A dimensional journey starting from the Dragon Clan

Chapter 1173 Sacrifice

He kept talking to Irisviel and spoke words that insulted Saber without fear. Saber certainly wouldn't ignore it.

"Don't insult chivalry in front of me, you beast!"

Even in the face of the angry shouts from the King of Knights, Kiritsugu remained motionless. He still didn't take Saber seriously, and still only looked at his wife. But at this time, he finally started talking like a bamboo tube pouring beans.

"Chivalry cannot save the world. This has been the case in the past, and it will be like this in the future. Those guys advocate that there are good and evil means of fighting, and they perform on the battlefield as if they have dignity. Because the heroes of the past have been Shrouded in that illusion, how many young people do you think were blinded by their heroic reputation and ended up bleeding to death?"

"That is not a fantasy! Even if life is at stake, as long as it is human behavior, there must be laws and concepts that must not be violated. We must not lose our righteousness! Otherwise, endless war will eventually turn this world into hell again!"

Saber retorted righteously. However, Kiritsugu scoffed at this.

"You see, it's like this - just like you said, Ellie. This heroic spirit actually thinks that the battlefield is better than hell.

What a joke! No matter in which era, the battlefield is a hell. There is no hope on the battlefield, only worthless despair. Some are just sins called victory built on the despair of the loser.

Everyone who met there admitted without any room for argument the malice and stupidity of an act called 'war'. As long as people do not repent and regard it as the most evil taboo, hell will reappear countless times in the world. "

For Saber, who only knew the ruthless and hard-hearted Kiritsugu, that was the first time she saw the other side of Emiya Kiritsugu - a man who was almost crushed by endless grief, anger and lamentation, his plaintive monologue.

"But no matter how high the mountains of corpses are piled up by human beings, they have not noticed the truth. Because no matter in which era, brave and fearless heroes have confused everyone's eyes with their gorgeous heroic legends. Because of the impulsiveness of fools, Rather than admitting that bloodshed and sacrifice are evil in themselves, human nature has been stagnant since the Stone Age!”

It was self-evident who the anger in those eyes was directed at.

Probably from the day he started the war on the land of Fuyuki, Kiritsugu was filled with unbearable anger as he stared at the glorious figures of the heroic spirits who were proud of their courage and bravery in front of him.

The wise people are left behind, the wise people are longed for, and the anger that has no place to vent is filled with these two... It is the hatred of the entire concept of "heroic spirits" created by people's prayers.

"——Then Kiritsugu, you made Saber suffer humiliation... is it because of your hatred of heroic spirits?"

"How is it possible? I don't have any personal feelings involved. I want to win the Holy Grail and save the world. I just use the most appropriate means in the process of fighting for this."

If the battle goes as planned, and if Sora is killed immediately instead of captured, Lancer, who has completely cut off his magic power supply, should be naturally eliminated. But the policy adopted by Kiritsugu was to completely eliminate the possibility of the Servant who lost his master signing a contract with someone else and making a comeback. Based on the outcome of the battle against Caster, he predicted that Kayneth, who was protected by the Fuyuki Church, might obtain the Command Seal again. Therefore, such a complicated trap was prepared.

Use the command spell of the enemy Master to destroy the Servant, and then kill the Master. Completely removing obstacles... During this period, what Saber was asked to do was not to defeat Lancer, but to distract Lancer while Kiritsugu persuaded Kayneth, and simply act as a retreating soldier.

"In today's world and the way people live today, war cannot be avoided no matter what. In the end, killing as an evil must be necessary. So the best way is to solve everything in the shortest time with maximum efficiency and minimum sacrifice. If you want to slander it as mean and vicious, then that's up to you. Justice can't save the world."

"..."

Saber recalled the last angry look of Lancer who disappeared. Then, she stared motionlessly at the tragic corpses of the man and woman lying in a pool of blood, and the painful expressions etched on their faces.

"Even so, you-"

When Saber was about to express her thoughts, she suddenly found that her voice was lower and calmer than she expected. Only then did she realize that her complicated feelings towards Kiritsugu were no longer the anger just now, but had turned into some kind of pity.

Yes, he may be a man who should be pitied.

What needs to be saved is not the world, but himself, right?

"——Emiya Kiritsugu. I don't know what kind of betrayal you have suffered in the past, or why you despaired. But that anger and lamentation are undoubtedly what those who pursue justice have. Kiritsugu, when you were young You should really want to be a 'partner of justice'. You should believe more than anyone else and want to be the hero who saves the world - isn't it?"

Until now, Kiritsugu's attitude toward Saber was either complete disregard or cold contempt. But at this moment, when Kiritsugu heard Saber's quiet question - the way he looked at his Servant revealed other emotions for the first time.

Like boiling rage.

The sound of car exhaust disturbed the stillness of dawn. Then, the light truck driven by Kuu Maiya drove into the open space of the abandoned factory with its bright lights flashing. She should have come to take Kiritsugu back to the new capital after finishing her mission as a sniper.

Kiritsugu looked away from Saber, walked towards the light truck without looking back, and opened the passenger door. Saber was still telling the figure behind her. She had one last thing to say no matter what.

"Kiritsugu... do you understand? If you do evil for the sake of hating evil, only evil will be left in the end. The anger and hatred that sprout there will cause a new war again."

Faced with Saber's heavy words, Kiritsugu seemed to have the intention to respond for the first time and wanted to turn around - but, in the end, he changed his mind and stared into the void.

"I will bring an end to the never-ending cycle. And for that I need the Holy Grail."

That's right, he said loudly, as if talking to himself.

"Use a miracle to complete the transformation of the world and the transformation of human souls. I will let the blood shed in Fuyuki City become the last bloodshed of mankind.

For this reason, even if I have to bear "all the evil in the world" - it doesn't matter. If that would save the world, I'd be more than willing to accept it. "

"..."

Kiritsugu expressed his determination very calmly and calmly. Saber couldn't find any words to respond to him.

Even if his methods and methods are intolerable evil - his belief in pursuing the Holy Grail is pure and selfless. I have to admit that if there is a Master worthy of obtaining the Holy Grail in this war, it should definitely be Emiya Kiritsugu.

Saber watched silently as the light truck Kiritsugu was riding in left. The first rays of morning light shone around her. The dark night that turned Fuyuki into a magical world has left, and the streets once again put on a mask called "everyday life" under the sun.

"Kiritsugu...is gone already?"

"——Irisviel?"

Precisely because Saber had time to think about the strangeness in the question, she was able to immediately detect something unusual about Irisviel.

The empty and wandering eyes, the pale face, and the beads of sweat flowing down like a waterfall on the forehead...

She was probably just trying to keep up her energy by her husband's side just now, pretending that nothing was wrong. As soon as her spirit relaxed, Irisviel passed out while standing, slumped down like a doll with its strings cut off.

Although Saber immediately stepped forward to hug her, the slender body in her arms was unusually warm, which made her understand that Irisviel's condition had reached a critical point.

"Irisviel!? Cheer up!"

············

That morning, Emiya Kiritsugu expressed his determination loudly, and it could be seen from his resolute and heroic look that he was speaking from the bottom of his heart without any pretense.

But what those incredible metaphorical words actually meant was something that Kiritsugu finally understood clearly a few days later.

In a despair deeper than despair.

In regret that is deeper than regret.

············

Matou Kariya fell into a dark dream.

Nothing can be seen.

Nothing is heard.

Only the skin could feel the astonishingly dense weight of the darkness.

Here, where is it - this seems to be someone's body.

So, Kariya asked the darkness - who are you.

As if with suffocating pressure, the darkness roared low. Howling like a violent wind, like the sky falling apart.

"I am——

The alienated person——

The person being laughed at——

The one who is despised—"

The dense black shadow surged in the darkness, like a human figure ready to move.

Armor and helmet immersed in darkness.

The bright eyes are more frightening than the darkness.

Berserker - the embodiment of Matou Kariya's curse, no, the Servant summoned from the end of time and space by his resentment.

"No need to praise my name——

No need to envy my body——

I am the shadow under the radiance of the heroic spirit——

Born from the darkness of dazzling legend——"

Like a miasma rising from the ground, resentful sighs surrounded Kariya from all directions.

Yan Ye became restless, and just as he was about to turn his gaze away, the cold touch of the steel gauntlet gradually came closer, grabbing Yan Ye's shirt tightly.

Kariya's emaciated body was lifted into the air, and before Berserker's eyes - he was fixed in a position where he had to look into that crazy gaze.

"so--

I hate——

I resent——

Feeding on the sighs of those who dwell in darkness, and cursing those who shine—"

"..."

Kariya resisted the gauntlet that locked his throat mercilessly and groaned in pain. Another blurry and confused scene appeared in his eyes.

The shining sword, and the dazzling young warrior holding the hilt.

Kariya was no stranger to this person.

That's Einzbern's Servant-Saber...

"This is my shame -

Because of her immortal glory, I will be forever degraded——"

The Black Knight's helmet cracked.

The exposed face was covered by darkness, but the pair of torch-like eyes and the teeth that were shaking due to hunger were clearly visible.

"You are the sacrifice——"

He declared coldly, and without saying a word, he held Yan Ye in his arms, and pierced his carotid artery with his gleaming sharp teeth.

Kariya screamed in agony.

But the screams failed to move the other party. The violent black knight sucked the blood foam that overflowed from Kariya's throat and swallowed it heavily.

“Okay, give me some more——

Your flesh and blood, your life—

Let them inspire my hatred—! ! "

don't want……

stop……

help me!

Kariya asked for forgiveness in every language he could think of, hoping that someone would lend a helping hand, but in this darkness, he could not be saved.

A patch of blood flashed in front of his eyes intermittently, and his consciousness, disturbed by pain and fear, gradually became blurred.

But he still squeezed out the last remaining bit of strength and shouted again with the loudest voice.

············

——Wake up with the scream, you are still in darkness.

But even so, the rancid smell of the cold, damp air and the creepy sounds of tens of thousands of crawling bugs told him clearly that this was undoubtedly the real world.

"..."

Compared with the nightmare just now and reality, which world is more compassionate to Matou Kariya——

At least, from the perspective of being able to forget the fact that this body is about to die, perhaps staying in the world of nightmares would be happier.

After being burned by the fire and falling from the roof of the building, what kind of miracle was he saved, and how he returned to the underground insect warehouse of Matou Residence alive again? Kariya can no longer understand based on his memory.

The feeling in his hands and feet was very dull, but he knew that he was hanging by the wall with his hands shackled. He couldn't stand on his feet, and his shoulders, which bore the entire weight of his body, hurt as if they were about to be dislocated. But the pain was nothing compared to the itching caused by the bugs all over my body.

The bugs licked at the charred skin, which was covered with new pink skin. It seemed that the burn, though for some unknown reason, was healing.

Perhaps, the imprinting insect wanted to use Kariya's body as a seedbed to maintain his life. But it's completely useless. In order to regenerate the skin, the magic power has been forcibly consumed, and the little life left in Kariya's body is about to be exhausted. He could clearly feel that even the simple act of taking a breath in and letting it out was consuming his energy.

Soon, he will die——

While he understood that he couldn't resist at all, what kept flashing in his mind was Aoi and Sakura's faces.

He once vowed to save them at the cost of his life...but in the end, his wish was not realized. This humiliation and shame tormented Kariya's heart more than the physical pain.

He recalled the face of the person he loved, but then the cold expression of Tokiomi Tokiomi and the sneer of Matō Zouken came to his mind, making him breathless.

"asshole……"

From the depths of his thirsty throat, Kariya cursed angrily with his remaining strength.