alone present in the house. It seemed that Tokiomi was not only absent from his home, but in a situation where he couldn’t even detect the current state of his house.

To verify, Kiritsugu took out an eye drop bottle from his pocket containing the liquid that could be used to test his hypothesis. The liquid was made by refining the body fluids of a succubus, a kind of demon that particularly liked to seduce men. It was especially sensitive to the blood of men and aged things, and could distinguish differences accurately.

First he tested the reaction of the liquid in the bathroom sink, and then he verified the bloodstains in the living room. It was evident that the reaction was the same for both. Only one man would have shaved at this bathroom sink in the past few days.

And that man’s blood was spilled on the carpet in the living room…

Now he was sure Tōsaka Tokiomi was either dead or had disappeared.

Faced with the emergence of this surprising turn of events, Kiritsugu did his best to calm himself and began to assess the situation.

There were no traces of a fight in the room. The two teacups placed here were to welcome a guest. Tokiomi had definitely suffered a heavy or even lethal wound after having chatted to someone in this room, whom he had welcomed as a guest. It seemed that Kiritsugu wasn’t the only one carrying out revenge on magi.

But what was Tokiomi’s Servant doing at that time? How could he look from the sidelines and ignore his Master? However, there was another possibility… the possibility that Archer no longer needed Tokiomi as a Master, and Archer murdered Tokiomi together with his next contractor. This would also be a reasonable explanation.

Faced with this solemn answer that he had achieved after prolonged thought, Kiritsugu felt as if a knife was twisting in his heart.

A man who was Tōsaka Tokiomi’s friend and was welcomed as a guest, a man before whom Tokiomi could even show his weaknesses.

Archer’s new Master had gained new Command Seals – he was someone who had lost his Servant and thus lost the authority of a Master, but retained his life.

There was no need to think any further. There was only one such man. Moreover, if he had really obtained a new Servant and was once again participating in the Heaven’s Feel, kidnapping Irisviel and controlling the ‘Vessel of the Grail’ with his own hands would have been a logical and necessary move.

Therefore – Kiritsugu finally understood that confrontation with Kotomine Kirei was unavoidable.

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| Back to [[Fate/Zero:Act_14_Part_3|Act 14, Part 3]]
| Return to [[Fate/Zero|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Fate/Zero:Act_14_Part_5|Act 14, Part 5]]
|-
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</noinclude>

Fate/Zero:Act 14 Part 1

2011-09-01T06:53:04Z

Fiohnel: /* -37:02:20 */ changed "anti-city" to "anti-fortress"

[[Image:FZ_v04_097.png|thumb|Act 14]]

=== -37:02:20 ===

When it was almost dusk, it vaguely occurred to Saber that today’s ambush might once again be a waste of effort. The thought frustrated and unsettled her.

Saber arrived at Miyama in accordance to the intelligence gained from the Master of Archer, Tōsaka Tokiomi, and located the residence of Glen Mackenzie and his wife. Upon hearing the doorbell, an old woman appeared before her. According to her, her grandson and his friend had indeed been staying there over the past few days. The old woman seemed to have mistaken Saber for her grandson’s friend as well, and so told the whole truth without reserve.

Saber persuaded the old woman to describe the appearance and clothing of the two people. Undoubtedly, they were Rider and his Master. It was regrettable, however, that she could not feel the presence of any Servant from there. A house of this size—if there was a Servant hiding within, it would have been possible to sense his presence even at the entrance.

According to the old woman, those two had left in the morning and not returned since. It was worth suspecting that they somehow knew of Saber's coming arrival and fled as a result, but it was truly difficult to imagine that the haughty King of Conquerors would actually resort to cowardly tricks like flight. If he intended to seize victory, he would definitely attack head-on.

In the end, Saber came to the conclusion that they had simply missed each other by coincidence. Courteously taking her leave of the old woman, she decided to keep watch from an area slightly away from the house and wait for Rider to return.

Of course, she would conceal the truth from the old woman. Though they had been deceived by Waver Velvet, this family was, in the end, completely ordinary and unrelated to the events surrounding them. Rider must have considered this as well.

Rider had been able to temporarily set aside the fight for the Holy Grail in order to stop Caster’s atrocities and prevent Fuyuki City from falling into crisis. Thus, Saber made this judgment: the King of Conquerors would never act against the pride-worthy deeds of a true Heroic Spirit. After Rider returned and discovered Saber, he would definitely choose a location worthy of a Servants’ battle and have a showdown that was open and aboveboard.

Aware that she was already very conspicuous just walking around, Saber decided to sit on a chair at the closest bus station and wait. Henceforth, she began to keep intent watch, but a few hours passed by without any sign of movement.

Though she could not directly see the Mackenzie house from her position, Rider would definitely sense the presence of a Servant upon his return and seek out Saber. He was not the sort of opponent to ambush her or run away. He would definitely welcome Saber’s intent of challenge and lead her to a suitable location for combat.

As strange as it was to say, Saber professed a hundred percent trust toward this Servant, Rider. Though their respective viewpoints could not be reconciled, it was incontestable that the other Heroic Spirit would take action according to his pride as a king. He would only challenge openly, and would never make secret plans or commit acts of betrayal. That was because Rider would never choose despicable tactics or strategies that would damage his reputation.

It could be said that Saber's unease originated from her allies rather than from her opponents.

Her Master, Emiya Kiritsugu, was eyeing Rider's Master with intentions and combat goals completely opposite to her own. At this very instant, it could even be that he had used Saber as bait to lure Rider out and was now keeping watch from afar—there was nothing wrong in thinking so. Indeed, she had to make such a mental preparation. Kiritsugu probably believed the instant at which Rider went all out to confront Saber to be the optimal opportunity to assassinate his Master.

With this thought in mind, Saber’s heart could not help but feel weighed down.

Kiritsugu might as well carry out a showdown between magi, with the Masters of Berserker and Archer as targets.

That would have been fine. Kiritsugu would only be obtaining victory through strategy and power play rather than by relying on Servant Saber. It was for his own legitimate reasons that Kiritsugu wanted the Grail. It was not unreasonable to desire a victory that could be obtained through more reliable means.

But in this showdown with Rider, Alexander, King of Conquerors, Saber had a deep boundary that she was absolutely unwilling to compromise.

If there could not be a fair showdown between them—not as Servants, tools by which to fight for the Grail, but as Heroic Spirits who possessed great pride—Saber would be forever unable to undo the knot left in her heart by the ‘Grail question-and-answer session’ from several days ago.

Alexander reveled in his tyrannical kingship without restraint; he reveled in the violent way of the Ionian Hetairoi, and took pride in it. If she were not to defeat him with the similar symbol of the King of Knights' ideology, the ‘Sword of Promised Victory’ Excalibur, then Arturia’s way of kingship would be broken and ended.

Rider’s Noble Phantasm had a strength such that even thinking about it would cause one to tremble all over. Even if Saber were to exert the strength of her own Noble Phantasm to the greatest extent, victory was not guaranteed.

The result of a showdown between an anti-army and anti-fortress Noble Phantasm was already beyond the capacity of human imagination. Emiya Kiritsugu would definitely think paying such a large price for victory to be a foolish course of action, and pay it only a perfunctory smile. But to Saber, the Holy Grail should be a thing to be fought for on the premise of sticking to one’s ideals. Since there was someone who threatened the basis of her kingship, it was definitely intolerable for Saber to even consider using methods that sidestepped this problem.

Only by assuring the way of kingship, which was the pride of the King of Knights, would the Holy Grail choose the King of Knights.

Precisely because of this, if Kiritsugu kept interfering as he did in the duel with Lancer, this Heaven’s Feel could be considered completely void for Saber.

Even if those despicable methods saw them through the final battle, Saber would definitely be unwilling to take the fruit of victory, the Grail.

If Rider were to set up a Reality Marble to protect his Master before carrying out battle, then the fight would not be interrupted. But Kiritsugu also understood Rider’s techniques. If he were to play any tricks before the activation of the Ionian Hetairoi…

Curling up, Saber sat on the chair and gritted her teeth. She felt very frustrated for not being able to read Emiya Kiritsugu’s intentions. She was facing a strong adversary and yet could not concentrate her full strength; it made her all the more apprehensive.

The bone-chilling north wind became even colder as she waited uneasily, leaving Saber even more anxious and unsettled.

<center>※※※※※</center>

Just as Saber feared, Emiya Kiritsugu was indeed there.

He was on the rooftop of a six-story apartment of a public housing estate across the street, approximately eight hundred meters from where she was.

Unlike the haphazardly arranged edifices, the rooftop of the apartment was structured somewhat strangely as it was unnecessary to think that residents would ever use it. Though it was somewhat difficult to enter, one could be disturbed only with difficulty once inside. One could not be seen, even from downstairs, after hiding behind the water tower; it was an excellent position for sniping or setting up an ambush.

Even the smoke and smell of tobacco could not be noticed here. To be able to enjoy to his heart’s content the vitality and energy that came with cigarettes—Kiritsugu’s mental burden here was much smaller than Saber’s.

The sniper rifle scope, propped on a tripod, was directed at the front door of the Mackenzie home.

And another specially prepared portable scope could clearly see Saber's every action as she sat in front of the bus stop.

It was fairly difficult to observe with two alternate scopes without break, but it was a situation that could not be helped since he was unable to rely on Maiya’s help. She had not managed to leave in the end because she had been entrusted with the job of guarding Irisviel. From this day on, ‘hunting’ adversaries could only be Kiritsugu's responsibility alone.

Kiritsugu had begun observing the Mackenzie house slightly later than Saber had; he saw that Saber, who could definitely feel the presence of Servants, was doing nothing, which indicated clearly that Rider was not at home at the moment—in which case the Master was definitely not around either. The Master was not bold enough to stay home alone under these circumstances. Once he discovered that the enemy’s Servant was pacing at the door, he would definitely summon Rider at once.

Kiritsugu was different from Saber; he took the situation, in which the targeted prey did not remain at the stronghold, more seriously than she did. They had left home the day after Kiritsugu learned of the existence of Glen Mackenzie's family and not returned since; this timing was too precise to be a coincidence. Though there was no concrete evidence, there was still a relatively high chance that Waver Velvet had discovered the enemy’s attack and fled in a hurry.

Nevertheless, Kiritsugu continued to wait there with a thread of hope, thinking that this was also an issue worthy of thought.

If Waver returned again to the Mackenzie house, it would definitely be necessary to blow up the house with a timed bomb. But if he had already fled, then he must have already found another stronghold, in which case the probability of his returning to this house was very low.

It looked like it would no longer be appropriate to use that old couple to lead Waver into a trap in the same way that he had used Sola as bait to lure Kayneth.

Kiritsugu held high regard for Waver's indifference to the fortress's security and choice in an ordinary household for his stronghold. In comparison to the Three Noble Families of the Beginning and Kayneth, who had built extravagant strongholds where they could easily be found, Waver’s strategy was much better. It was difficult to conclude that a magus who could make this judgment would show sympathy for the household he was temporarily living in. To Waver, the Mackenzie couple was only a pair of pawns to be abandoned.

The impatience that came with wasting precious time and the taboo of acting with undue haste—these two thoughts crossed swords in Kiritsugu’s heart.

On one hand, he had given up hope of Waver’s return; on the other hand, he was unable to completely abandon the possibility that Waver's departure was only coincidence. The important reason for this was that it was very difficult to imagine that the young magus would actually be one step ahead of Kiritsugu in a battle of information.

From the beginning, Kiritsugu had never treated Waver, Master of Rider, as an opponent. Though he had later learned some of his background through additional investigation, he had only treated Waver Velvet as a novice magus who had become a Master by chance and made the conclusion that he was a layman no different from ordinary people who did not know magic.

Of course, Kiritsugu was not the sort of person that directly correlated ability with experience. Kiritsugu still remembered that he had already been a ruthless assassin when he made his debut, and he did not think himself a rare example.

But he had observed Waver Velvet’s performance on the battlefield several times. Based on that, it was still very difficult to say if he could become a strong opponent capable of surpassing Kiritsugu.

Having never gotten an answer, at the time when he was beginning to feel an inexplicable anxiety…

Suddenly, intense pain burned at the base of Kiritsugu’s little finger; his back stiffened.

“…?!”

When he had truly started treating Hisau Maiya as his assistant, Kiritsugu had put a spell on a strand of her hair and embedded it in the subcutaneous tissue of his little finger. At the same time, Maiya had also embedded a strand of Kiritsugu’s hair in her finger. If the Magic Circuits of one of them entered a state of extreme stagnation—the stage at which one's life force was weak on the verge of impasse with death—the strand of hair given to the other person would burn, warning the other and notifying them of the existence of danger.

That was a measure implemented for a worst-case scenario in which it was already impossible to use a wireless network or familiar to convey information. That is to say, it was only a signal to inform that "it is already too late". For it to activate now, at this moment, what exactly could it mean…?

Before wavering, one must first be caught in a quandary. Kiritsugu mobilized all his neurons and began to ponder the situation at hand as well as to formulate response plans.

Maiya was on the verge of death—in other words, this meant that Irisviel, hidden in the underground storage, was in danger. The sequence of events and its cause could not be determined now.

Now, the absolute priority was to carry out help as soon as possible. The only method that could be chosen was the fastest—a miracle made possible by the Command Seals on his right hand.

“I order my puppet in the name of the Command Seals!”

Kiritsugu clenched his fist, at the same time reciting the spell as quickly as an automatic machine.

“Saber, return to the underground storage quickly! At once!”

The prana sleeping in one of the Command Seals carved on the back of Kiritsugu’s hand woke up and shone with light.

It was not an overstatement to say that Saber was very surprised.

She immediately understood that she had become the subject of some powerful magecraft. In the next instant, she was stripped of all recognition of the surrounding space and sent into the midst of a 'transfer' that did not have an existence or direction.

That was probably the legendary spell specifically meant to 'command Servants'. With an ultimate speed that neared destruction of the laws of cause and effect, she had already overcome the distance of space in a 'moment' of a few milliseconds at a speed close to that of light and completed the instantaneous movement between two different points in space.

Even so, she was indeed a sword-wielding Heroic Spirit of special conditioning. Though she had just been ‘transported’ from a chair beside a bus stop to a completely different place, the familiarity of the underground storage made her understand immediately that the strange phenomenon just now was caused by the activation of one of Kiritsugu’s Command Seals. In addition, some emergency must have occurred here that necessitated her immediate return to guard the headquarters. In the few milliseconds between the completion of the space break and her arrival on the floor of the underground storage, Saber had already completed the transformation from her disguise suit to her silver white armor.

Without question, the situation was clear at a glance.

The metal door had been broken down with brute strength. Irisviel, who should have been lying in the middle of the Magic Circle, had vanished; in her place was the body of Maiya, covered in blood, writhing and discarded.

“Maiya!”

Saber quickly ran to her side. She could not help but furrow her brow at the depth of her wounds. The injuries sustained in the Einsbern forest could not even begin to compare with this. What she sustained now were injuries that were fatal if not given emergency treatment as soon as possible.

As if feeling the Servant’s radiant presence, Maiya slowly opened her eyes.

“Sa…ber…?”

“Maiya, pull yourself together! I will bind these wound immediately. It’s all right—“

But Maiya pushed away the hand that Saber stretched out to her.

“Quickly… go after him, quickly, outside... Rider, he…”

“…”

If the Command Seal-induced voyage here had been surprising, Saber was even more surprised at Maiya’s reaction.

Maiya must already have known the extent of her injuries. She must have fully understood that she was on the verge of death. But compared to her own life, this silent assistant to an assassin cared more for the safety of the kidnapped Irisviel and was urging Saber to consider making Irisviel's safety the priority.

“But then—“

Just as she was about to ask a question in reply, Saber suddenly understood.

This woman was also a knight. Though different from her own proud expressions, this courage to abandon life for the duty she had taken up was precisely the chivalry that Saber so firmly believed in.

''I must protect Irisviel in the underground storage until the last moment''—Hisau Maiya had certainly already made an oath to Kiritsugu and Irisviel. To entrust Saber with that promise she could not carry out to the end, she was willing to lose her own life.

“I… it’s all right… very soon, Kiritsugu will come… so… you must, quickly…”

Saber gritted her teeth and shut her eyes.

Logically thinking, every minute and every second Saber wasted on worrying about Maiya was time in which the abducted Irisviel could be moving toward a hopeless situation.

The thread of hope that Maiya could be saved by Kiritsugu, who would quickly rush here, still remained. But the fate of Irisviel, who had been taken away, had no guarantee if Saber did not give chase immediately. According to the marks left behind in the underground storage, it was undoubtedly a Servant’s doing. The follow-up attack could only be carried out by another Servant—and that meant Saber.

“—Maiya, you must hold on till Kiritsugu arrives. I will bring Irisviel back safely.”

Maiya nodded, and shut her eyes as if reassured.

Saber made a new vow to continue Maiya’s own—there was no reason to hesitate further.

She ran out of the underground storage like a hurricane, leaping onto the roof in a single bound, and gazed into the darkened, faraway sky in search of the enemy’s figure.

Since it was a godspeed instantaneous transfer caused by a Command Seal, surely the attacker must not have left here very long ago. The enemy had not yet gone far. Even if she was unable to sense his presence, it was still possible to find him by sight alone.

Saber stood on the rooftop and scanned the surroundings with the supernatural vision of a Servant. She effortlessly caught sight of the enemy.

A distance of about half a kilometer… majestically standing on the roof of what looked like an apartment building of the business district.

A robust physique, curly, flame-colored hair, and a crimson mantle; it was undoubtedly Rider, King of Conquerors, Alexander, whom she had met many times before on the battlefield.

“It wouldn’t be—unless it really was Rider?!”

Saber still held a strand of suspicion regarding Maiya’s eyewitness statement.

That the King of Conquerors, whose name had been unyielding all this time, would employ such base methods—it was indeed difficult to believe. But his thickset hands were indeed holding up the unconscious form of Irisviel; the sight left no room for doubt. Though it was yet unknown how they had guessed Saber’s new stronghold, this was undoubtedly the Rider who had just now ambushed Maiya and critically injured her.

Rider showed himself openly as if luring the enemy to venture deep; he immediately turned and vanished to one side of the edifice immediately after meeting Saber’s gaze.

“Damn…!”

Saber took her stance and intended to continue pursuit, but her adversary was a Heroic Spirit of the Rider class—Saber could not help but purse her lips.

It would be easy to continue like this, leaping through the streets in pursuit. But that was assuming the other party was also traveling on foot like she was. If Rider fled on his Gordius Wheel, Saber would not be able to catch up no matter how fast her pace was.

But Saber also had the skill of Riding. Against a Noble Phantasm that could fly through the air to reach its destination, it was necessary to also utilize a long-distance cruiser that could surpass the mechanical energy of walking.

In the past, Saber would definitely have given up pursuit for lack of a way to catch up. But for better or for worse, the previous day, Maiya had given her a new ‘steed’.

With a deep gratitude to Kiritsugu’s foresight and meticulousness in preparing for every eventuality, Saber leaped to the ‘horse’, removing the prana armor that would only hinder her riding, and mounted the steed parked in the abandoned courtyard.

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| Back to [[Fate/Zero:Act_13_Part_4|Act 13, Part 4]]
| Return to [[Fate/Zero|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Fate/Zero:Act_14_Part_2|Act 14, Part 2]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Fate/Zero:Act 12 Part 4

2011-09-01T06:42:31Z

Fiohnel: /* -58:16:21 */ changed two instances of "Iriviel" into "Irisviel"; "armm" into "arm."; "distain" into "disdain"; "that place because the abdominal cavity" into "that place became the abdominal cavity"

=== -58:16:21 ===

Regarding the midnight meeting at the Fuyuki Church, Tōsaka Tokiomi had naturally defined the number of people allowed to attend in the conditions.

Apart from the respective Master and Servant, both sides can also bring along a supporter.

For Irisviel, who found it difficult to act alone, she never expected such a condition to exist. It would be impossible for her to rely on Saber’s strength if she happens to accidentally be caught in a battlefield later on. If Maiya happens to be beside her at that time, she would be much more at ease.

Of course, as the reciprocal condition, one other person also attended apart from Tōsaka Tokiomi and Archer – at the end, when Tokiomi introduced that follower to Irisviel and the others as if it was nothing important, they couldn’t help but change their expressions a little.

“Let me introduce him, Kotomine Kirei – my student. Although he was also someone who competed with all of you, it was in past. He had lost his Servant, and had given up the rights of a Master for a long time.”

Is that all? Irisviel cast a dubious look at the other man, but Tokiomi was full of calmness and appeared not planning to say much else. Maybe he was underestimating the opponent. If not – then he may still be unaware of the feud between Irisviel and Kotomine Kirei.

Saber, leisurely reclining against the wall behind Tokiomi and the others, glared unblinkingly at the red-eyed Servant. Tonight, Archer had also removed his battle arrays and put on a set of ordinary clothes suitable to this era. Although the outfit, decorated with leather and lacquer, looked like it was full of a distasteful glamor, it did not create any incongruities when paired with the overwhelming presence of the golden Heroic Spirit.

Those blood-red eyes looked as if they stripped away Saber’s clothes just with their sight, licked and caressed her soft skin. What seeped out of his eyes was blatant lust. Although this inevitably stirred up Saber’s impulse of immediately drawing her sword and go into battle, she could only endure it when she thought of Irisviel.

“I am immensely thankful of your arrivals upon receiving my invitation.”

It was unclear whether he noticed the pressing presence of the three women; Tokiomi solicitously offered his opening speech.

“The Heaven’s Feel this time is also finally about to enter the most important stage. Right now, all that’s left are the Masters of the ‘Three Families of the Beginning’, and one sudden intruder – then, do you of the Einsbern family have any thoughts on this battle situation?”

“No.”

After answering thus with a cold and clear voice, Irisviel continued to speak audaciously.

“We have the strongest Saber, so there’s no need to stealthily grasp every opportunity. Just walking towards victory like this would be enough.”

“Is that so –”

With a provoking undertone, Tokiomi couldn’t stop himself but laugh.

“Then, please allow me to speak of my own thoughts. Putting aside our respective strengths for now, let us talk about Berserker and Rider first.

Of course, our final goal is to let the ‘Three Families of the Beginning’ remain and therefore ensure the right of possessing the Grail in the final battle. However, very unfortunately, due to a strategic mistake of the Matō family, a Servant that needs to spend large amounts of prana was summoned by a weak Master. I fear that they would face their demise sooner or later. It seems the one that would obtain victory among them will be Rider. I guess that you would also know something about the might of that Heroic Spirit Alexander.”

Tokiomi paused, waiting for Irisviel to react. However, seeing that she remained silent, Tokiomi continued speaking.

“A newcomer who suddenly popped out of nowhere dares to stretch his hands towards the Holy Grail, in which two thousand years of longing were entrusted; does Einsbern not feel very uncomfortable about this?”

“Speaking of newcomers, aren’t Tōsakas and Matōs included in that too?”

Normally, Irisviel will never speak so unscrupulously, but tonight’s strategy was to completely suppress Tokiomi. When she discarded her daily gentleness and demureness and stood upright to confront, she seemed as inviolable as a beautiful and adamant queen.

But Tokiomi wasn’t going to succumb just with that. He still carried a solicitous smile, and his expression didn’t waver a bit.

“Since what Einsbern wishes for is only the fact of achieving the Third Magic, then would it fit your original intentions if you were to entrust the Holy Grail to me, Tōsaka Tokiomi, with my goal of reaching ‘Akasha’?”

Hearing this, Irisviel cast a contemptuous sneer towards Tokiomi.

“Could it be that the Tōsaka family would even beg just to rob the Holy Grail from our hands?”

“Huh… although the explanation would make one doubt the questioner’s moral character, it doesn’t matter. The question now is that this guy who knows nothing about the Grail has the possibility of obtaining the final victory. I would definitely not allow the Holy Grail to fall into a layman’s hands – our opinions should be the same on this point.”

To put it simply – the one that Tokiomi considers as most threatening is only Rider. Irisviel agrees with that point.

Since she already understood the opponent’s intent, then it would be about time for her to state her position.

“We Einsbern have never had the habit of uniting with others. A so-called alliance will only make others laugh – however, if you want to fight enemies one by one, we would also express our sincerity.”

“… Go on.”

“Regard Tōsaka as our enemy only after all other Masters are defeated – we’re willing to obey such an agreement.”

Irisviel’s roundabout way of speaking made Tokiomi nod his head coldly.

“That’s to say, a ceasefire agreement with conditions attached. It’s appropriate for both parties.”

“We have two demands.”

As if trying to suppress the other and take the initiative, Irisviel followed up,

“Firstly, give us the information you have on Rider’s Master.”

Tokiomi sniggered in his heart when he heard this. Since Einsbern made such a demand, then it meant she really wanted to go defeat Rider herself. This development was completely within his expectations.

“– Kirei, tell them.”

Hearing Tokiomi’s command Kirei, who had stayed aside and waited silently, began to explain with a flat tone.

“Rider’s Master is an apprentice magus named Waver Velvet, who was studying under Kayneth. He now flats in the home of an old couple surnamed MacKenzie in Miyama city, Nakagoe 2-chome. They are an ordinary family that has nothing to do with the Heaven’s Feel, but they think Waver is their own grandson under Waver’s hypnosis magecraft.”

Kirei finished fluently. Hearing this, Irisviel and Maiya couldn’t help but shiver. Although they’ve roughly guessed it, they didn’t think that Kirei, who had once controlled Assassin, could undertake a war of intelligence so thoroughly.

“… Alright, what’s the other condition?”

Tokiomi urged delightedly. Irisviel stared straight at him with a solemn and heavy expression, and spoke with an uncompromising tone that didn’t allow the opponent to decline.

“The second condition – is to eliminate Kotomine Kirei from the Heaven’s Feel.”

Tokiomi, who originally had a leisurely expression, couldn’t help but gape when he heard this. However, Kirei remained nonplussed, and didn’t even move his eyebrows.

“I didn’t mean to kill him. I’m only saying that he needs to leave Fuyuki – no, leave Japan – before the war finishes. We hope that he’d depart tomorrow morning.”

“Can you explain the reason?”

Tokiomi calmed the wavering of his heart and requested with a rather low voice. Irisviel, who could tell people’s emotions very clearly, believed more firmly that this pair of teacher and student has estrangements between them – it was obvious that Tokiomi did not know what Kirei did exactly.

“That Executor has quite a feud with us Einsbern. If Tōsaka is to include him in your camp, then we would be completely unable to trust you. If so, then we would regard you as the target to be eliminated first, and unite with Rider and the others to initiate attacking you.”

“…”

There wasn’t a single hint of joking in Irisviel’s tone. Finally, Tokiomi detected that there were many things he didn’t know, and cast a doubtful look towards Kirei, who was beside him.

“What’s going on, Kirei?”

“…”

Kirei remained silent, expressionless as if wearing a mask. However, since he didn’t make any rebuttal to Irisviel’s words, his silence was enough to explain the problem.

With a sigh, Tokiomi once again hid his emotions in the bottom of his heart, and gazed at the Einsbern camp with a nonchalant expression.

“As the substitute of the late Father Risei, Kirei had inherited the job of the Supervisor. If you believe that he must leave, then we have a condition too.”

Silently, Irisviel inclined her head and motioned for him to continue.

“– I observed last night’s battle. That Saber of yours has a Noble Phantasm with an overly-powerful destructive power; we hope that you can restrain her use of it.”

Now Saber furrowed her brows. She understood that Tōsaka wanted to forcibly push the duel with Rider onto her. She could only regard this extra condition as being too unreasonable.

“Why are you interfering with our battle tactics?”

“We are the managers of Fuyuki. If the Heaven’s Feel is going to leave the concealment of the Holy Church and proceed openly, then I hope unnecessary disturbances can be avoided.”

At this moment, Maiya, who had been quiet until now, suddenly interrupted.

“Saber’s Noble Phantasm caused damage to the surrounding structures last night?”

“– Luckily, it was minimal damage. Coincidentally, there was a large ship on the path of her attack. However, one mistake would have indeed flattened all the houses on the opposite river bank.”

“It was us who placed the ship there.”

Hearing Maiya’s words, Saber’s eyebrows twitched. Indeed, it was precisely because that ship was there that she was able to use Excalibur without worries. However, she only knew upon hearing Maiya that it was actually prepared by Kiritsugu.

“On a side note, we’ve already confirmed that the owner of that ship has bought insurance. The Einsbern camp has already thoroughly considered the destructive power of Saber’s Noble Phantasm without needing you to remind us.”

“I’m asking you to put your so-called consideration into a treaty.”

Rather toughly, Tokiomi interrupted Maiya’s words.

“It is unconditionally forbidden to use Noble Phantasms on ground level in Fuyuki city. The same applies even if you’re on air if it would indirectly cause harm to residents – can you agree to this condition, Einsbern Master?”

“… If I agree, then would Kotomine Kirei really leave Japan?”

“Ah, I assure you of it, and can be held accountable.”

Tokiomi nodded without hesitation. Kirei, beside him, couldn’t let out his anger and could only grit his teeth tightly by himself.

Irisviel consulted Saber for her opinion. Saber nodded to show that she agreed.

Saber also did not want her Noble Phantasm to create unnecessary sacrifices. This wouldn’t count as exceeding restriction if Tōsaka Tokiomi’s concern was the same as hers.

“– Very good. Since you confirmed that you can fulfil the condition, then we also agree to a ceasefire.”

<center>※※※※※</center>

After the meeting concluded, Kotomine Kirei remained in the church, which both Masters have left, all by himself.

Just like Tokiomi said then, Kirei, right now, as a member of the Holy Church, was proceeding with managing the aftermath all around Fuyuki City. Due to the death of his father, Risei, who was the Supervisor, the on-site command chain was completely fuddled and there was absolutely no time to wait for the Assembly of the Eighth Sacrament to send in the official successor.

However, the work at each scene was now progressing methodically after giving only appropriate directions to the management at each place. This showed that the orders Risei made when he was alive was very much correct. Kirei’s job was to continue along the trail that Risei had already lain down and sends the duties down one by one; in truth, it wasn’t anything particularly difficult.

But right now he must make a decision concerning his work.

Actually, for Kirei, he had already understood that his situation was dangerous when he sensed Tokiomi had the intention of making an alliance with the Einsberns. The decision that he made at the meeting just now wasn’t surprising, either. The Einsbern women – and Emiya Kiritsugu, the true manipulator behind them – had gradually realized Kirei’s threat towards them, whereas he was only an ‘ordinary assistant’ for Tōsaka Tokiomi. Therefore, the alliance with Einsbern was more important to him than Kirei.

Moreover, Tokiomi didn’t know about the Command Seals that once again appeared on Kirei’s arm and the existence of the Command Seals that were taken back for safekeeping and secretly inherited from Risei. Nor had Kirei told him that Saber’s real Master, Emiya Kiritsugu, had yet to make an appearance, or that Matō Kariya was saved. The fact that he was hiding such important information at this time meant that Kirei had already discarded his duties as Tokiomi’s subordinate. Tokiomi would discover this sooner or later; right now Kirei didn’t have the right to complain.

After contacting the employees distributed everywhere by phone, Kirei returned to his room alone. He sat down on the edge of the bed, and felt the quietness and stillness of the empty church.

Kirei questioned his own heart while he stared at the darkness.

He had already asked himself like this thousands and tens of thousands of times in his life up until now.

But this question was really pressing down on him tonight. Only, this time he had to come to an answer before dawn break.

Just what, is my wish?

Among the vast amount of information that the employees passed on while they were cleaning up the aftermath, there were two pieces of information that Kirei could not ignore.

One – an adult male body that died in a weird fashion appeared before the public at the riverside, where things have sunk into chaos after being stirred up by Caster’s sea demon. The corpse was taken over by the Holy Church and avoided being handed over to the police. It could no longer be identified due to severe facial damage, but due to the traces of the Command Seals on its right hand it can be roughly determined that he was Caster’s Master, Uryū Ryūnosuke. Cause of death – large diameter rifle bullets with diameters of 30 millimeters or more, two shots.

The other report was even more shocking.

Just a few hours ago, the bodies of Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald and Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri were found within an abandoned factory on the outskirts of Shinto. The two bodies have similarly been discovered by Church employees while patrolling and was dealt with. A discarded and signed Self-Geis Scroll was found at the scene. This was the naked evidence of the perpetrator having used despicable means to kill Lancer’s Master.

Emiya Kiritsugu – this cruel and emotionless hunting machine was eliminating his opponents one by one.

What he was afraid was that Kiritsugu was still continuing the war somewhere out there. Different from Kirei, who could only sit on the spot, perplexed, he was stepping towards the Holy Grail pressingly.

This battlefield named Fuyuki made a man who had continuously devoted to hollow battles re-emerge after a nine-year long silence. However, before Kirei knew just what his intentions and reasons were, he has to leave here.

What would that man pray for when he obtains the omnipotent wish-granting vessel?

Would that answer really fill up the emptiness in Kirei’s heart?

“… Who, are you?”

He suddenly muttered to himself. He had once expected Emiya Kiritsugu with a premonition almost equal to prayers, expecting his answer. Now Kirei had a sense of danger. The image that crisscrossed his mind was that of the women who stood upright in front of Kiritsugu and protected him. Why would they risk their lives for Kiritsugu? Or was it that Kiritsugu had sunken so low, to the mundane degree of sharing his own goal with a third party?

Kirei felt a presence stirring up in the deep quietness. The presence was approaching him from the corridor outside his door. Kirei had already become very familiar with this presence. Even if he was only walking silently, that Heroic Spirit did not hide the flamboyant majesty emanating out of him. Even if he were stepping into the realm of gods, he remained as obstinate and unrestrained as ever.

Archer didn’t knock and stepped into Kirei’s room straight away. He sneered with a sarcastic and pitiful tone when he saw Kirei was deep in thought.

“What are you thinking of, even at this stage? There should be a limit on being slow.”

“… You let Tokiomi-sensei go back on his own, Archer?”

“I was with him until the house. Recently there were poisonous insects more treacherous than Assassin lurking in the night.”

Kirei nodded. That Emiya Kiritsugu won’t ignore the meeting just then; he would definitely seek an opportunity to act during Tokiomi’s journey to or back from the meeting. Kirei had briefed someone thoroughly about that point – not to Tokiomi, but to Archer.

[[Image:FZ_v03_283.png|thumb|Kirei and Gilgamesh]]

“However, you really are an honest guy. Knowing that you’re situation is getting worse but still worried about the safety of your lord.”

“This is a logical decision. I had long finished my duty of being Tokiomi-sensei’s tool, and there were no reasons left to keep staying at Fuyuki.”

“– You don’t really think that, right?”

Archer’s gaze seemed to have seen through everything. Silently, Kirei gazed back at him.

However, Kirei didn’t plan to rebuke, because what Archer said wasn’t wrong. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be sitting here idiotically, and would already be making preparations for leaving Fuyuki.

“Even now, the Holy Grail is still calling to you, and you yourself are also longing to keep on fighting.”

Archer said thus. Kirei remained silent, and gave up on rebuttal.

No matter what he says, there’s nothing to hide in front of Archer. That Heroic Spirit had even seen through the fact that he was only deceiving everyone including himself. Then, maybe the answer that Kirei had always sought was also already within his heart.

It was as if those twin red eyes were gazing from above at little white mice, wandering lost and perplexed. There was no inducement, nor was there salvation; maybe appreciating other’s worries was something that made the King of Heroics delighted.

“… Ever since I can remember, I’ve been looking into one question.”

As if confessing to the darkness within his heart, Kirei stood in front of Archer.

“Wasting time, enduring the pain… but everything ended in fruitlessness. However, right now I feel that I have never been closer to the ‘answer’.

What I seek must be at Fuyuki, at the end of the war.”

After he said those words, Kirei once again understood just what drove him to walk on till today.

It was a long time ago, when Kotomine Kirei was yet to be Tōsaka Tokiomi’s hound. The Kirei back then continuously stirred up dissent just for himself.

“Since you’ve reflected so much, then why are you perplexed?”

Archer asked coldly.

Hearing this, Kirei lowered his head and looked at his open hands, then covered his face as if going to sigh.

“I have an ominous premonition – I would walk towards annihilation when I have obtained all the answers.”

If the expectation that was endowed on Emiya Kiritsugu was not fulfilled –

And if he couldn’t find something else in Matō Kariya’s end either –

Then, Kirei could no longer turn back; he could only face it. He could only try to face the thing that he discovered in the deaths of his father and wife.

It would be better for him to just turn around and leave. Be Tōsaka Tokiomi’s deferent disciple until the end and obediently leave. That way, it would at least look better on the face of it.

And forget everything from now on. Don’t ask anything, don’t demand anything, and pass through a busy but mundane life like a plant would. No matter what he had lost, this would at least let him rest in peace.

“– Don’t think of those boring things, idiot.”

Archer’s reminder interrupted the thought that he had almost been prepared to fulfil.

“You won’t be troubled until now if you could change your way of life so easily. You, who’s used to questioning while you’re alive, would die with questions at the end too. You won’t receive the answer, and can’t rest in peace.”

“…”

“Maybe I should congratulate you. You’re finally going to arrive at the destination after such a lengthy journey.”

“… You would congratulate someone else, Archer?”

Archer inclined his head. There was still no sentimentality on his face, but it was sparkling with an innocent and joyous light like a child observing an ant hill.

“I should have told you that observing humanity’s cause and retribution is the most interesting entertainment. I, the king, full-heartedly looks forward to the moment when you come face to face with your destiny.”

The King of Heroes said this gallantly. Hearing this, Kirei gave a bitter laugh.

“Is it really so fun to live so stubbornly for the greed of ‘enjoyment’?”

“If you’re jealous, you can try to live a little like this too. You won’t fear annihilation once you comprehend just what is enjoyment.”

The phone in the priest’s office in the corridor outside rang. As if he had already predicted it, Kirei did not appear to be surprised in anyway. He walked out of the room, picked up the receiver, and quickly disconnected the phone after just a few words and returned to the room.

“– What’s wrong?”

“It’s a call from the employees of the Holy Church who originally worked under my father. They now have to report everything to me.”

Seeing that Kirei’s expression was unusually relaxed, Archer furrowed his brows and asked.

“Are there some good news?”

“You could say that. This news is quite decisive.”

After this, Kirei hesitated for a while, considering whether he should say it. However, at the end, he still chose confession.

“I sent people to follow those from the Einsbern camp after the end of the recent meeting. I told them it was my father’s order given before he passed away, so they went and did so. Thanks to that, I found out the place where those three are currently hiding.”

After Archer heard Kirei through, he couldn’t help but be stunned for a little while.

Then the King of Heroes laughed heartily. He clapped continuously.

“– Honestly Kirei – you really are – ! Haven’t you already made up your mind ages ago!”

He was still using his own position to detect the movements of the enemy camps, so it would be impossible for him not to join the fight. While Kirei was being anxious, the battle strategy had made concrete advancements.

But he had not made the mental preparations just then – just a few minutes ago.

“I was lost once, and had also wanted to give up. But at the end – King of Heroes, it’s like what you said – someone like me can only live on with questions.”

As Kirei spoke, he rolled up his sleeves and confirmed the Command Seals on his arms.

There were two Command Seals on his left lower arm. Command Seals that would allow Kirei to make a contract once again with a Servant.

Meanwhile, the Command Seals that were taken back for safe keeping and inherited from his father covered his entire right arm. The innumerable Command Seals, yet to confirm a target for a contract, can be used and forged into highly practical prana that has no alignments, and can be used to restrain Servants as well. That means they can be used as mock Magic Crests. Apart from the fact that they are expandable, the magecraft that Kirei now possessed was enough to rival famous magecraft houses that have collected their Crests through the generations. Kirei’s preparation was more than enough for him to continue participating in the Heaven’s Feel that was still going on.

There were no greater good and no illusionary glories on the road before him. A battle that only belonged to Kotomine Kirei was about to start.

In order to fill his own nihility, in order to confirm the capacity of his own emptiness – he would question Emiya Kiritsugu, question Matō Kariya, and question the wish-granting vessel, the Holy Grail.

“Hahahaha – however, Kirei, although it’s a bit abrupt, I have a few questions.”

Archer laughed madly and arrogantly. Those blood-red eyes were permeating with the implications of a prank – and at the same time carried an evil shade.

“If you’ve really decided to participate in the War of the Holy Grail, then you would become Tōsaka Tokiomi’s enemy. That’s to say, right now you’re staying defenselessly in the same room with the enemy’s Servant. Isn’t this very awful?”

“Not necessarily; I do still have ways to keep myself alive.”

“Oh?”

Archer, interested, narrowed his eyes.

Kirei spoke calmly.

“Since now I am already opposing Tokiomi-sensei, then I don’t need to hide his lies anymore – Gilgamesh, let me tell you the truth of the Heaven’s Feel that you don’t know about.”

“… What did you say?”

Hearing this, Archer furrowed his brows with perplexity. Kirei proceeded to speak thoroughly of the truth of the Heaven’s Feel that he got to know from Tokiomi.

“The miracle that occurs in the ‘inside’ of this world cannot be used universally on the ‘outside’ of the world. The fight over the wish-granting vessel is only a camouflage; the ‘Three Noble Families of the Beginning’ has other plans.

The ceremony that had originally been held in Fuyuki was a kind of attempt to use the souls of seven Heroic Spirits as sacrifices to open the road that leads to the ‘Root’. The promise of ‘Fulfil a miracle’ was also only bait used to attract Heroic Spirits. However, as the result of the unilateral spread of this ‘bait’, the current Heaven’s Feel had lost its original meanings and is only left with an empty shell.”

This is a secret known only to the Matōs, Tōsakas, and Einsberns and people related them. The foreign Masters and all of the Servants are oblivious to this truth.

“This time around, the only magus who wants to fulfil the once long-cherished wish of the ‘Three Noble Families of the Beginning’ is Tōsaka Tokiomi. He wants to kill all seven Servants to activate ‘the Greater Grail’. That’s right, kill all seven. Do you understand? – that’s why Tokiomi-sensei was so stingy with the expenditure of Command Seals. He can only use two Command Seals in the battle with other Masters. He needs to use the final one that’s left to order his own Servant to commit suicide once everything is finished.”

Archer heard him through without interruption, then questions with a lowered voice and with an extremely apathetic expression.

“… You’re telling me that the loyalty Tōsaka Tokiomi had shown to me were all to deceive me?”

Kirei knows his teacher’s character. Therefore, he slowly shook his head.

“He indeed does have the uttermost respect for ‘Gilgamesh, King of Heroes’. However, it’s completely different for the Servant Archer. That’s to say, you’re only a representation, a meaning not too far off from a statue or a portrait. Everyone who walks past it would give it a respectable look of admiration if it’s put at the most conspicuous place in a gallery – but if this representation was removed when the collection is being rotated off, then it would be despised.

That’s to say, Tokiomi-sensei is a complete ‘magus’ at the end. For him, a Servant is just a tool. He had once calmly told me that even if he admires Heroic Spirits, he won’t harbor any illusions towards idols.”

Hearing Kirei’s account, Archer nodded dramatically as if suddenly realizing something, then once again showed that evil smile he had beforehand. There was cruelty within tolerance, decisiveness within boldness; it was the smile of a king who was an absolute existence, who could decide everything with just one word.

“Tokiomi – today I’ve finally discovered your worth. Even that boring man can make me so delighted.”

If viewed from the meanings hidden beneath those words, this was definitely a tragic declaration enough to freeze someone’s blood.

“King of Heroes, what do you plan to do? Will you still show loyalty to Tokiomi-sensei even so, and punish my betrayal?”

“Yes, what should I do? Although he has been disloyal to me, Tokiomi is after all my prana provider. Moreover, where would I get a perfect Master –”

Archer stopped speaking, and suddenly gazed at Kirei with a cold expression.

“Ah – speaking of, it seems like there is a Master here who had obtained Command Seals, but had lost his Servant.”

“You speak the truth.”

Using a smile to reply to Archer’s naked lure, Kirei lowered his head.

“But does that man have the worth to be graced with the favor of the King of Heroes?”

“No problems. Although it’s not flawless, there is enough potential. Maybe he’d even be able to let me thoroughly enjoy myself.”

– Like so.

At that moment, the final Master and Servant chosen by fate exchanged smiles to each other for the first time.

<center>※※※※※</center>

‘It’ was lost in an abyss of shallow slumber within the darkness sealed in the bottomless earth.

What ‘It’ dreamt of in the shallow slumber – was the endless ‘prayers’, unreasonable and unattainable, that have been entrusted a long time ago.

A beautiful world. A beautiful life. A flawless soul.

Because such longings were too strong, so they had to entrust all other evils to one place; that was the wish of the fragile men.

Through answering that ‘prayer’, ‘It’ had once saved a world.

There is no evil apart from me. This is no imperfection apart from me.

I am the only one who should be hated. I am the only one who should be abhorred.

Like thus, ‘It’ saved the world, and let them obtain peace.

Therefore –

‘It’ was not a saint who saved men and aided the world. Without praises, without reverence, without tributes, but only with spurns, only curses, only disdain… before ‘It’ knew it, even its name as a human had been rubbed away, only left with a title of its ‘way of existence’, and finally became a concept that was passed down through the ages.

Until now, all that had already became a dream of memories that had had its full share of time’s baptism.

Just how much time had passed since then?

Right now, ‘It’ was thinking dazedly on top of the bed it had slept on peacefully.

It felt like some complicated changes had occurred. That’s right; it was about sixty years ago. Something had happened almost in the blink of an eye.

Because it happened so suddenly, ‘It’ didn’t understand everything completely – when ‘It’ came to, ‘It’ was already at a place like a mother’s warm placenta.

An infinite darkness that sighed in the deepest place beneath the earth.

Back then, it had been a place that had concealed an ‘egg’ that had endless possibilities. One day, like a seed, ‘It’ entered and planted its roots into this place. From that day on, that place because the abdominal cavity that nurtured a darkness that didn’t belong to anything, veritably became a uterus with the purpose of fostering ‘It’ into maturity.

Since then, ‘It’ had surely absorbed the prana that flew in from the leylines in the earth like a baby that obtained nourishment from the mother’s placenta while ‘It’ slept in its shallow slumber. While ‘It’ veritably grew, ‘It’ waited without being discovered by anyone for the arrival of an opportunity.

Waiting to one day leave this scorching profound darkness, the moment of delivery.

Suddenly, ‘It’ – perked up its ears and listened for the sound coming from near ‘It’.

Just then, someone really did speak.

“…all the evils of this world… it won’t matter… gladly accept it…”

Aaah, someone was calling ‘It’.

Blessing and itself were both called by someone.

Answer him. It must be able to right now.

The prana whirlpool that had swelled long ago to an incomparable size in the darkness gave ‘It’ a concrete form.

The endless ‘prayers’ that had been entrusted in the distant past should also be able to be fulfilled right now.

An ‘existence’ like something that was prayed upon.

‘Going to do’ all the things that were wished for.

All the pieces of the puzzle had been assembled.

The gears of fate grinded together, and were now turning bravely, accelerating with the day of completion as their goal.

All that’s left – was waiting for the birthing canal to open.

As ‘It’ dreamed in its shallow slumber, ‘It’ emitted cries that will dye the world crimson red…

‘It’ also repeated its contractions in the darkness beneath the earth, unknown to anyone else.

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| Forward to [[Fate/Zero:Volume_3_Postface|Postface]]
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Fate/Zero:Act 11 Part 4

2011-09-01T06:35:34Z

Fiohnel: /* -72:37:17 */ Added a missing quote mark

=== -72:37:17 ===

Kayneth hid in the shadows deep inside the abandoned factory and gazed at the situation of the battle outside. The thoughts in his heart, contrary to the incorrupt preparedness of those knights, were only boiling with anxiety.

Since the victor remained long undecided, he was getting more fidgety by the second with those anxious feelings.

Why couldn’t he win?

Although Saber underestimated Lancer so much, why would Lancer’s spear still be unable to hit Saber?

The answer became very clear upon some careful thinking – that is, Lancer is very weak, far more inferior to Saber.

At this moment, he regretted profoundly for not getting the Heroic Spirit Alexander.

It would never have turned out like this had he made the King of Conquerors his Servant as he had previously planned. Having his Holy Relic stolen at the crucial moment, he had to summon Diarmuid as a substitute in a hurry. As long as a first-rate, authentic Master such as himself is present, those small disadvantages can be amended even if the ranks of the Heroic Spirit were lowered. The parts that the Servant lacks in will be amended by his own talent; Lord El-Melloi did indeed have such a fearless attitude.

However, right now, having lost his Magic Circuits, Kayneth had long lost his previous confidence. In order to survive this war with his sole remaining Command Seal and an inferior Servant, he had to be even more prudent than before.

When there is no definite chance of victory, the right thing to do would be to immediately escape with the Master. Although he hadn’t gotten around asking how Lancer managed to lose Gáe Buidhe, the chances of victory against Saber became even more elusive after her left hand had healed.

Right now wasn’t the time to stick to battles; Lancer should have other duties needing to be prioritized over this. It would be impossible for the current Kayneth to search and rescue Sola by himself. It simply cannot be done without ordering his Servant.

But – just how stupid is that Lancer? Can’t he even realize the severity of such a situation?

Fretting, Kayneth scratched his head repetitively. How great would it be if he could use a Command Seal right now! Why did he just have to have only one Command Seal by his hand? It was such a pity for Sola to take away two Command Seals. If only she was able to trust Kayneth…

Right then, Kayneth’s neck suddenly felt an unnatural flow of air.

A piece of paper fluttered down beside him. It was an extremely ordinary piece of notepaper, but Kayneth fixed his eyes on the few concise words on it with a deadly gaze.

“– If you don’t want your beloved one to die, then quietly look behind you –”

Stunned, Kayneth’s eyes widened, and he moved the wheels of the wheelchair to change the direction his body was facing. Deep inside the pitch-black abandoned factory, the light coming in through a skylight illuminated one single place like a spotlight.

The outlines of woman, lying on the floor as if deep asleep, emerged out of the dim and cold light.

“…!”

Kayneth would never mistake those features no matter how dim the light is or how far the distance becomes.

Although the pain and haggardness on Sola’s steel-grey face showed that something had evidently occurred, the strand of hair beside her mouth quivered as if blown by a breeze. That was the proof of her breathing. She was still alive.

Kayneth forgot the warning on the paper and almost cried out despite himself. Then, like a wraith emerging out of the darkness, a human figure stepped into the weak light and showed himself.

An old coat, those untidy hair and listless whiskers, and only those pair of eyes, different from the gloomy countenance, fierily emitted a razor-sharp light – that unforgettable man, the only one who had cruelly torn apart all the Magic Circuits in Kayneth’s body, that hateful flunky of the Einsberns.

He had probably transported the unconscious Sola in quietly from the back door during the gap formed while Saber and Lancer concentrated in fighting each other. The barrel of the submachine gun in the man’s hand aimed steadily at Sola’s forehead.

“It just has to be… that bastard…”

Kayneth had experience that viper-like cruelty and seamless prudence first-hand. Compared to anger and hatred – a deep despair that far surpassed all other emotions made him hang his head powerlessly.

It really was the worse situation he could think of. The woman he loves was captured by the most difficult enemy that he didn’t even want to imagine.

However, just before he sank into a panic, the voice of reason stopped Kayneth.

There must be some purpose for that man to deliberately show himself and let Kayneth confirm Sola’s wellbeing.

“…”

Kayneth turned his head and cast a glance at Lancer, who was fighting with all he had in the abandoned empty area. Judging from the two Servants’ position in battle, Sola’s location was a dead spot that they can’t see. The two of them were both bent on dealing with the strong enemy in front of them, completely ignorant to this new invader.

Kayneth couldn’t guess what the man wanted, so he silently inclined his head, showing his intention of obeying the other’s wish.

The man took a roll of vellum out of his coat and cast it into the air after casually opening it. Although the weight of vellum cannot be compared to the notepaper beforehand, simple manipulations of air was enough to make it fly with the wind. Like a jellyfish, the vellum floated across space slowly and leisurely, and landed on Kayneth’s knees.

Although others would only perceive this as some meaningless figures and well-made patterns the things recorded on it was, for Kayneth, a perfect magecraft document written in a format that he was familiar with.

– Only that the content was very rarely seen.

Binding magecraft: Target – Emiya Kiritsugu

The Crests of the Emiya family hereby command: Provided that the following conditions are met, this oath shall become a commandment and bind the target without exception.

Oath:

To the fifth head of the Emiya house, Kiritsugu, son of Noritaka: regarding both Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald and Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri, all intentions and actions to kill and harm shall be forbidden for all eternity.

Conditions:

…………………………

“…!”

Self-Geis Scroll – one of the most merciless contract magecrafts that would only be used in the treacherous society of magi when a contract that absolutely cannot be disobeyed was to be made.

It is an enforced curse that forcibly uses the functions of one’s own Magic Crests upon oneself. Theoretically, it has a power that cannot be erased by any method. Even if the caster lost his life, the Magic Crests would bind the soul of the dead man and would not pass down the generations. It is a very dangerous magecraft. For magi, a parley that involves offering such a declaration would in fact mean a maximal concession.

Although it wasn’t something Kayneth often saw, it was indeed proper in the way it was written, with no loopholes. The signature made with the blood of the declarer himself was evidently pulsing with prana, showing that the spell was already established and was currently working.

That is to say – when the conditions recorded in the bottom half of the declaration is fulfilled, that man – Emiya Kiritsugu will give up a part of his free will, and the contract will be confirmed as an unbreakable curse.

Holding the vellum with shaking hands, Kayneth read the conditions to establish the contract over and over. As if hoping the contents would change the next time he reads it, he stubbornly contemplated those words repeatedly. He bent his entire will to consider if the contents left any gaps that may form contradictions.

However, different from Kayneth’s wavering thoughts, the most logical part of his heart had already accepted his own yielding. The possibility that his beloved woman and himself may return to their homeland alive – at this moment, isn’t that his greatest wish?

If he hesitated a few more moments, Emiya Kiritsugu would probably pull the trigger. After the first bullet took away Sola’s life, the barrel would definitely point at Kayneth himself. There were no choices for him. Whether to lose everything or to regard that declaration as his last hope of life… that was the only difference.

With a dim and blank look as if he was an empty shell, he looked at the final Command Seal on his right hand and then gave the final unbreakable command as Lancer’s Master.

Without a sign, without a reason – brilliant vermillion scattered all over the earth.

Everyone appeared to be equally shocked. Saber, Irisviel, and even Lancer himself widened their eyes at this overly abrupt end – Lancer’s own shock should probably be the most intense, since he had not a sliver of expectation or preparedness for that agony and despair.

Dazed, Lancer gazed at the crimson flowers that dripped from the red spear shaft to the ground. No matter how, he could not believe that it was all his own blood.

His own beloved spear pierced his heart. It was no one else’s but his own two hands that forcibly stabbed the spear tip into his own body.

[[Image:FZ_v03_207.png|thumb|]]

Of course, it wasn’t his intention, nor was it his wish. What his crimson spear was supposed to pierce was Saber’s heart, and what was supposed to pierce his own heart should have been Saber’s holy sword.

Able to rob everything away from him at a whim, regardless of his fighting spirit or beliefs – no such great power exists apart from Command Seals.

Because Lancer was overly focused on the duel with Saber, he did not notice the treaty secretly sealed in the dim abandoned factory beside him until the end.

“Use up all the Command Seals, and let the Servant finish himself’” – that was the required condition within the Self-Geis Scroll Emiya Kiritsugu brought up. He demanded Kayneth to use up all the Command Seals and completely destroy the Servant – a total retreat from the Holy Grail War.

“Ah…”

Crimson tears flew out of Lancer’s wide eyes.

For him, it was already the second time to be murdered by his lord. It was precisely because Diarmuid ua Duibhne was bent on overcoming that unhappy end that he wished so strongly to return to this world from the Throne of Heroes. However, the end that he received was a replay of that tragedy – he only experienced that despair and sorrow once again.

The Heroic Spirit looked behind him with eyes wet with blood and tears. Just then, two Masters walked out of the abandoned factory to witness his end. They were Kayneth, sitting on his wheelchair with an empty and dazed expression and another man, who stood and carried Sola’s comatose body in his hands. He was the anonymous true Master of Saber that he saw at Einsbern castle.

“Do you… so…”

Kneeling in a pool of his own blood, Lancer tried his best to speak with a hoarse and low sound.

“Do you want victory so much!? Do you want to win the Holy Grail so much? Even … willing to trample on my only true wish… you, don’t you feel ashamed!?”

His beauty twisted with blood and tears, changing into a completely different countenance akin to a demon’s. Lancer, forgetting everything except hatred, no longer distinguished between friend and foe. Thinking of Kiritsugu, Saber, and everything in the world, he roared out a growl of vengeance that tore at his heart.

“Unforgivable… I’ll never forgive you! You dead men who are slaved by fame, and desecrated the glory of knights… let my blood stain that dream! I curse the Holy Grail! I curse that your wishes will become disasters! When you fall into the frying pan of hell, do not forget my, Diarmuid’s, anger!”

While he gradually lost his material body and crumpled as a hazy shade, he screamed curses until the final moment when he disappeared. There was no longer the glorious figure of a Heroic Spirit, but only an evil spirit roaring with resentment. Servant Lancer had finally been completely eliminated.

“…”

As if at a loss, Kayneth gazed at the blank space left by Lancer’s disappearance. Casually, Kiritsugu placed Sola, who was still deep asleep, on his knees. As Kayneth softly caressed the haggard sleeping face of his beloved, he asked Kiritsugu with a weak voice.

“… Then your enforcement has been…?”

“Ahh, it’s established. It’s already impossible to kill you…”

Kiritsugu slowly moved back as he took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it – maybe that was the signal.

“For me, that is.”

While Kayneth mumbled in a low voice Hisau Maiya, who witnessed everything in the shadows far away, silently pulled the trigger of the Steyr AUG assault rifle.

Kayneth and Sola were captured by the aim of the night vision scope and were mercilessly exposed to a rain of automatically-fired bullets. For the two of them, who have lost the protection of Volumen Hydragyrum and had no Servants left in service, the 5.56mm high-speed bullet rain of baptism was an inescapable gale of death. In the savage power of the bullets that they had so despised in the past, the magus and his fiancée’s bodies were torn in pieces and fell to the concrete ground.

He only doubted if the magecraft of the Self-Geis Scroll was tempered with, but missed the trap hidden behind the meaning of the important contract. That finally took away the fate of the genius magus.

“Uuu… Ahhh!!”

Perhaps Sola, who died from the bullets without pain, was the luckier one. Tragically, even after he was transformed into a sieve and fell down from the wheelchair, Kayneth still remained breathing. He had been dealt many fatal wounds all over his body and had no more hope of surviving. However, even if he had only seconds left to live, it would be a cruelly long time if it were to be passed by enduring the pain and agony of death.

“… Ahhh… Kill… Kill me…”

“Sorry, that is a contract I can’t fulfill.”

Kiritsugu ignored the weak entreating sounds beside his feet, and replied with a nonchalant voice as he exhaled the purple smoke that he had breathed in.

The sound that sobbed with pain didn’t go on. Saber couldn’t bear to keep watching and used her sword to cut off Kayneth’s head, ending his pain.

At the end, the King of Knight’s sword did not fulfil the promise made with Lancer. On the contrary, it ended up far from faith and glory, and was stained with the blood of ending the pain of someone already wounded without hope.

“Emiya, Kiritsugu –”

The azure irises burned with a cold fire. They were not eyes used to look at friends, nor was it a sight used to face comrades in a broader sense. Identical to when she faced Caster’s madness and Archer’s arrogance, it was a look sharp as a blade used to pierce those that she had recognized as enemies.

“I finally understand it now; you’re a man without morals. I had originally thought that even if our paths differ, our goals are the same; but I was far too foolish…”

Kiritsugu still remained silent. There was already no need to answer. It was because the actions that Saber just witnessed were absolutely ‘evil’.

“Up till now, I’ve believed in Irisviel’s words and never doubted your character. However, even if a man like you now says that you’ll save the world with the Holy Grail, I won’t believe a word of it anymore.

Answer me, Kiritsugu! Did you deceive even your wife? Just what is the true reason that you seek the omnipotent wish-granting vessel?!”

“---”

Kiritsugu – although his eyes stared at Saber as if irritated, the mouth that held a cigarette still didn’t speak a word. It was a gaze used to look out at a wildly barking stray dog. It merely contained a decisive separation that gave up trying to understand each other using words from the start.

Within Saber’s heart, there was already a calm and resolute decision that almost said ‘he must be killed’.

Maybe, at the end, the only thing left between her and this master would be to face him with her sword. Even if that will be prohibited by the Command Seals, this obvious enmity cannot be changed. This might be the largest fracture in their camp during the War of the Holy Grail. However, no matter what, as long as she’s with Emiya Kiritsugu, it is very probable that she won’t be able to obtain the Holy Grail that she truly wishes for.

“Even if my sword does win the Holy Grail, if I am to entrust the Grail to you, then I…”

That sunset over Camlann flashed past Saber’s eyes. The wish hidden in her heart made her words blur at the end.

A sound from behind her interrupted that painful pause.

“Answer me, Kiritsugu. No matter what, this time you have the obligation to explain.”

Even Irisviel, who trusted her husband completely, couldn’t help but raise her voice in her question.

Different from Saber, she fully knew the way her husband thinks and understood him. However, there was a vast difference between the beliefs expressed in words and the stunning real actions before her eyes.

She already had a cold premonition that said ‘could it be…?’ in her heart when Lancer questioned her about Lord El-Melloi’s fiancée back then. However, the conscience in her heart denied that probability. No matter what, for him to do something of that degree…

At the end, even as his wife, Irisviel had underestimated Kiritsugu’s ruthlessness.

“– Speaking of, this is the first time you witnessed my ‘method of killing’, Iri.”

Changing from the silence that he’s maintained until know, Kiritsugu answered with a dry voice. The dim and cold look that he gave to Saber shrank back shyly with shame as he turned to Irisviel.

“Nah, Kiritsugu. Don’t speak to me, speak to Saber. She needs to talk to you.”

“No, I’ve got nothing to say with that Servant. There’s nothing to be said to a killer controlled by glory and honor.”

He fearlessly spoke words that insulted Saber while maintaining a front of speaking to Irisviel. Of course Saber would not leave it alone.

“Don’t you dare to humiliate chivalry in front of me, you beast!”

Even if faced with the angry yells of the King of Knights, who raised her brows in rage, Kiritsugu stayed steady as a rock. He still paid no attention to Saber, fixing his gaze on his wife instead. However, at this time, he finally started to spill his words out endlessly.

“Chivalry cannot save the world. It was so in past histories, and it will be so in the future. Those guys promoted the idea that there is a difference of good and evil when it comes to the method of battle, and acted on the battlefield as if they have pride. Just because all the heroes of the ages were cloaked with that illusion, how many youths do you think was deceived by the glory of such courage and finally bled to their deaths?”

“That’s not an illusion! Even if it’s a matter of life or death, as long as it is the action of humans it must have rules and beliefs that allow no violation. Righteousness must not be lost! Otherwise, the endless flames of war will once again turn this world into hell at the end!”

Saber rebuked righteously. However, Kiritsugu snorted in derision.

“See, just like so – just like you said, Iri. This great Heroic Spirit dares to think that the battlefield is better than hell.

What a joke! No matter in what era, the battlefield has always been a veritable hell. In the battlefield, there is no place for hope. What lies there is only cold despair and a sin called victory, built on the pain of the defeated.

All those people who met there have wholeheartedly admitted the evil and foolishness of this act called ‘war’. As long as people don’t repent and don’t regard it as the most evil taboo, then hell would endlessly reappear in the world.”

For Saber, who only know the utterly cruel, emotionless Kiritsugu, it was the first time she saw Emiya Kiritsugu’s other side – a man almost crushed by endless anguish and sorrow, his monologue that was close to lamentation.

“However, humans did not realize that truth no matter how high they staked their mountains of corpses. That’s because in no matter what era the courageous and fearless great heroes have always bedazzled the eyes of the multitude with their splendid heroic legends. Because of the wistful actions of those idiots and their refusal to admit that bloodshed is by itself evil, the essence of humans has stayed on the same spot since the Stone Age!”

Just who was the target of the rage filling those pair of eyes – that was already clear without the need to clarify.

Ever since the day that the flames of war started on the land of Fuyuki, Kiritsugu had probably began looking at the shining figures of the Heroic Spirits before him, those who prided in courage and resolution, with that unendurable rage in his heart.

Those who left such heroism, and those who longed for such heroism; the anger directed at them and with nowhere to let out… it was a hatred toward the overall concept of ‘Heroic Spirits’ that was created due to the prayers of men.

“– then Kiritsugu, your humiliation of Saber… was it because of your hatred towards Heroic Spirits?”

“How could it be? I’d never mix in such personal emotions into it. I need to win the Holy Grail and save the world. I am only using the most suitable method in the processing of fighting for that goal.”

If he had fought as he had planned before, and if he didn’t capture Sola but killed her immediately then Lancer, whose supply of prana would be completely stopped, would naturally disappear. However, what Kiritsugu employed was a strategy that completely removed the possibility of a Servant, having lost his master, forming a contract with someone else and returning to the battlefield. Based on the result of the battle against Caster he predicted that Kayneth, who was protected by the Fuyuki Church, may obtain extra Command Seals. Therefore, he prepared such a twisting and complicated trap.

Relying on the Command Seal of the rival Master to eliminate the Servant, and then take out the Master, a complete removal of the obstacle… during that time, what he demanded from Saber was not to win over Lancer but to distract Lancer’s attention while Kiritsugu convinced Kayneth, acting only as a decoy.

“The world as it is, the human nature as always, it is impossible to eliminate battles. In the end, killing is necessarily evil. If so, it is best to end them in the maximum efficiency and at the least cost, least time. If you want to slander that as foul and demean that as nasty, then do as you wish. Justice can not save the world. I have no interest with things like that.”

“…”

Saber recalled Lancer’s final, disappearing eyes filled of anger. Then, she stared at the tragic remains of the man and woman, collapsed in a puddle of blood, and the expression of anguish carved on their faces, and spoke.

“Even so, you –”

As Saber was about to speak her thoughts, she suddenly found that her own voice was lower and calmer than she thought it would be. She had just realized that her complicated emotions towards Kiritsugu was no longer her previous anger, but had to changed to some kind of pity.

That’s right; maybe he is a man that should be pitied.

Isn’t he himself that needed salvation, not this world?

“– Emiya Kiritsugu, I don’t know what kind of betrayal you were subjected to in the past and why you despaired. But that rage, that lament, are undoubtedly things that those who pursued justice possesses. Kiritsugu, in your youth you should have wanted to be ‘a hero of justice’. You should have believed in and wanted to become a hero who saves the world more than anyone else – isn’t that so?”

Until now, the only attitudes Kiritsugu had shown to Saber were complete ignorance and cold scorn. But now, Kiritsugu, having heard Saber’s quiet questioning – the eyes that he fixed on his Servant showed other emotions for the first time.

It was a rage seemingly close to boiling over.

The sound of car exhaust disturbed the silence of dawn. Then, the small truck that Hisau Maiya drove entered the yard of the abandoned factory with bright headlights on. She should be here to take Kiritsugu back to Shinto after concluding her duty as a sniper.

Kiritsugu took his eyes off Saber and walked towards the small truck, not even turning around, and opened the passenger side door. Saber was still speaking to his back. There was something that she had to say no matter what.

“Kiritsugu… do you understand? If you commit evil due to your hatred of evil, at the end all that’s left will be evil. The rage and hatred that sprouted forth there will cause new wars once again.”

Faced with Saber’s heavy words, it was as if Kiritsugu had the intention to reply for the first time and wanted to turn around – however, he changed his mind at last, and said while staring at the empty air.

“I will stop the endless cycles. That’s why I need the Holy Grail.”

Indeed, as if talking to himself, he said loudly.

“I’ll use this miracle to complete the revolution of this world, the revolution of all human souls. I will make the blood shed within Fuyuki city as the final bloodshed of all human beings.

For that, even if I am to carry ‘all the evils of this world’ – it won’t matter. If that can save the world, then I’d gladly accept it.”

“…”

Kiritsugu spoke the decision in his heart with such a calmness and evenness that even Saber could not find any words to reply to him.

Even if his method and path were unendurably evil – his faith in seeking the Holy Grail was pure and selfless. She had to admit that if there was a Master in the war worthy of obtaining the Holy Grail, then he would undoubtedly be Emiya Kiritsugu.

Wordlessly, Saber watched the departure of the small truck that Kiritsugu rode. The first ray of dawn shone beside her. The dark night that made Fuyuki into a demonic realm had departed, and the streets once again put on the mask of ‘ordinary’ beneath the sunlight.

“Is Kiritsugu… gone already?”

“– Irisviel?”

Since Saber had the time to think about the oddities in the question, she was unable to immediately detect Irisviel’s strangeness.

That empty and wondering gaze, the pallid face, and the sweat pouring down from her forehead like a waterfall…

She was probably just forcing herself while she was beside her husband and pretended that there was nothing wrong. Irisviel fainted as soon as she relaxed, and collapsed as if she was a puppet cut loose from her strings.

Although Saber immediately moved up and held her, the strange heat coming from the slender body in her arms made her realize that Irisviel was already in a critical condition.

“Irisviel!? Hang on!”

<center>※※※※※</center>

From the resolute and bold way that Emiya Kiritsugu declared his determination so loudly that morning, it could be seen that they were truly words from his heart without any falsity.

But just what those incredible, ominous words meant at the end – Kiritsugu finally understood it clearly a few days later.

In a despair even deeper than despair.

In a regret even deeper than regret.

<noinclude>
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| Back to [[Fate/Zero:Act_11_Part_3|Act 11, Part 3]]
| Return to [[Fate/Zero|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Fate/Zero:Act_12_Part_1|Act 12, Part 1]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Fate/Zero:Act 10 Part 5

2011-09-01T06:33:50Z

Fiohnel: /* -84:19:03 */ changed ammunication into ammunition

=== -84:19:03 ===

Emiya Kiritsugu clicked his tongue as he intently watched this unexpected turn of events.

The ship had already been anchored after moving to the appointed location, and the preparations for the engine-powered escape lifeboat loaded aboard were finished. Saber had also successfully regained her Noble Phantasm of certain kill; all that’s left was to summon Rider back and get him to free Caster's sea demon – just as he thought this, Berserker, as though he had somehow lost control of himself, suddenly shifted his focus, from the battle he had with Archer until now, to Saber.

However, now that he thought about it, this was already the second time that Saber was challenged by Berserker without reason. Even when they first met at the warehouse district, as soon as the black knight lost his target, he assaulted Saber like a starving beast. It could be passed off as a coincidence if it only happened once, but that can’t be said for a second time. To begin with, he had suddenly changed targets while completely ignoring his initial target of Archer, who was still going strong.

Of course, even for Archer, boasting an extraordinary amount of pride, this outrage was an inexcusable disdain.

“Have you no control? Mad dog!”

Archer cursed as he accelerated Vimana and soon approached Berserker’s back, close enough that he could kill him for certain. There was now so little distance between them that the opponent would never be able to evade the barrage of Noble Phantasms from {{H:title|Treasures of the King|Gate of Babylon}} regardless of his transcendent mobility – however, this decision backfired on him.

From the underside of the F15's body, scorching fireballs, like will-o'-the-wisps, slowly scattered in succession, washing over the nose of the trailing Vimana.

“What!?”

Originally, this armament called a flare dispenser simply launched out decoy heat sources in order to throw off the enemy’s heat-seeking missiles. However, as a result of being eroded by Berserker’s prana and demonized, they have even transfigured into tracking incendiary weapons. Based on their dogfight up until now, Archer made the hasty conclusion that the enemy doesn’t have a way of attacking against an enemy behind him, and therefore couldn’t cope in time to this unexpected counterattack. The bow of the Vimana plunged into the hive of roaring fire balls, lost control while surrounded by the crimson flames, and fell towards the surface of the river in a spiral.

Although he finally obtained the result of felling Archer, Berserker thought nothing of it right now. The fiendish steel bird did not even confirming the whereabouts of Archer after he sunk into the river, and with nothing but relentlessness, instead tracked down Saber and mercilessly poured down a rain of 20mm rounds.

For Saber, although the F15 that Berseker spurred on was a completely unknown weapon, her skill of sixth sense, equivalent to precognition, allowed her to comprehend with extreme accuracy the nature of this threat. Just before she was hit by the initial strafing run, Saber had sensed that this attack would result in wide-area destruction. Promptly realizing that Irisviel may be caught in the battle if she stayed on the river bank, she once again leapt onto the water surface and sought a path of retreat on the river.

As this was an unavoidable decision, the result guided her to yet another dilemma.

By good command of footwork as a Servant, Saber would be able to rival a jet fighter in speed and galloped on top of the water. However, this vast river surface, with no obstacles at all, was undoubtedly the best hunting ground for the black knight who strafed down from the air above.

The bullets pouring out like torrential rain swept behind the galloping Saber, missing her by a hair, and scattered raging sheets of water like the streams of an upward waterfall.

Regardless of the size of the caliber, something on the level of ''mere cannon shells'' pose no threat to Servants at all. This is especially so with Saber, whose physical abilities would also her to evade them with no difficulty, and even deflect the shots back with the blade of her sword if she wanted to. However – no matter how extraordinary the Heroic Spirit may be, the 12,000 rounds-per-minute of the pride of America's General Electric, the M61 autocannon, presented an unmanageable amount of shots. Worse yet, as a weapon carrying the properties of a Noble Phantasm due to Berserker’s prana, a single shot would instantly be fatal.

“And I finally recovered my left hand…”

Saber was bitterly regretting. Even now, it would be possible for her to use her Noble Phantasm without hesitation and destroy Berserker in the air, but the enemy’s tenacious and incessant attacks didn’t allow her any opportunity to counterattack. Berserker’s battle tactics were both accurate and prudent, as though he knew the full extent of Saber's abilities. In order to hunt a lion, the best method is to keep chasing it, not giving it a single chance to bare its fangs, strangling it; Berserker's skill was like that of a hunter who fully knew the essence of this.

Abruptly, restless tremors spread from the river bank all the way into its surroundings. Only the magi present knew just what these unexplainable tremor meant – the epicenter was probably the inside of the Reality Marble that Rider expanded. The powerful quakes of the raging sea demon were finally beginning to affect normal space. It was an omen that Rider's Reality Marble was finally approaching its ultimate limit.

He must let Rider know of the situation here. Waver, after deciding as such, began to concentrate his thoughts to calling out his own Servant. Having no knowledge of telepathy, Waver could only rely on speech to come to a mutual understanding. However, Rider, who knew this, did say that ‘I’ll leave a herald for you”.

The space beside Waver abruptly shook, and the form of a knight emerged.

“Mithrenes of the {{H:title|Companions|Hetairoi}} rides forth to listen in the King’s stead!”

Overawed by the intrepid demeanor of the Heroic Spirit and his simple salutation, Waver faltered. However, he changed his mind, knowing that it was not the time to pay attention to such things, and mustered the courage in his heart to give directions to this Heroic Spirit he’s never met before.

“I want you to release the bounded field and throw Caster out to the appointed location as soon I give the signal. You can do that, right?”

“It can be done – but it is a race against time. It appears that our army inside the bounded field cannot stop that sea demon for much longer…”

“I know! I’m aware of that!”

As Waver grumbled he also attended to Saber, who kept dodging the attacks of the black knight, with a heart full of prayers.

“Damn it, Berserker, that bastard… can't something be done about him?!”

“– I will go.”

Lancer, responding resolutely, disappeared after grasping the now solitary crimson spear. The spearman that temporarily turned into spiritual form accurately materialized again on the body of the F15, steadying himself by grabbing the steel wings pulsing with black prana with one hand.

“It all ends here, mad warrior!”

No sooner had Lancer shouted this that he brandished the {{H:title|Crimson Rose of Exorcism|Gáe Dearg}} in his right hand above his head, and pierced the body of the grotesque machine with the spear tip.

The red spear that can cut through all prana circulation gleamed. It was indeed the archenemy of Berserker’s peculiar ability. But the black knight has had his full share of the power of this attack after the battle in the warehouse district. The mysterious Servant, maddened but not without prudence, did not make the same mistake when faced with Lancer’s Noble Phantasm.

Right before the red spear skewered the craft's body, Berserker promptly discarded the doomed F15, and leapt high into the sky after using his arms to wretch off the important part of the craft. Immediately after, the fighter jet, reverted to a mass of scrap metal in an instant by {{H:title|Crimson Rose of Exorcism|Gáe Dearg}} cutting off its prana, crashed with Lancer on its wings, throwing up a splendid sheet of water from the Mion river.

The part that Berserker seized at the last minute was naturally the section accommodating the Vulcan unit. The autocannon, having avoided direct contact with Lancer’s spear with a hair's breadth, was still pulsing with the jet black prana that supplemented it, and did not lose the properties of being the black knight’s Noble Phantasm.

“■〓〓〓〓■■■■■■〓〓〓〓!!”

Carrying the six barrels and the cylindrical ammunition casing, weighing 200 kilogram in total, Berserker once again aimed from the sky at Saber below him. The rotary cannon, accelerated by prana, spun up in the blink of an eye. Saber finally realized that she had nowhere else to turn in the instant the torrential bullets were about to surge out.

The firing distance for Berserker, having jumped down from the aircraft and continuing to aim at Saber as he descended. was exceptionally closer than before. Saber no longer had time to anticipate for the initial velocity of the rounds, and no matter which way she may dodge, she couldn’t get out of the range of the rain of shells about to pour onto her.

It's all or nothing...!

Now that it has come to this, Saber was prepared to resort to using her Noble Phantasm, misplaced though it may be; the instant she swung the sword over her head, streaks of shining steel came flying in from an impossible angle and struck Berserker head on.

Hammer, axe and bolt gouged the jet black armor, and a giant sickle cleaved the body of the revolving gun barrel in half. Furthermore, a flaming bolt hit the ammunition storage directly, igniting all the remaining 20mm shells, blossoming wild crimson flames in the air. Berserker, washed over by the fragments and blast, was helplessly blown away, drawing a parabola in the empty air before sinking into the river surface like a thrown rock.

Astounded, Saber turned around and, looking up, saw Archer standing haughtily on the top of the arch of the Fuyuki Bridge. The shooting Noble Phantasms encircled him, surrounding him like an halo. He let out a wicked smile.

“Now, Saber, show it to me. I shall see for myself the true worth of your brilliance as a Heroic Spirit.”

It didn't even need to be said - Saber replied to Archer's insolent words with a silent glance, and once again returned her sight to the river surface, adjusting her stance with the golden sword.

All obstacles have been eliminated. Now was the time of conclusion.

Kiritsugu, who witnessed Berserker’s departure, was on a life boat already galloping to the safety zone. He aimed for and shot up a flare at a spot in the empty sky. The roaring yellow phosphorus flame was right above the line connecting Saber’s current position and the speedboat that Kiritsugu abandoned.

“There! Right under it!”

Waver immediately saw the signal and yelled at Rider's herald beside him. The Heroic Spirit Mithrenes disappeared without so much as a nod, returning to the inside of the bounded field where the king and his companions were waiting.

Immediately after, as though it had been in wait, the air around them shook, and the space that was eroded by the thoughts of the Heroic Spirits returned to the shape it was meant to have. Firstly, an alien shadow covered the night sky like a mirage, then its real form emerged in an instant; the giant and ominous body then fell into the water. That place was directly underneath where Kiritsugu shot the flare.

The raging sheets of water thrown up by the gigantic mass impacting the water assaulted the river bank like a tsunami. However, Saber, the only one who had fought and held her own in direct combat with the sea demon, was not hit by even a single splash. The prana gushing out from her right now summoned a surging wind so pressurized that it brushed aside the wall of water.

At the same time as the reappearance of the sea demon, Rider’s chariot {{H:title|Wheel of Heaven's Authority|Gordius Wheel}} also leapt into the dim night sky once again. Its scar-covered form told of the degree of intensity of the battle that played out inside the Reality Marble, but his majestic and awe-inspiring flying form was not diminished at all.

“– Seriously! Just what took all of you so long… Woah!?”

It was during Rider's moment of complaint that he saw the concentration of light pulsing from Saber’s sword; he immediately understood what was happening and urgently turned aside, escaping the area under threat. On the other hand, Caster’s sea demon wouldn’t be able to dodge so dexterously no matter what. The giant throbbing meat lump could do nothing apart from shrieking to scare this unknown brilliance.

The time was ripe.

Pouring all the strength in her body into the two arms grasping the hilt tightly, the King of Knights lifted the golden sword up high.

Light gathered. As if illuminating this holy sword was its ultimate duty, the light condensed further, merging into a blinding brilliance.

At the fierceness and purity of this beam of light, no one could speak a single word.

It was the gallant figure of a knight who once shone the light of purification upon into a battle-ravaged world, a darkness blacker than night.

Unyielding for ten years, undefeated in twelve battles. These peerless feats of arms and this glory were eternal, transcending time.

[[Image:FZ_v03_00p.jpg|thumb|This shining sword itself is the nostalgic, sorrowful, and exalted dream of all warriors past, present and future who stand at the brink of death on the battlefield – the crystallization of the prayer named ‘glory’.

Proudly uplifting this will, ascertaining that this faith will be seen to its end, the king of eternal victory now loudly declared the true name of this miracle she held in her hands.

It was –

“Ex – calibur!!!”]]

This shining sword itself is the nostalgic, sorrowful, and exalted dream of all warriors past, present and future who stand at the brink of death on the battlefield – the crystallization of the prayer named ‘glory’.

Proudly uplifting this will, ascertaining that this faith will be seen to its end, the king of eternal victory now loudly declared the true name of this miracle she held in her hands.


It was –

“{{H:title|Sword of Promised Victory|Ex – calibur}}!!!”

Light galloped.

Light roared.

The prana, accelerated by the factor of the released dragon, became a streak of light, a swirling and surging torrent that devoured the sea demon together with the dark night.

A silent scream rose within the river water evaporating in an instant, as every single atom composing the body of the giant sea demon that had been the embodiment of terror were exposed to the scorching impact.

But in the center of the sea demon being completely burnt to cinders, within a fortress of bulky defiled flesh, Caster simply wordlessly watched over this moment of white blinding annihilation which had stolen his heart.

“…O, Oh…”

Yes – it was unmistakeably a light he had once seen in the distant past.

Had he not once been a knight who pursued and rode after this light?

The recollection, vivid and utterly unclouded, brought Gilles back to the distant past.

It was the light that shone through the stained-glass windows of the great cathedral, at the long-awaited coronation ceremony of King Charles. It was a white brilliance, a blessing of joy that wrapped around Jeanne and Gilles, who had attended as saviors and national heroes, together with the ars nova melody.

Aah, there’s no mistake – it was this light.

He could still remember it. Even now, after his fall into brutality, his entire body smeared with corruption, the memories of that day did not fade at all and remained carved into his heart.

Even if his end was stained with humiliation and revulsion, no matter how much he may be held in contempt – the glory in his past alone cannot be denied or overturned, for it was in his heart.

Something that even God or Fate will never be able to take away or violate…

Gilles de Rais was dumbstruck by the clarity of his own rapidly falling tears.

What was he confused with? Had he lost sight of something?

If he could just look back and admit it – wouldn’t that be enough?

“Just what, have I…”

Before this murmur, directed at no one, left his mouth, all matter was brought into another world, annihilated by the white light.

<center>※※※※※</center>

Archer, standing on the high arch of the bridge and looking down upon all, couldn’t help but have a smile emerging on his face when he saw this light of destruction that burnt and consumed all.

“Do you see it, King of Conquerors? This is Saber’s light.”

Archer addressed the empty space beside him. Rider, who had just experienced a merciless fight, was letting the chariot pulled by divine bulls remain still in the air, and was gazing dazedly at the ultimate light Excalibur was emanating.

“Do you still not want to acknowledge her after witnessing that ray of light?”

Rider snorted, dismissing Archer’s question. However, what was on his face as not despite or mockery, but a solemnity as if he was looking out over a thing of tragic grandeur.

“It was indeed because she took upon her shoulders the hope of every man of the time that she’s able to display such might – it’s painful precisely because it is so blindingly brilliant. Who could have thought that the person carrying such a heavy weight is only a little girl who liked to dream?”

On the river surface, which the two of them looked down upon, Saber’s slender body was huffing painfully due to the intensive battle to the death that had just ended. Rider only knew what kind of heaviness was piled upon her young and delicate shoulders thanks to last night’s quiz. For him, whose personality is open and straightforward, this kind of ‘way of living’ is absolutely unforgivable.

“This kind of little girl is truly the final result of someone who discarded youthful romance and dreams, discarded love, and sunk into the eternal curse of ‘ideals’. It is truly painful, and one can’t bear to look upon it anymore.”

“This is exactly what’s lovely about her, isn’t it?”

Different from the King of Conqueror’s fully melancholic expression, the golden Servant’s smile was immeasurably obscene and did not hide his dirty desires at all.

“The overly-mighty ideal that she harbored within her would burn her into nothing but ashes at the end. Those tears that she would shed at her final moment… I imagine it would be very sweet to the taste.”

Complacent, Archer let his imagination run wild. With a flick of his eyes, Rider gave him a look of enmity.

“… It seems I still can’t like you, Babylonian King of Heroes.”

“Oh? You only discerned it now?”

This title made the sparkling golden Heroic Spirit burst fully into a smile.

“What do you plan to do, Rider? Want to use brutal force right now to unleash your anger?”

“Although it’ll be quite a joy to do that, tonight my strength would perhaps not live up to my feelings if my opponent is you.”

After Rider spoke the truth straightforwardly and with no exaggeration, he gave another look at Archer and said scornfully: “Of course, if you don’t want to let the chance pass and insist in fighting with me, this king would gladly do so at anytime.”

“No matter. I permit you to escape, King of Conquerors. I wouldn’t feel satisfied if I don’t defeat you at the height of your strength, anyways.”

Hearing this self-possessed declaration from Archer, Rider lifted his eyebrows as if pulling a prank.

“Hmm? Hahaha. Though you say that, the truth must be that your wounds caused by being sunk by Blackie haven’t healed properly either, right?”

“… All who provokes the king need to die to repent their sin!”

Seeing how the other didn’t take the joke well and that his twin red irises were full with a killing intent, Rider tightened the reins of the divine bulls with a smile and increased the distance between them.

“Decide the victor next time, King of Heroes. The owner of the Holy Grail, I imagine, would perhaps be the result of our battle.”

The only ones who are worthy to obtain the Grail are the Heroic Spirits at the level of ‘Kings’. That is, one of the two between the King of Conquerors and the King of Heroes. Undoubtedly, Rider himself still believed firmly in that point right now. The Heroic Spirit Alexander smiled fearlessly and left the top of the arch of the bridge, and as thus galloped towards the river bank where his Master was at.

“What would happen at the end?... Rider, I still haven’t decided if you’re the only one who’s worthy for me to grant the ultimate treasure to.”

Archer, who was muttering to himself, had another Heroic Spirits in his heart. In terms of the degree of attention he had, the interest of the King of Heroes was actually all piled upon her.

Tonight, witnessing with his own eyes that incomparable light lead the thoughts of the primeval Heroic Spirit back to the distant past.

– Once upon a time, there was a man.

He was a foolish and ridiculous fellow whom, despite having a body made of mud and soil, set his heart to stand shoulder to shoulder with gods.

Of course, his hubris and disrespectful arrogance offended the gods in heaven. The man suffered divine retribution and lost his life.

Even to this day, the King of Heroes still couldn’t forget the way that he passed away with tears streaming down his face.

Why are you crying? The King of Heroes had asked. Could it be that, only now, you are regretting having taken my side?

It’s not that –

He had answered.

“Who would understand you after I die? Who else would march forward by your side? My friend… when I think that you will live on all alone henceforth, I can’t help but shed tears…”

Like so, when he saw that man taking his last breath, the incomparable king realized – the way that this man, who was human but wanted to surpass humanity, had lived, was even more precious and more brilliant than all the treasures he had collected.

“You fool who stretch your hand towards realms not of men… There is only one person in heaven or earth who’s worthy of appreciating your destruction, and that is none other than I, Gilgamesh.

Sink into my embrace, oh you glorious and illusionary men. That is my decision.”

The golden majestic brilliance disappeared in the night mist, leaving only an evil laughter echoing long after.

<noinclude>
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|-
| Back to [[Fate/Zero:Act_10_Part_4|Act 10, Part 4]]
| Return to [[Fate/Zero|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Fate/Zero:Act_11_Part_1|Act 11, Part 1]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Fate/Zero:Act 10 Part 1

2011-09-01T06:29:59Z

Fiohnel: /* -84:34:58 */ changed centred to centered

[[Image:FZ_v03_081.png|thumb|Act 10]]

=== -84:34:58 ===



No matter what, the ones who perceived the presence of the strange sorcery weren't Waver and Rider alone.

The spell-like waves emitted from the surrounding of Mion River were close to the multiple aria of the ritual magecraft class, something which could not be activated without at least 10 people. Certainly, every magus in Fuyuki city―namely, all the masters participating in the Holy Grail War, would have sensed that at once.

Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri who had newly acquired the rights to be a Master, and Lancer, were at that moment, looking for their enemy from a high place in Shinto best suited for a broad view, which was the rooftop of the under construction Fuyuki Centre building. Tonight, mist of a somewhat strange amount seethed from the Mion River, causing their field of vision to thin extremely. With the eyesight of human beings, only the blur figure of the illuminated Fuyuki bridge could be seen.

“―Can you see what's going on? Lancer.”

At Sola's question, Lancer who was looking through the mist with his super eyesight as a Servant, nodded.


“It really is Caster. Looks like something has set up a camp at the center of the river. As for the details, I'm afraid I can't see it.”

As usual, completely lacking any notion to conceal himself, it was the improper defencelessness as a magus. Caster was simultaneously turned into the target by many other Servants due to the supervisor's arrangement, and yet he was still not aware of it yet?

“If we want to bring him down, now's the best chance right?”

“Yes. Whatever he is doing, before he delivers his result, it would be wise to kill him first.”

Naturally, that was not all―Looking down at the Command Seals engraved on the back of her hand, which she had plundered from her fiance, Kayneth El-Melloi, she thought. ''I'm sure other Masters would have sensed Caster's appearance. If I'm aiming for the reward from the supervisor, the supplementary Command Seals, I have to go ahead of the other rivals and defeat Caster immediately.''

If they managed to seize Caster's head successfully, these Command Seals which lacked a stroke due to Kayneth's idiocy, would be complete again. Three strokes of Command Seals, the originally ideal form―Her flawless bond with heroic spirit Diarmuid would be regained back. By merely thinking of that, Sola could not suppress her violently throbbing heart.

“I will go out and attack. Sola-sama, please stay here and observe my fighting.”


“No way! Now I am a Master. I'll back you up from your side.”

At those pleading-like eyes, Lancer shook his head determinedly.

“That cannot be done. With all due respect, my lady does not have the battle knowledge like Kayneth-dono does. That riverbank will become a place of death. Even for me, a battle in which I would have to protect my lady, whose defence cannot match up; is almost impossible. Please, please understand.”

“But......”

Although she was told that, for Sola right now, merely parting from Lancer's side for a short while was a hardship beyond forlornness.

“Or else―Sola-sama, do you suspect dullness in my spear point? That I am fooling about in this selfish fight?”

At Lancer who had narrowed his eyes and asked her that, Sola shook her head hastily. Adding to the humiliation Kayneth “bestowed” towards Lancer was out of the question. By all means, Sola had to make Lancer who still swore allegiance to Kayneth, to understand that Sola was the Master truly worthy of his loyalty.

“Lancer, I will leave the judgments at the battlefield to you. Please fight this battle freely, without any regret.”

“I am indebted to you.”


After lowering his head quietly, Lancer kicked hard at his steel-framed foothold, and leaped towards the light at the street under his eyes.

Looking at the back of that Servant who leaped from one roof to another on the close-up buildings, earnestly focused on the river, Sola saw him off with bitter, painful feelings.

Ever since substituting Kayneth as Master―that heroic spirit had never smiled at her; not even once.

From the base Kiritsugu prepared to Mion River which was the source of the abnormal magecraft, Saber needed just a few more minutes to cover that distance with the Mercedes she was driving.

Logically thinking, since the streets of Miyama town were narrow and complicated, the time required would easily exceed 30 minutes. Nevertheless, the Riding skill of this Servant achieved the miracle of overthrowing this reasoning. The speed of the silver automobile which rushed through the narrow lanes and curves with bumps and close-shaves, had already achieved the preposterousness of making one doubt even the laws of nature.

Springing off from the road onto the path along the riverside, the automobile stopped after it landed with an elegant spin turn. Without waiting even for the car wing door to open, Saber leaped out, and ran up the bank. The fog was thick enough to block the vision of ordinary humans, but it did not block Servants' eyesight.


Sure enough, her bitter enemy was right in front of her, calmly standing still at the center of the river, which was 200 meters wide. Alighting from the passenger seat onto the top of the bank, Irisviel ascertained the figure in the mist with her magecraft-strengthened eyesight, and frowned with an irritated-looking expression.

“Just as I thought, it's Caster.”

Saber nodded, and observed the enemy Servant painstakingly. Alone and not accompanied by his Master as usual, he was standing straight on the sandbar-less river center, as if standing on the water surface. Upon a close look, the thing which was turning into his foothold, was grotesque shadows gathering beneath the water surface. Looks like the swarm of creatures she battled at the forest the other day, had gathered under Caster's feet, forming a “sandbar”.

From the abnormal emission of prana. there was doubt that Caster was performing some sort of large-scale magecraft. The outset of this strange fog which centered about the river, was probably an aftermath due to this as well. Not showing even the expression of him focusing on his incantations, he was merely standing relaxingly― The vortex of raging prana overflowed from the grimoire in his hands, distorting even the space around it.

An extraordinary prana kiln, a Noble Phantasm which compiles the monologic procedures......Falling into the hands of a lunatic, there were no weapons as dangerous as this.


“Welcome, holy maiden. It is my utmost delight to be able to meet you again.”

At Caster who gave a bow in his usual courteous way, Saber's eyes flared with anger.

“You're incorrigible......Heretic, what's your plan tonight!!”

“I'm very sorry, Jeanne. This evening, the guest of honor is not my lady.”

His face twisted with a sinister laughter which could make one shiver. Although he would reveal a madness which did not exist before, Caster responded.

“―In spite of that, to be honored by my lady's presence again is a supreme joy to me. Please enjoy to the fullest, the banquet of death and degeneration this unworthy Gilles de Rais prepared.”

Under the feet of Caster's who was laughing out loud, the dark surface started shaking. The countless creatures which had gathered under the summoner's feet, protruded their innumerable tentacles simultaneously―weren't they swallowing down Caster who was standing on their heads, receiving them?

At the first look, Caster appeared to have been assaulted by the familiars which had betrayed him. However, with his entire body covered by the tentacles, Caster proudly raised the voice of his mad, ringing laughter further up a tone, which was already similar to a strange shriek.


“Now, once again we'll wave the salvation flag! It's good that the abandoned had gathered. Great that the condemned had gathered as well. I am the leader! I am the commander! The resentments towards us, the oppressed ones, surely would have reached even “God”! Oooh the Lord of heavens! I receive the condemnation and offer up my body!!”

The bubbling surface swelled up, and pushed up Caster who was still being swallowed by the tentacles. Before one knows, the number of the creatures becoming his foothold increased. If one considers the depth of the river, that number was already more terrifying than imagined.

“Caster is......being absorbed??”

In front of the eyes of the horrified Saber, the amount of creatures crowding at the summoner's body itself kept swelling. The summons of {{H:title|The Text of the Spiralled Sunken Citadel|Prelati’s Spellbook}} had to be of an inexhaustible supply. The countless tentacles entwined among each other and fused together, and was already becoming a lump of meat.

The glittering, filthy mucus which could make one nauseous, was pretty much a sandbar of meat; an island of meat. Yet, as if that was still not enough, the assembly of creatures swelled continuously.

Even Caster's figure had disappeared. Only his voice reverberated like the cry of victory.

“O you proud “God”! O you cruel “God”! We'll drag you down from your heavenly seat! O Lamb loved by God! O humans who take after the image of God! At this very moment, scorn, insult, rip apart to your heart's content! We will ride on the guffaws of the rebels, to the lamentations and shrieks of God's children, and strike the gates of heaven!”


The dirty lump of meat had already swelled to the size of a sphere. No, maybe this is the real form of the diabolic underworld. All the familiars Caster had employed until today had to be but the bits and pieces of ''this''; small fries which would not exceed ''this''.

“That is......”

A grotesque shadow rising with darkness as its background. At that disgusting and yet overwhelming majesty, Saber held her breath.

Even the champions of the deep seas- whales and giant squids, could not boast of such large size. A nightmare which governs the ocean in the realm that is outside this world. Without a doubt, that aquatic giant fits the name of a “sea demon”.

It was fortunate that no one was standing with Irisviel at the river bank, but at the other shore of the river, residences had already turned their lights on. In spite the fact that it was late at night, the mad sounds would be transported by the wind there. Naturally, such an obvious mystery would be exposed to the eyes of the public. At the very least, due to the thick night fog which shrouded visions, those able to witness the monster would be limited. The residents' panic would be confined into a restricted area.

In any case, the unspoken agreement that the Holy Grail war should be conducted in secret, was completely violated.

“I have underestimated this fellow......Summoning such a monster!”

“No, no matter how strong a Servant is, the “form” of the familiar they can summon and use should be limited. However, if we were to ignore “using”, there should be no limit to it...”

The supposedly stout-hearted Irisviel revealed her awe through her voice this time.


“Neglecting the controls after the summoning, if it is just “inviting”......no matter how powerful the monsters are, logically, it is still possible. As long as he has the prana and technique to just open the door.”

“......That monster is not under Caster's control?”

“No doubt about it.”

Irisviel's state of being shaken was probably because of the terror she was able to comprehend as a magus. Nevertheless, Saber did not have any pains at grasping the gravity of the situation.

“Magecraft is “the art of flipping through evil”. But ''THAT'' is a genuine “evil” which does not apply to the reasoning of those minions. The incarnation of something which have the craving desire of endlessly devouring with thorough greediness. To summon such a thing; that act itself is neither an “art” nor anything else!”

Whilst tightening her fists in anger, Saber considered the magus' madness.

“Well then, that creature is not challenging anyone to a fight.....?”

“That's right. It was just invited to eat. A city like this takes only a few hours to be completely consumed.”

“―Tcth!”


Caster did not even have the recognition of what a battle or a victory is. That demented Servant probably planned to wreck the “Holy Grail War”- the conduct itself; and to send it back, idle. Together with all the lives in this city.

At familiar peals of thunder, Saber turned around. At the open space of the park where it was just the two of them, the shining chariot of god's authority had just landed. Holding the bridles, the gigantic Servant shot an insolent smile at the person ahead of him.

“Yo, King of Knights. What a fine night...is what I wanted to say, but looks like now's not the time for genteel greetings.”

“King of Conquerors......You're still incorrigible. Did you come again to make some jokes?”

As if evading Saber who alertly put herself on guard, Rider calmly raised his hands.

“C'mon, c'mon. Tonight's the only truce. If that HUGE FELLA is left alone, I can't do any killings in peace.

Since just now, I have been going around calling the other Servants. Lancer had agreed. He should have caught up by now.”

“......The other Servants?”

“I have squashed Assassin to death, and Berserker is out of the question. As for Archer...merely calling him is useless. He's the type which would respond to collusions.”


Saber nodded, and with a serious expression, hit her breastplate with her gauntlet hand.

“Understood. I have no objection to cooperating too. King of Conquerors, although it is just a brief alliance, let's swear our loyalty together.”

“Huhu, it's good that we have understanding when it comes to battles......Hmm? What's wrong? You Masters not happy?”

“............”

Naturally, it was not that they were unhappy. Irisviel was just somewhat daunted at Rider and Saber's practical-minded sportsmanship, having placed their past grudge on the shelves. As for Waver, he did not even try to hide his wariness, as he peeked timidly from the driver's seat of Rider's chariot, not trying to get down at all.

Be it killing the enemy, or forming alliances, for those who live in battlefields, they definitely have no space for personal feelings, and have to make cold-hearted judgements- both of them probably had the same perspective in this matter. This is the spirit which could not be shared had they not gone through similarly troubled times.

Nonetheless, whatever they were to disregard now, Caster's recklessness had to be stopped. If an oath is something good enough for trust, the most prudent decision now would be to join forces here.

“I don't mind. Einsbern accepts the truce. Rider's Master, is that okay with you?”

At Irisviel's call, Waver nodded reluctantly.


“......Einsbern, what's your plan? I heard from Lancer just now that this is not your first time fighting with Caster himself?”

Indeed. For Saber, this could be called the return match of that fight in their forest. They had barely managed to fight off Caster with Lancer's help, but having acquired incomparable battle powers, Caster had come to fight back. Nevertheless, this time Lancer was not here, and they had formed an alliance with Rider. From the way things are going, it was still not entirely gloomy.

“―Anyway, we have to defeat him swiftly. Right now that monster is probably still being maintained in this world by prana provision from Caster, but once THAT THING acquires independent provisions and starts supporting itself, things would get out of our hands. To stop Caster before that...”

Satisfied, Saber nodded.

“His grimoire right?”

The autonomic summon prana kiln, {{H:title|The Text of the Spiralled Sunken Citadel|Prelati’s Spellbook}}. That extraordinary Noble Phantasm was now buried with Caster's body inside the sea monster's heart.

“Indeed. We have to settle this before before that guy gets up the shore to ''begin his meal''. But...”

Frowning in displeasure, Rider gazed at that dark green giant which coiled round and round.

“Caster is at the depths of that massive meat. Well, what should we do?”

“Drag him out. Can't do anything else.”

At Rider's grumble, a new voice from the darkness behind responded. Under the street lights, the resplendent silhouette of the twin lances appeared. Slightly later than the chariot which dashes across the skies, it was Lancer. Finally, the three-Servant anti-Caster alliance had assembled.

“If he would just show his Noble Phantasm, I can destroy his technique with a blow from my{{H:title|Crimson Rose of Exorcism |Gáe Dearg}}......Naturally, I don't think that guy would easily allow that to happen.”

“Lancer, you can hit Caster's Noble Phantasm from the river side by hurling the lance?”

At Saber's question, Lancer laughed audaciously.

“If only he would just show ''that thing'', there won't be any trouble at all. You looking down on us lance-wielding heroic spirits?”

“Okay. So Rider and I will cover the forefront. Is that all right, King of Conquerors?”

“I don't mind, but......Even if my chariot doesn't need road to travel on, Saber, how do you plan to attack the enemy in the river?”

Being asked thus by Rider, this time it was Saber's turn to grin.

“This body of mine has received divine protection from the lady of the lake. Whatever the water is, there is nothing which can stop my advance.”

“Oh? That's something quite rare......I really want you to join my men.”

At Rider's self-centered comment, Saber whose beautiful eyebrows would usually ruffle, ignored him with a sharp glare instead.

“You will pay the price of that careless remark another time. Now, digging Caster out of the inside of the monster is the top priority.”


“Haha, aye! Well then, let me strike the first blow.” 

Together with his roar of laughter, Rider lashed at the oxen of his chariot, and dashed up to the empty sky with clapping thunders. Not caring at all about Waver's shrieks who apparently hadn't made the mental preparation, the King of Conquerors' galloping Noble Phantasm started the straight-on charge towards that gargantuan sea monster.

“Saber, good luck!”

Nodding at Irisviel who called out to her, the King of Knights leaped from the bank into the river again.

The shiny greaves hit the water surface, and silver splashes scattered in brilliance. But, the tips of her toes did not sink. With hardness identical to a ground, the water Saber stepped on accepted her sprint. It was just the miracle which could happen to the king due to the blessing of the spirit of the lake.

As she got closer, the figure of the sea monster grew all the more. As if bending over towards Saber, it overwhelmed her with its odious dignity.

Like a group of snakes, the curvy tentacles which extended all over freely, stretched out to intercept the approaching King of Knights. 

Nevertheless, neither its strangeness nor its odiousness could hinder her sprint. Right now, fear and impatience were the same in Saber's heart.


“Let's settle this, Caster!”

The beheading strike of the Barrier of the Wind King which was swung over her head with renewed fighting spirit, first hit the sea monster with a merciless stroke.

<center>X X</center>

Somewhere far away, within the thunderclouds of high altitudes at which not even birds fly, the voices of whispers being exchanged over digitally encrypted wireless radios could be heard.

''“Control to Diablo I, come in!”''

“This is Diablo I, loud and clear. Anything?”

''“Request from Fuyuki city police for disaster relief operation. Stop patrolling immediately, get there now.”''

“Disaster relief operation?” Hearing those words from the headphone, First Class Lieutenant Ōgi doubted his ears.

If it were helicopters or P3C, he could still understand. But a “disaster” which could call back an F15 fighter from its maritime border patrol, what on earth could it be?


“Control, clarifying order contents. What happened?”

At the other side of the wireless radio, there was a brief, awkward silence.

''“......Ah, okay, don't laugh. Over there......a monster had appeared.”''

To hear that in the cockpit of a subsonic cruising speed, it could be said to be a first-rate joke. Not laughing was an absurd request.

“That's the best! It was worthwhile for me to sign up for the air defense.”

''“Anyway it is an official order. Diablo I, observe and report the situation at Mion River.”''

“......It's a joke right. Oi?”

''“Diablo I, repeat.”''

[[Image:FZ_v03_099.png|thumb|]]
The irritated voice of the controller told him that he was dragged into this ridiculous prank too. Sighing, Captain Ōgi gave a fixed reply monotonously.

“Diablo I, roger that. This plane is on its way to Mion river mouth for scouting. Over!”

Despite that, Captain Ōgi had suddenly become inclined to believe the content of the conversation just now. When the thought that such absurd conversation might be recorded in the voice recorder crossed his mind, he felt an awkwardness as if he wanted to run away.

“......Diablo II, just like what was said. Turn back. Let's go back!”

''“Roger. But......is that all right?”''

The pilot of the consort plane, Diablo II- Third Class Lieutenant Kobayashi said that in a tone which did not hide his suspicion towards that absurd order.

Nonetheless, whether it was true or false, he had no choice but to carry out the orders relayed to him. At least, the only consolation was that his destination, Fuyuki city was on the air way back to his base. He didn't know who on earth would take responsibility for it, but for now. at least the jet fuel wasting due to needless loitering would be kept to a minimum.

''“If there really is a monster, you'll give us the permission to fight?”''

At Third Class Lieutenant Kobayashi's semi-desperate words, First Class Lieutenant Ōgi snorted again.

“If this is a monster film, we are surely the roles which will be ''killed''. The underdogs from Ultraman.”

''“That's not funny.”''

In the navigators' hearts, with the thunderous roar of the afterburner, turning its silver wings over, the figure of the F15J was as gallant as usual.

<noinclude>
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|-
| Back to [[Fate/Zero:Act_9_Part_4|Act 9, Part 5]]
| Return to [[Fate/Zero|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Fate/Zero:Act_10_Part_2|Act 10, Part 2]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Fate/Zero:Act 8 Part 6

2011-08-31T12:57:53Z

Fiohnel: /* -102:54:10 */ Found two typos

===-102:54:10===

As Saber dramatically finished her sentence, everyone lapsed into silence.

The one who was most confused was Saber herself.

An awkward silence filled the room. ''This made no sense.'' Even though she spoke with emphasis, no one in the room was easily cowed by talk.

It was plain and clear, without any room for doubt. That was her kingship. There was nothing surprising about it. What was surprising was that no one voiced dissent or agreement – when it was obvious that those words should have been immediately said.

“Hey King of Knights, I might have heard you wrong but...?”

Rider finally broke the silence, his face was plainly confused.

“Did you say "you want to change fate"? Which means you want to reverse history?”

“Correct. Even if the wish is something cannot be granted through a miracle, if the Holy Grail is truly omnipotent, surely...”

Saber answered haughtily. Now she understood why the atmosphere between the two kings was so special – immediately, the situation cooled down.

“Errr, Saber? I’d like to confirm this...... The destruction of that Britain was in your time, right? During your reign?”

“Yes! That is why I cannot forgive myself.”

Saber answered, her tone becoming firmer.

“That's why I can't let things be that way. The destruction of my country was my fault, and thus I want to reverse it.”

Suddenly, someone laughed out loud. The laughter was a base, incomprehensible laugh. And the laugh was coming out of the mouth of that shining golden Archer. 　

In the face of such grave insults, Saber’s face was full of anger. The thing most precious to her was ridiculed by Archer.

“…Archer. What’s so funny?　　

Ignoring Saber’s wrath, the golden Heroic Spirit replied brokenly as he guffawed.

“Calling yourself a king – praised by all – a person like you could have 'regrets?' Ha! Of course it was funny. Saber! You’re the world’s best clown!” 　　

Beside Archer, who was laughing uncontrollably, Rider creased his brow as he stared at Saber with worry in his eyes.

“Hold on. You, hold on, King of Knights, you want to deny the history in which you’ve created?”　

Saber never had any doubts to her own ideals, and of course, would not be stopped by Rider’s question.

“Correct. Why you suspect me? Why are you laughing? The country to which I sacrificed my life as a king had perished. Is there something wrong with me grieving?”

The thing answering her was again, a burst of laughter from Archer.

“Oi, oi, did you hear that, Rider! This young girl who calls herself the King of Knights – is saying something about sacrificing for her country!”

In response to Archer was Rider’s deepening silence and increasing gloomy expression. To Saber, it was just as humiliating as being laughed at.

“I don’t understand what is there to be laughing about. As kings, we should naturally sacrifice ourselves, and strive to create a better country!”

“No, you’re wrong.”

In a firm, rock-like voice, Rider objected.

“It’s not the king sacrificing for the nation. It’s the nation and the people sacrificing their lives for the king. You got it backwards.”

“What-?!”

Saber could no longer suppress her own anger. She shouted loudly.

“──Isn't that a tyrant's rule?──Rider, Archer, you bastards are nowhere near a king! Heretics!"

“True. We are tyrants, therefore we are heroes.”

Rider answered without so much as a change in his facial expression.

“We take full responsibility for our nations. Therefore, Saber. Listen to me. If a king is not content with his own kingdom, he is a weak ruler. A weak ruler is a worse king to have than a tyrant!”

Unlike Archer, who had ridiculed her for all this time, Rider had rejected her from the basis of her ideals. Saber’s brows narrows as she retorted sharply.

“Alexander, you…Your own empire. It became four separate warring factions that quickly disappeared into the sands of history. At that ending, you don't have any regrets? If you can redo it, you'd want to save your motherland...aren't you thinking about that?”

“No.”

Raising himself to his full height, the King of Conquerors met Saber’s furious gaze with his own.

“No, I do not. If the actions of me and my generals lead to the eventual demise of my own nation, then I will accept it for what it is! Yes, I will grieve. Yes, I will shed tears. But I will not have a single regret!”

“…What?”

“Don’t you even dare suggesting something as stupid as an attempt to rewrite history! Such an idiotic action, is an insult to all of humanity who lived during my time!”

In response to Rider’s haughty declaration, Saber shook her head.

“What you’re saying is only the glory of a simple fighter. The people won’t wish for such things. Salvation would be their prayer."

“You’re saying they want the king’s salvation?”

Rider shrugged as he laughed.

“I don’t get it! What’s the point of such a useless thing?”

“That is the true worth of a king!”

This time, it was Saber’s turn to answer arrogantly.

“A correct governance, a lawful society, all subjects would probably be wishing for them.”

“Are you a slave to this “correctness,” then?”

“You could say that. The only one fit to rule is someone who would willingly give themselves up for an ideal.”

Without any hint of hesitation, the young King of Knights nodded.

“Through the king, the people could understand law and order. The king should not express something that would disappear upon the king’s death, but rather something more precious.”　　

At Saber who had proclaimed that firmly, while displaying a feeling as if he pitied her somewhere, Rider let out a deep sigh.

“That is not a path taken by a human being.”

“Correct. As king, we cannot hope for a normal life.”

To become the perfect ruler, to become the embodiment of the ideals, she was willing to give up her body and throw away her emotions. The life of that young woman whose name was Arturia was changed completely the moment she pulled that sword out of the stone. From then on, she became a legend of victory, a synonym of praises and dreams.

There was pain, there was disappointment, but within it was the radiance of victory. An unchangeable ideal which still supported her sword arm.

“King of Conquerors! A king like you could never understand my own beliefs! You’re nothing but a bully who was blinded by his own desires!”

Saber shouted sternly. Rider’s eyes immediately widened as he answered in response.

“A desireless king is no better than a flower vase!"

Rider’s loud roar, plus his gigantic body, made him appear more fearsome.

“Saber, you just said that you needed to 'sacrifice for your ideals.' Indeed. You’re some saint – so holy that no one could ever hope to come near you. But who would be willing to die for their empty beliefs? And who would be thinking about this so-called saint day and night? You could only comfort the people, but not lead the people. The only way to bring country and people upon the right path is to present those desires, and the glory that could be found only in legends.”

Draining his cup, the King of Conquerors corrected.

“As king, you must have stronger desires than anyone else. You must be more magnificent, more easily angered than everyone else! He should be both pure and chaotic, a man who was more real than any other man. Only through this, could your subjects be impressed by the king, and only this, would the message of 'if only I was king, that would be wondrous' would be imprinted upon the people’s heart”

“Such a way of kingship… where on earth is the justice?”

“It doesn’t exist. Justice is unnecessary in the principles of a king. That's exactly why there is no remorse.”

“…”

He was too adamant in his opinions, and Saber was already uncontrollably angry.

Though the basis was for their people, the two’s ideals were too far apart.

One side prayed for peace.

The other dreamed about prosperity.

The king who suppressed the chaos of war and the king who stirred up the chaos of war, there was no way their ideals could have been the same. 　　

Rider smiled as he continued bluntly.

“King of Knights. Your justice and ideals might have saved your people and country for a time, and thus, your name is praised until today, mm? Although, the people’s lives whom you saved, and their end, you did know what happened at the end, right?”

“What…did you say?”

The bloodstained sunset hill.

That sight was once again reignited in Saber’s brain.

“You wanted solely to 'save' your subjects, yet you’ve never 'guided' them. They don’t know “the king’s wishes.” You ignored the lost subjects, yet you yourself pretended to be saintly, drunk in your own narrow views.　　

Thus, you’re not a good king. You’re only someone who wanted to become someone who took care of the people. You’re just a little girl who spun a cocoon around yourself in order to become that idealized view.”

“I…”

There were many things she wanted to say in retort. Yet, every time she opened her mouth, she could only see the site she witnessed at Camlann.

Bodies everywhere. The blood ran like a river. There lied her subjects, friends, and loved ones. 　　

As she pulled out that sword in the stone she knew about the prophecy. She knew that she was destined to fail, and she already understood.

But…why…

As she witnessed the sight personally, she felt surprised. She could do nothing else but pray.

Once a magus prophesied it was nearly impossible to go against fate. Yet, she still wondered, if she could have a miracle.

A dangerous thought occupied Saber’s thoughts.

If she wasn’t England’s savior, but rather a tyrant who ravished England…

The chaotic world would only become more chaotic. First, that was not her way of kingship. And no matter what perspective, she would never make that choice as Arturia.

But, if she really did that…in comparison to Camlann, which one was more tragic?

Suddenly, she felt a chill on her spine. The chill brought her back to reality.

It was Archer’s look.

The golden servant had left them alone since Saber had started arguing with Rider. He himself sat by a corner and drank quietly. His deep-red pupils started studying her, but she didn’t know when.

He said nothing, and only judging from his eyesight, one could not read his intent. But there was something lascivious in his gaze. It was as if a snake crawling up her body, bringing her humiliation and unease.

“…Archer, why are you looking at me?”

“Ah, I am merely studying your annoyed expression.”

Archer’s smile was surprisingly gentle, but at the same time, fearsome.

"It is like a virgin on which flowers are being scattered, lying on the bed. I like it."

“You bastard….”

For Saber, this was a mockery hard to be forgiven. Without any tinge of hesitation, she threw down her cup, and a sound could be heard from the sheath of the invisible sword.

But at the next moment, the thing that made the other two change their expressions was not her threatening attitude.

Moments later, Irisviel and Waver also felt something different in the surrounding air. Though it was unseen, through their skin they could feel extremely heavy murderous intent.

Strange white creatures emerged in the center of the moonlit court. One after the other, their pale white visages were like blooming flowers as they appeared. The paleness was the color of cold, dry bone.

Skull masks and black cloaks. The previously empty center court slowly became surrounded by this strange group.

Assassin…

Not only Rider and Waver knew that they were still alive, but Saber and Irisviel also learned of the detail from their conversation with Kiritsugu on warehouse street.

Assassin was not limited to the one slain near the Tōsaka residence. The reality was, there were many Assassins – an unnaturally numerous number of Assassins that participated in this Heaven’s feel. They all wore masks and were clad in black robes, and their body sizes differed as well. Some were giant, some were slim, some where short like children while some were women.

“…This is your doing? Archer.”

Archer shrugged rather innocently.

“Who knows, I have no need to understand the thoughts of mongrels"

Since this many Assassins are gathered here, their command cannot have originated from just Kirei. Perhaps it is the plans of his mentor, Tōsaka?

Because Tōsaka has declared fealty to the King of Heroes, Archer grudgingly recognized the Master. However, what Tōsaka did now was extremely displeasing.

Though Rider was the host of the banquet, Archer was the one who provided the wine. What on earth is the meaning of this? This is an action which would indirectly dirty the reputation of the King of Heroes. Shouldn't Tokiomi be able to understand that?

“Mm…so much confusion!”

Waver sighed rather desperately as he watched the opponents approach. Incomprehensible!

This event has far exceeded the regulation and limits of the Heaven’s Feel.

“What's the meaning of this?! Assassin appearing one after the other…There was supposed to be only one Servant of each class!”

Watching the awkward expressions of their prey, Assassins laughed evilly.

“You’re correct. We are all acting as one Servant, and each individual is only a shadow of the whole.

Waver and Irisviel could not understand that Kirei Kotomine’s Assassin existed in such a strange manner.

“The Old Man of the Mountain” – among the people who succeeded the name of Hassan-i Sabbāh, only one had the power to switch bodies.

Differing from other Hassans, he did not need to modify his body in any way. Or, it could be said that there was no purpose in doing so, though he was typical in terms of strength, his mind was able to change his body freely.

He could use impressive planning and tactics, understand languages of other countries, identify poisons or set traps. All in all, he was a master assassin – able to do everything, and switching in different abilities based on the requirements of his assignments. It was said that on occasions he is able to utilize strange strength and agility to use illusionary fighting styles that had been long forgotten.

He could disguise as man or woman, youth or elder – anything! He could stand quite naturally next to you. Sometimes, he could even change personality based on situation so no one can guess at his real identity.

Nobody knew the truth. Hassan may have had a unique body, but he had many different souls.

The knowledge at the time could not think of multiple personality disorder as an illness.

With said definition in modern medical sciences, it was a source of arcane “power” to Hassan the assassin. He could use the multiple personalities within him to use all kinds of different skills and draw upon their knowledge, confusing their opponents or weaving a web of defense, and kill their opponents with unexpected methods that no one could predict.

This is the assassin that Kirei had summoned – "The Hundred-Faced Hassan".

He is a Servant that had one physical body, but at the same time possessed a thousand different souls. Analyzing from this basis, “they” were initially different souls in the first place, and since they are now no longer limited by the physical body, “they” can now all materialize simultaneously into different shapes.

Of course, their strength was also limited to being just one person, and after their split the Assassins cannot hope to match the other Heroic Spirits. But because they possess the unique skills of the Assassin class, they were unparalleled in terms of spying and gathering recon.

“You mean…we’ve always been watched by these things until today?”

Irisviel murmured painfully as Saber also shivered unconsciously.

Though the opposition was not powerful, they were numerous and were able to sneak up on the group. Though she was the most powerful Servant, they were still a huge threat.

In addition, the Assassins that normally followed them like shadows had now abandoned their ability of presence concealment and fearlessly showing their figures, this meant…

“They meant business.”

Saber gritted her teeth as she realized that they had fallen into an unexpected trap.

A group of rabble that relied on their numerical strength – if confronting in a frontal assault, there was no way Saber could lose. However, that scenario was limited to the situation only – if there was only Saber to fight the battle.

Right now, Saber must protect Irisviel. No matter how weak Assassins were, they were exceptionally dangerous to humans. Even to Irisviel, a homunculus who could use magecraft flawlessly. However, magecraft alone could not stop Assassin – there was no way she could be depended to defend herself.

Thus, if she wanted to protect her companion and fight at the same time, the pressing question at hand was the numerical superiority of their enemies.

With one strike of her sword, how many Assassins could Saber stop? No, the question is no longer how many she could stop. If she missed but one person, that one might cause massive damage to Irisviel.

Right now, the question is not “Could she stop them?” but is "With one blow, could she stop all of them at once?" And then with the number of Assassins surrounding them now, it was incredibly hopeless.

However, from the Assassin's perspective, this strategy was their final resort.

Even though they fought in a group, this group was still limited in numbers. Sacrificing the most, exchanging for small amounts of survivors – this method of victory is equivalent to a suicidal charge, which is why it is only reserved for final battles.

Assassin, as a Servant, wanted the Holy Grail as well. They should not be able to stand the fact that they were merely a chess piece in Tōsaka and Archer’s game – but, they were unable to resist the Command Seal.

For tonight’s operation, Kotomine Kirei used a Command Seal. The order was “Victory no matter what sort of losses.” The Command Seal was an absolute order to Servants, and thus, they could only follow it.

Though it made them feel happy that Saber was disturbed and fearful, in reality she was not their target. Their target was Rider’s Master. Even though Rider had a powerful Noble Phantasm, its destructive powers are unidirectional. If Assassin attacked from all sides, they should... no, they must be able to strike at the wimpy short Master.

Yes, for the King of Conquerors Alexander, it was a precarious moment.

But…why is the large Servant still drinking happily, as if nothing had happened?

“…Ri –Rider, Oi, OI….”

Despite Waver’s shouting in discomfort, Rider still didn’t act. He scanned the Assassins around him, his expression still quite even.

“Hey, kid, don't panic. It’s just a few new guests to the banquet.”

“How in the world do they look like guests?!"

Rider laughed wryly and sighed, he then greeted the Assassins that surrounded him with an idiotically calm expression.

“Fellows, could you relax a little and cut down the creepiness? As you can see, you are scaring our friends.”

Saber thought she heard him wrong. This time, even Archer’s brows creased.

“King of Conquerors. Are you trying to invite them as well?”

“Of course, the king’s words should be heard by everyone, so if someone showed up to hear, it doesn’t matter if they’re friend or foe.”

Rider said calmly as he scooped a spoonful of the red sake in the barrel and handed it to the Assassins.

“Here, don’t be shy – if you want to drink with me there are cups over there. This wine is as your blood.”

''Hyunn'', the sound of something flying through the empty space answered Rider's invitation.

Only the handle of the ladle remained in Rider’s hand; the spoon part has already fallen onto the ground. This was the work of one of the Assassins. The wine in the ladle fell scattered onto the grounds of the center courtyard.

“……”

Rider lowered his head and stared at the wine scattered on the ground wordlessly. The skull masks laughed in derision.

“Did you hear what I said wrongly?”

Rider’s words were calm, but clearly, the intent and tone changed. The only ones able to detect this change were the two that drank with him before.

“I said, “this wine is as your blood,” right? Since you dare to spill it onto the ground, then inevitably…”

At that moment, a whirlwind roared to life.

The wind was scorching hot and dry, as if it wanted to consume everything. The wind didn’t feel like it should come from the evening forest, or the castle’s court – the way it was roaring, it seemed that it came from the desert.

Waver spat as he tasted sand in his mouth. Sand! It was really sand that the strange wind brought. Truly the hot sand was not supposed to exist.

“Saber, and Archer, the last question of the banquet – is the king lonesome?”

Rider shouted as he stood in the center of the raging desert wind. His cape danced atop his shoulders. Somehow, he had already changed back into the proper garb of the King of Conquerors.

Archer's mouth moved, and he sniggered. There was no need to answer. He replied with his silence instead.

Saber did not hesitate either. If her own beliefs were shaken, it would be a flat denial of her days spent as king.

“A king...has no choice to be lonesome!”

Rider laughed. As if responding to the laugh, the whirlwind grew stronger.

“Wrong, wrong!! That answer is almost as good as having no answers! Let me teach you two today what it means to be a true king!”

The unknown hot wind inverted, and eroded the reality.

In the strange phenomenon occurring tonight, distance and position had lost its meaning. The raging sandstorm changed all it touched.

“How-How could this..."

Waver and Irisviel gasped in surprise…only ones who understood magecraft could understand the phenomenon.

“A…Reality Marble-?!”

The earth-scorching sun; the cloudless, clear skies; stretching to the blurry end of the sandy horizon, there was nothing that obscured vision.

To think that the Einsbern castle could be changed suddenly meant that it was undoubtedly the illusion of something that eroded away the reality. It can be said that this is the uppermost limits of the miracles of magecraft.

“How could this be….you could materialize the environment inside your mind…You aren’t a – magus?!”

“Of course I’m not. This is not something I can do alone.”

Alexander laughed proudly as he majestically stood in the center of wide, everstretching field.

“This land is the land in which my army once crossed. It is imprinted upon the hearts of every single one of my warriors who shared in my joys and sorrows.”

As the world changed, the positions of the five who were initially surrounded also changed.

The Assassins, originally surrounding the group have been moved aside to one side. Rider stood in the center. In the other side stood Saber, Archer, and the two Masters. This is to say that Rider stood before the Assassins by himself.

– but, could it be said that Rider fought alone?

The eyes of everyone widened as they noticed the mirage-like images that appeared around him. One, two, four….there were more and more images, ever increasing. The colors become clearer and more solid.

“The reason why this world can exist again... is because it is printed upon ''all'' of our hearts.”

Under their expressions of total shock, heavily armed cavalry materialized beside Alexander. Though their faces and equipments differed, their muscular bodies and mighty chargers displayed a fierceness that could only be found in a true army.

Only one person present understood what this situation meant.

“All of these beings…are servants!”

He was the only Master here, and so he understood. Servant Alexander's trump card, his true noble phantasm, was now appearing before his eyes.

“BEHOLD, MY PEERLESS ARMY!”

The King of Conquerors stood before the lines of cavalry and raised both of his arms to the skies, shouting with immeasurable pride.
[[Image:FZ_v02_370-371.png|thumb|Ionian Hetairoi]]
“Their bodies may return to ash, but their spirits still hear my call! These men are my legendary heroes – my loyal followers! They’re my true friends - breaking the rules of space and time to fight once more at my side!”

“They are my treasure within treasures; they’re my right to rule! They make up Alexander's mightiest Noble Phantasm – {{H:title|Army of the King|Ionian Hetairoi}}!!”

EX rank anti-army Noble Phantasm; the consecutive summon of multiple independent Servants.

The Lord of war, the Maharaorajah, and the founders of many dynasties – the peerless array of heroic spirits gathered here were only heard reverently in legends. All of the famed warriors standing here – all of them once fought beside Alexander the Great.

A riderless horse galloped towards Rider. It was a powerful and sleek steed. If it was human, it is probably just as impressive as any one of the Heroic Spirits standing before the king.

“Long time no see, pal.”

Rider smiled childishly as he hugged the neck of his horse. “She” was the legendary charger Bucephalus. Even the horse of the King of Conquerors became an Heroic Spirit.

Apart from shock and admiration, everyone was speechless. Even Archer, who also possessed a rank EX Noble Phantasm, was utterly silent after seeing such a radiant army.

These heroes rode alongside their king on the battlefield; their wager, like the king’s, was the king’s dream.

Not even death could stop their ending loyalty. The King of Conquerors turned it into a fitting Noble Phantasm.

Saber was shaken to her core. It wasn’t the strength of the Noble Phantasm that she was afraid of, it was the fact that such a Noble Phantasm had de-stabilized her beliefs. It shook the beliefs that she held in pride.

This flawless cooperation…

This bond with subjects that became a Noble Phantasm...

It was something that the idealistic King of Knights pursued for her whole life, yet even to the end, it was something she could not obtain.

“The King - lives to the fullest!! He needs to live more fully than anyone else! He is a figure of admiration to his people!!”

Rider’s voice boomed as he sat atop his beloved steed. The Heroic Spirits began smashing their weapons against their shields, shouting in unison.

“He gathered the will of every courageous being! He marched toward that dream and began his long conquest! That is our king! Thus-”

“The King is never lonesome! For his wishes are our wishes!”

"Indeed! Indeed! Indeed!"

The majestic cries of the Heroic Spirits pierced the heavens and flew among the stars. No matter what they faced – enemy or fortress, it was powerless before the King of Conquerors and his loyal friends. Such was their spirit they could cross the earth. With this spirit, they could split the very oceans.

And thus, the Assassins standing before them was as insignificant as clouds.

“Alright, Assassin. Let us begin.”

Rider's smiling eyes were full of ruthlessness and cruelty. To someone who ignored the king’s words and declined the king’s gift, he no longer cared to hold back.

“As you can see, my preferred battlefield is the plains. Sorry, but if it's about winning by numbers, I believe I have the advantage?"

The hundred faces among the Hassans had forgotten about the Holy Grail at this moment. Forgetting victory and the mission of the Command Seal, they had already lost sense of themselves as a Servant.

Some ran away, while some screamed fruitlessly. Some others stood dumbly on their spots. The panicked mob of skull masks were indeed just a group of rabble.

“Trample them!!"

Rider commanded without hesitation.

"AAAALaLaLaLaLaie!"

The collective roar of the Ionian Hetairoi echoed in response. The peerless army that once swept across continents once again thundered across the battlefield.

This was no longer a battle. It was a massacre.

The results of using a mill to grind a sesame seed would yield more response.

Wherever the {{H:title|Army of the King|Ionian Hetairoi}} rode, there was not a trace of Assassins remaining. Only a faint, faint smell of blood and some dust that was swept away remained in the air.

“WOOOOOOOAAAAAA!”

With a cheer of victory, the warriors gave dedications and praise to the king. Soon, with their mission completed, they returned to spirit form and disappeared into the distance.

And as such, the bounded field generated by these heroes also disappeared. Everyone vanished as if a bubble had been popped. The scene returned to the night air. The people present once again stood in the courtyard of the Einsbern castle.

The white, clear moonlight was silent. There was nothing in the night air.

The three Servants and two magi returned to their previous seats, raising their cups once more. The ladle – sliced to bits by the dirk – stood as a testimony to all that happened.

“—How disappointing.”

As if nothing had happened, Rider quietly murmured to himself as he finished the wine in his cup. Saber said nothing, and Archer smirked with the slightest hint of an unsatisfied expression. 　

“Indeed, no matter how weak the mongrels, it must have been quite the effort for you, the king, to take down this many, mm? Rider, you’re really a thorn in my eyes.”

“Of course, let’s get this straight, no matter what, we shall have a match to see which one of us is better.”

Not offended in the least, Rider smiled as he stood up.　　

“Anyways, we’ve said all we wanted to say, right? Let us stop here for today.”

But Saber was still dwelling on Rider’s words, and she didn’t want to let him off the hook so easily.

“Hold on, Rider, I’m not finished –“

“You, shut up.”

Tensely, Rider stopped Saber’s comment.

“Tonight was a banquet among kings. However, Saber! I do not recognize your kingship anymore!”

“Do you still plan to mock me, Rider?"　　

Saber’s tone already held a great amount of irritation, but Alexander only looked at her with pity. Pulling out his sword, he waved it in the air. Suddenly, in a thunderous roar, a chariot drawn by divine bulls appeared alongside the roar. Though it was not nearly as impressive as the Ionian Hetairoi, it was still wonderous to behold.

“Hurry up, kid. Climb on.”

“…”

“Oy, kid?”

“---Ah? Ah…um…”　　

Ever after he personally witnessed Assassin’s effortless defeat, Waver’s heart was strangely covered by some shadow. Though it was the first time he had ever seen such an irregular, out of the norm Noble Phantasm, so his reaction was natural. Besides, it was his own Servant’s true strength – it was the first time he had seen it.

Unsteadily, Waver crawled onto the chariot. Alexander gave Saber one last glance as he began to speak with sincerity.

“Know what, little girl? It would be better for you to wake quickly from that painful dream of yours. Or else, there’s going to come a day where you’ll lose even the self-respect of a hero – the kingship you spoke of, that’s just a spell you put upon yourself. That is all.”

“No, I –“

Ignoring Saber’s final retort, the chariot with flashing lightning flew into the skies. In the end, the only thing left was the sound of thunder as the chariot disappeared in the eastern skies.

“…”

To Saber, because Rider refused to listen to her speak to the last, she naturally felt wronged. Yet now, what Saber could not drop no matter what was a unreasonable sense of worry.

No mercy, no ideals, a king whose rule was based on violence in order to fulfill his own desires. Yet, even so, there was a group of such loyal followers, who was willing to swear an unbreakable fealty to him.

This was anathema to the King of Knight’s ideals. She could not accept such beliefs.

Yet, Saber could not simply treat Alexander’s words as a joke, either. There would come a time, where she would force him to take these words back – such words bothered Saber like a thorn in her side.

“Ignore him, Saber. All you have to do is follow in your own beliefs.”

This time, the person who interjected was Archer, who had been mocking him for all this time. Hearing such strange words of encouragement, Saber answered icily.

“You were mocking me moments ago, yet you want to flatter me now, Archer?”

“Of course! Your way of kingship is the only way, without a fraction of an error. Of course, to your frail body, it must be such a great burden.

Such bitterness… such tangled webs… I couldn’t help but to sincerely wish to comfort you.”

Proper outer appearance, a serious voice, yet there was still an unlimited amount of lust and maliciousness hidden within his expression and tone.

As long as this golden Servant existed before her eyes, Saber would never have a single moment of confusion. Unlike Rider, who was someone she could communicate in words with, Archer was only an unforgivable enemy to her.

“Continue on your path of righteousness, Saber, and clown along the way. I like it. Saber, make me happy, and maybe I’ll reward you with the Holy Grail?”

The white jade goblet shattered in Archer’s hands.

“Rider has already left, the banquet is long over – Archer, leave now, or draw your sword.”

Though it was invisible, Saber’s waving sword nonetheless unleashed a powerful pressure. Archer, with broken goblet in hand, had no discernible change in expression. Either he was exceptionally brave or exceptionally stupid. Only one of the aforementioned possibilities.

“Oy, oy. Did you know, countless nations have been destroyed because of this cup? Ah, whatever, punishing you is pointless either way – punishing a clown like you is not fitting behavior for a king.”

“Quiet. I’ll warn you only once. Next time, I’ll cut through you mercilessly!”

Ignoring Saber’s warning, Archer smiled as he stood up.

“Try harder, O King of Knights. Sometimes, I think you’re still pretty cute.”

As his last words faded, Archer vanished as he turned to spirit form. As if awaking from a dream, the courtyard, without the golden light shining upon it, contained only emptiness.

And, as such, the curtains fell on a battle.

Though it was different from battle by a normal definition, but, it was indeed a conflict. In order to fulfill the belief of kingship, the Heroic Spirits also had many reasons that they must wager their lives on.

As all her opponents disappeared Saber stood silently, alone, in the courtyard. Irisviel couldn’t help but to feel that the scenario was familiar – wasn't such a lonely shadow the same as in yesterday's skirmish in the warehouse street?

Yet today, there was not a single shred of satisfaction upon her face even after she had defeated powerful opponents. The thoughtful, yet depressing expression made Irisiviel feel uncomfortable.
　　
“Saber……”

“When I was shouting at Rider, if he were willing to stop and listen to me, what would I have said?”

It was unclear who the question was addressing. Saber turned around as she smiled dryly, perhaps laughing at herself.

“I remember – ‘King Arthur could not understand the heart of others.’ Once, a knight who had left me told me that.”　

“….”

“Perhaps it was – among the Knights of the Round Table, the thoughts of a particular knight.”

Irisviel shook her head as she spoke to Saber:

“Saber, you’re the king of ideals. Your Noble Phantasm is proof of this.”

Just like Rider’s “{{H:title|Army of the King|Ionian Hetairoi}}” Saber also possessed “{{H:title|Sword of Promised Victory|Excalibur}}” If the King of Conqueror’s Noble Phantasm was his commanding abilities, then the King of Knight’s Noble Phantasm was the physical actualization of her ideals. The proud aura in which it exhibited was undeniable by anyone.

“Of course, I wanted to become an ideal. In order to make no mistakes, in order to be blameless, I had no emotions and never expressed my feelings.”

Giving up herself for the duty of the king.

In comparison to the limitless desire of the King of Conquerors, the road was far more distant.

“As long as the battle could be won, and the administration just, then I was a perfect king. Therefore, I wanted no understanding. Even if people thought I was arrogant and lonesome, I suppose that’s also the rightful expression of the king.

But why – why am I unable to be proud of my own beliefs like Rider?”

Now, Irisviel finally understood Saber’s confusion.

The tragic ending of King Arthur was one in which everyone forsook her. Because she was unable to gain her follower’s sincere admiration, the honor of the King of Knights was tarnished.

“—Saber, even if fate cannot be avoided, no one said it’s set in stone.”

After a moment of silence, Irisviel finally spoke.

“What do you mean?”

“Fate is not something that’s predestined. The turn of the world, luck, and many unexpected events are the things that determine the final shape of destiny.

Thus, your destruction was not destined just because you were the King of Knights. Thus, you should strive for the Holy Grail.”

“…Yes, you’re right.”

Once, the king’s magician told her, if she pulled out the Sword of Destiny, then she was walking towards an unavoidable destruction.
Even so, she had no regrets.

Even though she understood, she never really understood its meaning. Even if she couldn’t believe in hope, she still wanted her hope to be true.

Thus, even as she personally witnessed the predicted end in the prophecy, that was when she could no longer accept the reality.

There was only prayers, only despairing hope.

She wondered if she made a mistake along the way somewhere.

The way she had selected – there should have been a more appropriate ending…

The thought turned her into a Heroic Spirit and guided her to the Holy Grail of Fuyuki.

“Thank you, Irisviel. I almost lost the thing that was most precious to me.”

Saber nodded, her eyes were as peaceful and clear as before, shining with a confident radiance.

“My deeds as king, I cannot get any answers now. I should be asking the Holy Grail. Thus, that’s why I’m here.”

“Yes, you’re precisely right.”

Irisviel sighed in relief. The proud King of Knights doesn't suit the thoughtfully reminiscing, sad expression on her face. Following her own beliefs – that was what she should look like. That shining sword, also promised her victory.

<center>※※※※※</center>

At Miyama, the underground basement of the Tōsaka manor was currently surrounded by a bitterly stifling silence.

“That Noble Phantasm of Rider’s…what is its power level?”

Heavily speaking into the communicator, Tokiomi asked Kirei.

“The same rank as Gilgamesh’s Gate of Babylon. In other words, Rank EX.”

A sigh followed.

Just as he had anticipated. Assassin’s sacrifice was not meaningless – at least, he was able to figure out Rider’s trump card. If he had no knowledge against Rider as he fought him, Tōsaka probably couldn’t do a thing against that super Noble Phantasm.

The only thing that exceed their expectations, was the rank of the Noble Phantasm – even if he knew about it ahead of time, could he find a way to defeat it?

As before, he had always thought his own Servant, Archer’s Noble Phantasm was the strongest. However, unexpectedly, a Servant appeared with the same level as Archer’s own. This far exceeded his expectations.

Now, a rare sense of regret slowly floated into the foremost thoughts of Tokiomi.

Perhaps throwing away the playing piece of Assassin was a deadly mistake. Against such a dangerous opponent like Rider, it may have been better for him to send a scout to gather information instead of risking a frontal assault. If he could run into a case where Rider and his Master moved separately, he might have even been able to use an assassination…

“Idiot.”

Tokiomi shook his head. It was his own fault. This wasn’t a strategy – it was only his random thoughts.

Yet, the situation was not desperate. There were many things that could still cheer him up. For example, Alexander's Master was only a third-rate magus. If the person who summoned him was Lord El-Melloi, the situation would have been much worse. The ability parameters of the Servant was also heavily dependent on the ability of the Master. Did he not also use the result of Kayneth’s dispute with his student? Looks like all the luck in this fourth Heaven’s Feel was on his side.

Looks like it was time for business. Tokiomi took his wooden staff as he calmly yet firmly stroked it. His life’s work was found in the gigantic gem that was framed near the handle, sealing a lifetime’s worth of prana.

“Since Assassin is no more, Kirei, you should not be saving your own strength any more.”

“Yes, understood."

Across the other side came Kirei Kotomine’s quiet yet deep voice. This first-rate student and Executor, even though he had lost his Servant, still possessed a large degree of combat ability. Now, because he could no longer command Assassin, he had no need to disguise himself – it was time for him to unleash his own abilities.

As predicted, the second part have begun. Based on the information gathered by Assassin, he shall mobilize Gilgamesh and begin his assault. As for the solution against Rider, he’ll slowly find an answer to that.

Finally, it was time to step out of his territory and step into the battlefield.

Silently enduring the pains of the Magic Crests, Tokiomi stood from his chair.

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