ACT-18 "The Fallen Grail"

We have defeated Berserker!

？！

He is unconscious and in critical condition. He needs help right away. But the fact that we defeated Berserker means...

Bahaha, ahahahaha! Fools. To think you unwittingly helped to bring this ceremony to its completion.

I see, that was the fifth Servant defeated...

At this stage, I no longer need the Lesser Grail to extract the sacrifices' magical energy. With my life's final ritual, I'll fuel them directly into the Greater Grail!

Huh!? I am losing the magical energy I was conserving... Zolgen, is this your doing!?

No... I only hastened its awakening... Not in an imitation like yourself, but in a true vessel...

Master! Someone...is coming out of the Greater Grail!

Fou!?

Well done, Makiri Zolgen. You're more shriveled up than the last time I saw you.

Oh. Oh... Justeaze, the Chalice of Heaven... Your beauty is exquisite...

I see... So that's it... My role was no more than to recall your visage...

My senile old foe. Enough. Your part is over. Now, go dream of the ideals that'll never be fulfilled... Then die.

Zolgen!

Berserker's Master...was devoured?

It's still...not enough. As if my vessel could be filled with five measly Heroic Spirits.

You awaken me after preparing such a pitiful offering? The preparations for the feast are far from complete!

Justeaze Lizrich... No, it's a ruined Holy Grail, polluted by All the Evils of the World.

Humph. What a foolish remark from my descendant. I am the Chalice of Heaven. The incarnation of the Third Magic who shall reach the Root and annihilate all evil.

It's time. Pledge me your lives and souls! I will draw upon your blood to fulfill the cherished wish of 1,000 years!

Saber, she is...

Yes, this magical energy's density... At this rate we have no chance of victory!

I see... Since we lost Zhuge LiangI mean, Lord El-Melloi IIwe can no longer fight...

Were he safe, we may have stood a chance. But the absence of one Servant is critical!

Especially against an enemy of this stature, his loss is devastating. We must retreat!

The two of us will hold her off while we evacuate the Masters and the others. Lancer, you with me!?

Yes!

But Saber! What will become of you?

As long as the Master flees to safety, we can immediately withdraw from the front lines via Command Spells.

But, since you hold the Command Spells, everything hinges on your safety! Now, go!

Heroic Spirit of the Shield! Assassin of the Counter Force! Please protect the Master!

Yes, leave it to me.

Y-Yes, I will!

...Ah!

I'm so glad you regained consciousness!

Foou?

Ugh... My Spirit Core is undamaged, but I can't move my body... I guess a Pseudo-Servant has its limits...

...What about Saber and Lancer?

？！

Ugh! In order to let us retreat?

Yes. They said we had no chance of winning at the time...

No! Even if we run, we don't have any reserve forces! We must stand our ground and fight!

So what do we do!? You yourself have no strength left to stand with us!

Waver Velvet, you're the key here.

...Huh?

I know who you are, you brat.

You find your powerlessness repugnant. You despise your incompetency and mediocrity. You are mired in an inferiority complex, with nothing to boast of to the world.

W-What's up with you? Don't tell me...

The immature dream of a brat who always laments his own weakness... Are you prepared to finally wake up?

The terror of wielding overwhelming power. The terror that heavy responsibility imposes. Will you taste these sensations while you are still just a brat?

Lord El-Melloi, what are you doing!?

Fou!?

...

Fine. I'm ready. We have no other choice, right?

Hah, you truly are a fool. A fool who doesn't know his place. You truly understand nothing at all.

But, that's exactly why...he once took a particular interest in you...

Glory lies beyond the horizon... Huh?

Tell me! What am I supposed to do?

Take my hand and pray. "The art of certain victory, the mode of harmonizing with charges, is a matter of opportunity."

Umm... The art of certain victory...the mode of harmonizing with charges...is a matter of opportunity.

Ah! Whoa!

What's this? What's happening to me...

Yes, it seems you've gained the strategist's favor. He permits you to be his temporary avatar.

Instead of my broken body, he can boss you around as much as he wants.

Foou!

I can tell...there's something inside of me... Zhuge Liang... Whaaaaat!?

Rejoice, young man. You are the hero you always dreamed of being. Now, can you do your new form justice?

...Yeah, I can! I can do this!

Fujimaru, sorry, but I'm entrusting you with this immature Pseudo-Servant.

He's a little unreliable, but he'll be of use. Go back and aid Saber and Lancer!

？！

We need to hurry, Senpai, while Saber and Lancer are still alive!

Hah hah, is this the best you can do? Pathetic Heroic Spirits. It's like you remained solely to nourish me.

Ugh...this isn't good. I'm nearing my limit...

She's stronger than I imagined! At this rate...

Hold on a bit longer and push through!

What!? Why did you return!?

No, Lancer, the boy is different from before... This magical energy... He is clearly a Servant!

We've returned to our former strength. We have Saber, Lancer, and the Counter Force Assassin...

The lineup he envisioned is assembled! All we need now is orders, Fujimaru!

？！

Foolishness... I'll devour every one of you. Return to your origins within my chalice!

Why... This hand...was meant to reach the ends of the stars...

Did we...win?

The enemy's magical energy has disappeared... Victory is ours!

...

？！

I...I had no idea!

I never knew that fighting for one's life...was this terrifying...

You did well. Very well for one's first battle.

You deserve praise for not freezing in terror. Be proud and bask in the glory of your victory.

Everyone...

They're all Heroic Spirits summoned to Fuyuki by the Greater Grail. Now that it's gone, they can't retain their form...

It is time to part ways. It was a taxing battle, but I am glad it ended well.

May we meet on another battlefield. I am sure it will happen when the fate of the world is at stake.

Foou...

The Holy Grail that we detected from Chaldea has disappeared without a trace.

Also, Irisviel. You no longer have the ability to transform into the Holy Grail. What do you intend to do now?

Yes. Now that the Holy Grail War has been rendered meaningless, my existence is of no value.

I helped to destroy the Greater Grail with my own hands. There's no way that I can return to Einzbern now...

Umm, our original goal included recovering the Holy Grail that appeared in this Singularity.

If you like, why not return with us to Chaldea?

Yeah. If we abandon her, someone else might try to use her later for more sinister purposes.

It's probably best for us to take her under our wing.

...For someone with no one left to turn to, it's a generous offer.

Yes, I accept. I entrust myself to you all. Master from another world, let's work for a better future.

？！

Are you guys...returning, too?

Yes. Zhuge Liang as well. Relax. You'll soon return to your ordinary, mediocre self.

...

You were right. This power is still a bit too much for me.

Now that you know that, it is time to continue your studies.

Someday, you will be forced to bear this power.

Be consoled by the fact that you still have time. Become strong while you still can.

You sound just like Rider.

Humph, don't embarrass me. I am still no match for the King of Conquerors.

"Still," you say? Does that mean you're also training? To eventually be his equal?

...

The route to the surface is a labyrinth of caves, so I'll take you there. Then we part ways.

Fou, foou.

I guess I should say goodbye as well.

You're not returning to the surface?

I don't originally belong to this world, so it's a waste of time. If I wait, I'll soon be summoned back to the Throne.

That's right, I forgot what type of being you were.

...

...It's strange. After we met, I had the feeling that only death would separate us.

Yes, it's weird, but I don't know why. Yet...this strange feeling is not unpleasant.

Yeah. Same here...

...I thought I was cursed to fulfill my mission only through sacrifice or death.

Now, for the first time, I feel like I was able to fight to protect something.

Thank you. ...Although I don't know whether it's my place to say such words.

Yes. Goodbye. I'm glad I could meet you, nameless Heroic Spirit.

Good work! You went through a lot this time.

Foou, foou.

Da Vinci is now giving Miss Irisviel a thorough checkup.

I'm surprised. I never thought a Holy Grail could exist in such a form.

What about Lord El-Melloi? How are his injuries?

Compared to a genuine Servant, Servants like us who possess the flesh of human beings

will die if they suffer too much damage...

Yes. He'll be in the ICU for a while. He needs complete rest.

How reckless to have someone else form a contract with a Heroic Spirit while seriously injured.

He was nonchalant so you wouldn't be alarmed, but he was actually in really bad shape.

Foou.

But, thanks to him, we somehow pulled through... Also, the Heroic Spirit who was an agent of the Counter Force...

Right. What a strange encounter. To think that even after humanity's history has been incinerated, the Counter Force would still function.

？！

The Counter Force...in theory, it's a force that acts to preserve the human race.

It's said that people who accomplished rare feats of valor in life are summoned by this Counter Force.

If a crisis threatens the human race, they are summoned through time and space to eliminate the source of the calamity.

So they are Servants who have no Masters, summoned solely to fight?

Yes. Even in death, their souls are tasked with a mission to fight for all eternity.

I cannot possibly understand their feelings... They must endure unspeakable anguish.

...Yes. Although I'm a mere Demi-Servant and not a Heroic Spirit,

I cannot imagine being summoned to battle without a Master.

？！

Yes. What supports me in battle is you, Senpai, the one I sealed a contract with.

That bond gives me the strength and courage to overcome fear. To fight without such support would be too cruel.

Foou...

...

Will you come out already? You're the star performer. No one will interfere now.

Humph! So you knew. I don't want to! What a pain.

Isn't conserving energy popular in this age? I wanted to catch you off your guard.

Well, good job picking up on me instead. I appreciate the welcome. Less lonely.

But why didn't you warn your friends of the danger?

They only destroyed a contaminated Holy Grail.

I, Aŋra Mainiiu, its contents, remain separate.

I didn't want to rely on the help of others intervening from another world.

Your curse belongs solely to this world. It does not extend to theirs. It's logical for me to deal with you alone.

Oh, how nice. It's a fine thing to take pride in one's work.

I guess it would be painful for us to be pitied when we fight. No one would gain anything.

Happiness is everything, right? Well, anyway

...In that sense, you're just as much on the losing side as I am.

I know you're a mass murderer by your scent.

I bet you'll come "here" in the end. After you're worn out by an eternity of abuse.

I don't think so. This is the fate I have chosen. I was never compelled to, nor did I ever give in.

That's precisely why. You should have broken down somewhere along the line. That way you would have had a chance at peace, even salvation.

But because you couldn't stop being a "Hero of Justice" until the very end, even after death, you became a cogwheel in a mechanism like the Counter Force.

Surely that's proof you're on the losing side.

My life led me to this point. I have no regrets. I do admit that we're fundamentally similar.

You'll curse the world, and I'll save it. We are both devices with assigned roles. That's all.

(Grin)

Okay. If you're so sure, I guess I have to show you my respect.

If curses and salvation face each other, there is no choice. We must both seek love and recognition in the way we know best.

For such an occasion, why don't you name yourself? Unlike me, you remember your own name, yeah?

Emiya... Kiritsugu. Or so I was called when I lived as a human being.

I will save the world. I did so until now, and I will forever.

There ain't a world that can be saved by humans. How long will you try to disprove that conclusion!