Third Game: Sower of the Seeds of Havoc

The next game is about to begin, Senpai. I'm kind of excited to see what sort of world we

...Huh? Is this it?

Nothing's here.

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Right. The buildings here are all in ruins.

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Now I remember. This is a game about cultivating land.

In fact, I also remember that you and Amadeus were deeply engrossed in a game before we came to Monde du Jeu, Marie.

Was I? Really?

You were. As I recall, Amadeus was using bandits to steal everything you had!

Teehee, that does sound like him. But I'm afraid I don't remember anything about it.

They're only games, after all, so I always end up forgetting what happens in them once they're over.

Good attitude. No one should ever nurse a grudge over what happens in a game.

Hmm. If the rules allow for bandits, maybe the players are still in the middle of a game.

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Good point, Senpai. Unlike Akihabara, there don't seem to be any natives or Servants around here.

Oh... I guess somebody else WAS in the middle of a game.

Then it's over!? But we didn't even get to see anything! This is like only catching the tail end of a movie!

I'll say. This is so disappointing. With all this desolation

Yeah. No way there's gonna be another game.

That's right. There won't be.

That voice...!

You guys are too late. This game's already over.

Erice!

...So, you came here with those people after all, huh?

Well, that's okay. I expected as much...ever since I lost my Command Spells.

Command Spells? What are you talking about?

...This world isn't where we belong. That's why I'm going to end it.

Check out my spoils. Quite the lineup, isn't it?

Those are the Servants I fought on this stage. I mowed them all down and turned them into tokens.

Impressive, yes, but it's not as though you fought them all on your own, right? What about the Master that gave you your orders?

Huh? I don't have a Master. I did do this all on my own.

Hm? But every other person we saw in Monde du Jeu's Akihabara was a Master with their own partner Servant.

...You think I'm a Servant?

Well, you couldn't be more wrong. I'm nobody special...just a human and a grim reaper.

I was the only one who had to make do in Akihabara without a Holy Grail to call my own.

At least until I met you, Voyager.

I'm used to being alone. I can get by just fine all on my own.

But I do make it a point to end travesties like these games.

So I completely devastated this stage, to make sure nobody could ever play its game again.

You did what!?

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Good point. I do need to defeat you properly, seeing as you're the contemptible Master of Chaldea.

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I heard you're trying to save the world. That you command a whole army of Servants like they're your toy soldiers.

Ugh. How conceited can you possibly get?

You've got it all wrong! The Chaldea Security Organization works to protect human endeavors and uphold ideals like

Dress it up however you like. Nobody in their right mind would ever trust an organization of mages.

You don't even realize they're just using you, Fujimaru. Don't you know there's no difference between saving the world and conquering it?

It's basically just an excuse for collecting as many Servants as possible. It's all kinds of wrong.

That's more power than even a Holy Grail. What could you possibly want with it?

S-Senpai isn't like that at all! Please, trust me, Erice!

Senpai...

I'm sorry I got carried away. I just couldn't stand to hear her talk about you like that...

The Servants I turned into tokens. Every last one of them swallowed your BS all right.

I'll admit, your sheer popularity is impressive. But then, that must be why they decided to use you.

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Hmm, so she's a conspiracy theorist and a misanthrope determined to see the worst in everyone. How can we reach an understanding like this!?

I'd heard that adolescence was a difficult time, but this is far worse than I'd imagined!

Then tell us: What are you fighting for? What could a lone Rogue Servant like you want?

How many times do I have to tell you I'm not a Servant? But that aside...

All I want...is to take back my world. To take back everything I lost.

I can't stand this world's messed up version of reality! That's why I'm going to destroy it!

What happened, Erice? You weren't this angry before.

If you can't see yourself anymore, then look at me. I'll always be your

It doesn't matter what we are to each other! Not as long as we're here in this game world!

But, we made a promise...

Don't bother making puppy dog eyes at me. It's not gonna change anything!

Well, that's not very nice. How could you make poor Voyager cry like that?

Wha...!?

...So you're a Chaldean Servant too, huh. Are you part of Fujimaru's team?

Oh yes. I'm Marie. Vive la France♪

You know, Voyager's been missing you terribly. Do you really have to be so cold?

Would it hurt to try being a little nicer to him?

B-but then...I'd be no better than Chaldea...

Voyager...

Ahh... If only there was a way to get back to our original Akihabara...

Yeah... If we could just do that, I'm sure everything would go back to normal. Even my missing Command Spells, and the promise we made...

I didn't know your Command Spells were gone now, Erice. But

I'm not gonna leave things like this. I'm gonna get it all back. Including you, Voyager.

Erice? Where are you going? Wherever you go, I promise I'll find you again!

Stay away from me! I don't want to fight you!

Erice!

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Now what? If you still want to play, then play with your friends. Besides, it's not like I'm your only opponent.

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Stall them, brave hero!

!

Heracles's token just turned into the real Heracles!

Incredible! I had no idea tokens could be used this way!

Is this really the time to be admiring her ingenuity? Take a look at what the big guy's doing.

!

Oh no! Heracles is trying to destroy the tram's tracks!

Stop! If you do that...we'll be trapped!

If we don't do something, we may never catch up to Erice!

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Right! Ready for battle, Master!

(Huff, huff...) There! We managed to stop Heracles.

...But only after he'd already destroyed the tram tracks...

!

Now he's disappearing!

He's going back to his old home.

What do you mean? Are you talking about Chaldea, or the Throne of Heroes?

I'm not sure... But I think his job is over.

Now he's out of the game. And free to do what he wants.

I see. So tokenized Servants have some sort of contractual relationship here in the Monde du Jeu.

Once they've carried out the orders given to them by their ownerthat is, their Masterthey're released from their contractual obligations and can return home.

I must say, I'm enormously impressed by your powers of observation, Voyager my boy. How did you figure all that out at a glance?

I can just tell.

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You're right, Senpai. You've done an excellent job of guiding us ever since we came here, Voyager.

It's almost as though you can tell exactly what Erice is feeling.

Then again, I also get the impression that you might have some sort of connection to this very world...

...Maybe? I can't really tell.

All I know for sure is that I'm all alone right now, just like Erice.

Oh? Even though you're here with us?

...

Is something wrong, Voyager? Why are you hiding behind me?

Teehee, maybe he's shy.

So, what do we do, Fujimaru?

We can't go after Erice now, and I certainly don't want to stay in this desolate wasteland any longer than I have to.

I know. Why don't we go back to Akihabara and go for a walk around the city? Wouldn't that be fun?

But, if we did that, there's no telling when we might be able to return to Chaldea...

What's wrong with that? The important thing is that you're having fun♪

No. We can't do that. I have to save Erice.

Voyager...

You still want to save her that badly? Even after she told you to leave her alone?

She must have a reason. She's not herself right now.

Come on. I have to hurry and catch up.

But how are you going to do that?

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You want to walk? On what?

There's nothing there but starry sky.

True... That does seem like it would be difficult to traverse on foot.

No, it's too soon to give up.

If a tram can travel across space, then so can we. Especially since its tracks are still present.

What's the harm in giving it a go?

We can see the path we need to take to the stars. All we have to do is follow it!

...Yeah!

I think I can show you the way. I'm used to doing that.

Well, when you put it that way, it does sound like fun.

But I do worry I might get exhausted on the way. I wonder if my horsey could walk on these tracks?

There's no need for us to walk the whole track. We can take a shortcut.

We can? Do you know of one, Emiya?

No. But think back to the werewolf house.

...Oh, right! There was some kind of network of shortcuts connecting the areas of the game world!

I see! You're talking about that teleportation technique you used!

Right. I did that by stepping outside the game's rules. Maybe we can do the same thing here.

After all, that girl already broke the rules when she had the tram tracks destroyed.

Hey kid, you said you can take us to Erice, right? Then come stand in front with me.

Okay.

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Right, Senpai!

By the way, just so you know

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Good, you get it. That saves us both time.

Here they come, Senpai. Something tells me it's better if we don't stray too far from the tracks!

Just starry sky, so far. It looks like Erice is still a long ways off.

Guess there's only so much distance we can cross at a time.

Well, we won't find her any sooner standing around here. Let's keep going.

You're right, Edison. I'm ready to move on.

Say, Voyager, would you mind telling us more about your relationship with Erice on the way?

...Erice and I made a promise that we would watch over the end together.

The end? As in, the end of Monde du Jeu?

I don't know how to say it...

Watch out, kid. We've got more headed our way.

Hey, look. Found something.

Is that...a token?

Here, you hold onto it.

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He has a job to do, too. I'm sure you can help him do it.

...I'm glad you don't seem to hold a grudge against Chaldea, Voyager.

Are you still thinking about what Erice said?

Honestly, it was kind of shocking for me to hear her say that Servants are treated like a toy army...

Yes, well, let's not forget that Erice herself has no problem using tokens and Servants for her own ends!

Erice loves Servants. She's always looked up to them.

But now she's alone again. She's lonely again.

Can you tell us more about her?

...Okay. But I don't know if I can do a good job.

It would seem this space is rife with both opportunity and danger. Prepare for battle, everyone!

I found another one. This one looks kind of evil.

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Hold onto it, please.

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It's okay.

None of the other tokens we've found so far have started spontaneously acting on their own.

I think it's safe to assume he's just waiting for you to give him orders, like a Servant.

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Right. I believe you should be able to do the same thing.

Once we track her down again, there's an excellent chance that she'll make use of tokens if it comes to a fight.

So it would be worth your while to collect as many tokens as you can now, do you have more resources to call on in battle.

I wonder how far she went. Maybe she already started the next game...

Then we'd better hurry. You can keep talking on the way.

Okay.

I have a much clearer picture of Erice now that you've told us more about her, Voyager.

So she calls herself a grim reaper, and she used to be part of the Akihabara night watch, huh?

Don't forget, her role was to defeat any Servants that threatened the city's peace.

Uh-huh. That's her job.

Dirty work, huh.

Given her low opinion of Chaldea, it sounded like she has a great deal of respect for Servants...

...but in reality, it was her job to take them down when they got out of hand, huh. That's quite the contradiction she must have been facing.

She can't help it. Something bad's possessing her.

Something...bad?

I don't know what to call it. It's a muddy, evil-looking thing that doesn't have a name...

You mean like the sludge from the Holy Grail that corrupts anyone it touches and makes them pure evil?

...Yeah, I think so.

Poor kid. So she's been optimized for killing, just like me.

...I don't think that's all there is to it.

That so.

Looks like we can take another shortcut. Come on, kid.

Okay.

He's not scared of Emiya at all, is he? I'm a little hurt.

There's another token here. This one's a pretty lady.

You really do have a talent for attracting Servants, don't you, Senpai?

While I'm sure his accomplishments to date are certainly part of it...

...I'd bet there's another logical reason for it, too.

For example, these may have been left behind by other players Erice defeated.

That...does make a lot of sense.

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I guess they ended up like this without ever being able to fulfill their Masters' wishes.

They must have a lot of regrets...

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Right, Senpai. We'll do our best to catch up to Erice as soon as we can.

You want to see Erice again soon too, right, Voyager?

...Uh-huh.

I remember you told us how, back in Akihabara, where everyone has a Holy Grail and a strong personal bond with their own Servant...

...Erice was the only person in the whole city who had to live her life alone, with no Holy Grail or Servant to call her own.

But then she met youher fated partner.

Uh-huh. That's when she became my Master.

But then, something went wrong. After she came to this world and its games...

...the important bond we shared disappeared.

...And you want to get it back, huh?

A bond?

Hah. That's gotta be what's holding her back.

If she's still fooling herself even now after becoming a Servant, well...I can't come up with much of anything more asinine.

...Please don't be mean.

Sorry, but I can't stand such ridiculous youthful recklessness.

Listen to me, Voyager. Your job isn't to get her back. It's to set her free.

Since she doesn't realize she's a Servant, we'll start by kicking her ass and making her come to grips with reality.

That'll be your job, Fujimaru.

...That's right.

You command vast numbers of Servants and, more importantly, you're the best, most insolent Master of Chaldea, and you know it.

Which is good enough, right?

...Yeah.

You're the kind of person who just caaan't resist helping someone in trouble no matter how little you know them, right?

So this job is right up your alley.

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...I'm sorry.

I didn't know you were so nice, Emiya.

Thank you for caring about Erice.

...Stop it.

I just...

...Erice isn't much farther. Come on.

Are you okay, Senpai!?

That token came out of nowhere and hit you right in the forehead...

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It's on your shirt.

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After it struck you in your forehead, it stuck to your shirt like it was hanging on for dear life.

Whoever that Servant is, they must really want you to take them with you.

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Interesting. So the token is generating its own gravity through sheer obsession. It looks like we still have a lot more to learn about their physical properties.

So do you think this obsession comes from love, or hate?

Then again, maybe there's not much difference either way.

What about you and Erice, Voyager? Do you two love each other?

...I can't express it in words.

After all, the really important things in life are those you can't see or easily describe. Am I wrong?

Shh! Shut up and listen.

Can you hear that?

It's the tram!

No running! You're going to trip and fall...

Erice! Erice, it's me! I'm coming!

Senpai! The next game is about to begin!