Epilogue: All Done. Good Night. And Goodbye.

Welcome back!

Thank you, Da Vinci! It's good to be back!

... ...I-I'm really here.

So, this is the Storm Border?

Yeah! Come on, we'll show you around!

Yeah, just follow us.

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A-are we sure this is a good idea?

Eh, I'm sure it will work out. If I'm wrong, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

That sounds haphazard.

No. I'm simply being flexible.

This is the engine room!

See all the steel gears?

Ooh! I don't know what all this stuff is, but it's amazing!

I don't know what it is either, but yeah, it is amazing...and hard!

Hey, watch it!

You even think about messing with my engine, and you'll have my hammer to answer to!

Aaah! Don't hurt uuus!

Sheesh. You too, Voyager? You usually don't get mixed up with this kind of stuff.

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Well, quit loitering! Go find a better spot to have fun!

But it's so cool in here.

O-oh, yeah? Thanks...

Okay, everyone, photo time. We almost never get to see Engineer being bashful.

Shut up!

And this is the library.

You've got to be quiet in here so you don't disturb the people reading.

G-got it. Shhh.

Got to be quiet here, huh.

You there. Allow me to tell you the library's full, official name. It is...

"The Great and Terrible Yet Beautiful Murasaki Shikibu Library."

Look, we have a nameplate and everything.

I see...

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W-well, um...I don't suppose you have any books about me, do you?

Yes, of course we do. Wait right here while I go get them.

You do!?

Oh yes. We have an excellent selection of books about myths and legends.

Thank you for waiting. Here you are.

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It's no trouble at all. Please, let me know if you need help finding anything else.

So this is how people used to imagine me back then. Hehehe, this is so interesting.

Oh, but I think they might've gotten the helmet right.

Hey, there are pictures of me here, too.

And me!

Are there any of you, Master?

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Worry not, Master.

Once humanity has been restored, Lady Van Gogh and a few others are already planning to call in some favors...

...so they can make a portrait of you for the ages.

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My dear Master, that is a secret.

So you're gonna be in a book too? That's great!

He doesn't seem very happy about it, though.

Hey, is anyone else hungry? I wanna go to the cafeteria.

You get hungry?

I like food, but I've never been hungry before... Do Servants usually get hungry?

I guess it's like...a state of mind. Anyway, let's go.

The cafeteria? Is that where people go to eat?

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Let's go then!

Hey there. You touring the Storm Border?

Well, this is the cafeteria. I doubt there's anything new to you here, though.

I'll have a bowl of chashu ramen. Oh, and a side of fried rice and dumplings!

Me, I'm the kind of guy who likes to kick off the afternoon with a nice frosty mug of beer.

Forget anything new; apparently, we've still got a relic from the eighties here. You know the rule, Captain. No alcohol before seven.

That's right! You even think about day drinking, especially in front of the children, and I'll make you my personal scratching post! Capisce?

Blackbeard. No.

Oh, fine. I guess I'll just have to make do with this carbonated drink I made by fermenting my own barley.

(Glug, glug)

Wow, there's so many people here! Weird people!

That's not very nice, me.

It's okay. It's the truth.

Oh, hello there. I haven't seen you before. Were you recently summoned?

Eee!

Excuse me, this is the cafeteria! I know what you're dealing with, but that doesn't mean you can show up dripping blood everywhere!

I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. He didn't mean to scare you. Ahh, whatever am I going to do...

All right, you! Out! Move it along! Yes, you too, ma'am!

Ah, of course. Hahahaha, my apologies. I'll come back once my wounds have closed.

Shall we, my beloved?

Yes, my love.

I'm so terribly sorry you two had to see that. You're new here, right? Oh, that must have really frightened you.

I-it definitely surprised me...

Weren't you guys surprised, too?

Nah. It's not Sigurd's fault that he shows up covered in blood sometimes. His homelife is...complicated.

Besides, it doesn't happen as often as that Lancer with the toothpick in his mouth coming in here to pick a fight for fun.

What was that? You want a piece of me? Or maybe the whole thing? Bring it on. I'm not about to lose to an overgrown camp counselor.

...Heh. (Quietly switching out his kitchen knife for Kanshou and Bakuya)

I swear, the two of you just can't leave each other alone. If you HAVE to fight, take it to the simulator!

Fine! Who here wants a piece of me!?

Me!

Oho, if it isn't one of the great Greek heroes. Now you're speaking my language!

Hahaha, agreed.

Achilles, you'll be going up against Scáthach, Queen of the Land of Shadows, and her most gifted protégé.

You know what will happen if you lose, yes?

Yes, Teacher! A hundred laps around the Storm Border...in a handstand!

Hell yeah! That'll give everyone at Chaldea something to laugh about!

Thanks for the grub! Keep the change!

What change? You still haven't paid for the fried rice and dumplings.

Crap, really?

Here.

Thank you.

All right, now that I've helped my opponent out of a tight spot, let's take this to the simulator!

Come on!

Tch. I'm gonna have to make sure I pay him back soon. Hey, Sétanta! If you're there, come on! You're not gonna want to miss this!

You sure? This better be worth my time.

Why don't we all go along to watch?

Excellent. Sétanta, you're free to come along or remain here. Whichever you prefer.

Oh, I'm coming. We're talking about a fight between THE Achilles and my future self, right?

No way am I gonna miss that! Especially since I plan on beating both of 'em someday!

Is there anyone else here who would care to join us in spectating?

Whoa...

I shall accompany you. I may even elect to challenge the victor myself.

Hehe...

You're scaring me, Grandpa.

Anyway, since we were planning to show you the simulator at some point anyway, do you want to come along, too?

Yeah!

All right, let's get started.

If my teacher were here, he'd probably say we've already begun.

Sounds like he'd get along real well with my mentor.

Whoa! Those two are fighting!

That they are. Both are fiercely talented.

I only hope the match is settled before things turn deadly...

Yikes...

Oh man...

Cú Chulainn versus Achilles! I can't even imagine what front row tickets to this show would go for!

Whoa, that was some attack! Look how far he went flying!

And his opponent hits back with a single strike. I wonder if this will end it.

If it does not, it may not end unless an upstanding, equally strong warrior steps in to stop them.

Stop them? The two guys fighting at supersonic speeds!? How!?

...Ah.

Crap.

Hey!

I'm sorry, but your time is up. I can't stand back and watch you try to kill each other any longer.

Grr!!!

Dammit. I wasn't on my game today.

All that fried rice and dumplings slowing you down, huh?

Ah, shaddup.

... ...

What's up with Kriemhild?

？！

Husband? Oh, as in marriage!?

Wow. I didn't know Kriemhild was married.

That's right, Wandjina. She is.

Wooow. So she's one half of a couple...

I've never seen anything like it before.

Would you PLEASE cease the running commentary on my love life!?

...Hey. Could we try fighting, too?

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I'm sure. Do you want to come with me, me?

No thanks. I'll stay here and cheer for you!

You will?

Yeah!

What about us? We wanna fight with Jina-Jina, too!

As long as it's okay.

Are you sure about this, Voyager?

Uh-huh. Is it okay with you, Wandjina?

Sure!

All right, who's my next challengeHmm.

H-hello.

Waha!

How are you?

What an unusual lineup. Taisui Xingjun, Voyager, and...

I'm Wandjina. I just got here. Nice to meet you.

I see. Welcome, Wandjina. I'm Siegfried, a Saber.

So, if you're down here, that must mean

Yeah. We'd like you to fight us.

I see. Fine with me.

As Servants, fighting is part of our destiny.

All right, let's get started.

But let me warn you first. Don't think of this fight as three against one.

Huh?

I consider myself three times as strong as the average fighter.

Just three? That's rich. You're at least ten times stronger than the average fighter, you walking human tank.

(Not quite the burn she thinks it is...but I should probably keep that to myself.)

That's great. I think I'm pretty strong too. Hehehe.

I'm Wandjina, the spirit of wind and air. In the Servantverse, I'm known as the guardian of the seven water stars!

Let's do this, Taisui Xingjun! Voyager!

Yeah! Let's do it!

Here goes!

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We won!

We did it!

That's great.

Phew. All right, I yield. You three were all very strong.

Aw man, we lost!

He's so strong!

Phooey.

Phew. That was close.

You all did very well. What made the difference...

...is that I had a goddess of victory on my side. That's why I couldn't afford to lose. Not with her cheering for me.

Guess we lost to the power of love.

What was that, Voyager!?

Excuse me. May I have the next fight?

While contests of strength hold no interest to me, I have always favored communing with spirits. I think this could be a nice way to get to know you better.

Howdy, Voyager. Look what we got: you and me, right here. Moment seems mete for a little duel, don'tcha think? Man-to-man.

Ah, s'pose you're not technically a human... Ah, who cares!

A spirit, huh? You don't see that every day. Especially one your size.

All right, I think I'll have a go at you myself!

Wait. Does this mean...I can keep playing? Is that okay?

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R-Really?

Oh, that Master over there? You're fixin' to fight on Wandjina's side, that it? Well, I sure ain't 'bout to cry foul.

Awright, let's get to it, then!

...I know, Wandjina, my other self, I can feel your emotions pouring into me.

Lots and lots of feelings.

Wandjina...

My wish was so vague, and I think granting it might have gone on forever.

No matter how much I played, it would never be enough. The more people I got to know, the lonelier I'd feel.

But this...

Getting to see, hear, and interact with so many different people's feelings...

It's finally made us feel full!

Good point. You did both keep saying how much you like people.

We're okay now! So here. You guys can have the Holy Grail.

Wandjina...

I can tell.

Our real body...all 832 kilometers of the floating Singularity Wandjina...

...is feeling so full through us, her terminals, that she can hardly believe it. Hehe.

And that's not all.

She understands that the time for dreaming is over now.

She's not going to insist on getting her way anymore.

Not now that she's gotten to play with so many people.

Even if all this fun only lasts for a fleeting moment...

...we'll treasure these memories of all of you for millennia to come.

So, this is goodbye!

Thanks for playing with me!

I love you all so much!

Bye, everyone! I'm gonna go on ahead.

Now that you've all granted my wish...

...I'm gonna grant yours, too. I mean it!

Wandjina...

Ooh, what a nice breeze.

Just don't get so carried away that you fall off.

I won't.

...It's so strange.

It is?

It is.

She knows the other Wandjina disappeared, right?

Yes... She does. I informed her earlier.

I'm not sure whether it makes sense for her to be sad about that, but I still expected her to have some kind of reaction.

She must understand that the end is fast approaching.

Even so, she's not changed at all.

Are you suggesting grief is the only appropriate response?

I wouldn't go that far, but...

I suspect she does not see parting as a cause for sadness.

The flow of the river never ceases, and the water never stays the same.

Bubbles float on the surface of pools, bursting, re-forming...

...never lingering.

That's from the..."Houjouki," also known as "An Account of My Hut," right? Another Japanese Servant once taught me about it.

Wandjina is the spirit of wind, rain, and air.

In the world of magecraft, I think she's classified as a great spirit.

Usually, she would exist only as an object of worship, with no involvement in the human world.

But she wanted to be involved with people. She wanted it so much, she became one of us.

Even though, from her own perspective, humans must be fleeting, ephemeral things. Not unlike a dream.

She must have known that, and yet, she still...

Yes. She willingly took our hands in hers.

She is the spirit of wind and rain, an avatar of nature itself.

She is the source of all bubbles, and yet, though we must be little more than bubbles ourselves to her, she still experiences such profound love for us.

And that...is truly sublime...

Hey, Master. It looks like you can see Earth's surface from up here, too.

It's so...white. I can't make out anything at all.

？！

Yeah.

There's usually lots more humans, and there's always, always something interesting going on.

That's why I can never take my eyes off you humans, even for a second.

...Yeah.

...I think I made a mistake.

？！

Yeah.

I shouldn't have gotten involved with humans. I shouldn't have grown to love them.

I should have kept my distance from them. At the least, I should've looked down on them.

But, I couldn't do that.

Not after you brought meaning to my conceptual existence.

So I ended up choosing a second of fun over nearly an eternity of boredom.

This planet is lonesome right now.

But Wandjina clearly remembers the planet you used to live on.

I think...I had probably given up hope that humans would ever live here again.

...But you haven't, have you, Master?

？！

...Yeah. I like that other Earth better. So I'm going to help you.

I'm going to put this planet back to the way it was.

？！

No problem.

Still...that Wandjina may be me, but she won't be THIS me.

Now that this me has had her wish come true...

...I need to show my appreciation.

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Thank you, Chaldeans. Thank you so much.

Taisui Xingjun, Voyager. Thank you for playing with me!

Thank you, Grandpa Yagyu, Kriemhild, Erice, Altera, Dumuzid, Mash, and everyone else!

And thank you most of all, Master of Chaldea! I know I must have made a lot of trouble for you...

...but this has all been so, so much fun! ...So, um

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...!

This is just a guess, but...

...I think Wandjina wants you to enjoy yourself, no matter how hard things get.

...Do you think you can do that?

...Yes. Yes!

I believe you. I really do. That's why I love you humans.

Goodbye, everyone. And...again, thank you all so much for letting me have so much fun!

Master...

Well done, Master.

We've confirmed the Singularity has been repaired. It couldn't have been easy flying all over the world, but you did it. Great job!

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Happy Halloween. Merry Christmas. Happy New Year. Happy Valentine's Day.

...Happy birthday.