A dimensional journey starting from the Dragon Clan

Chapter 1197 The Meaning of War

Now, Archer went out because he hated being stuck in the damp underground. Kirei knew that Archer would come over when necessary, so he did not feel any uneasiness. The only thing Kirei did not regard this Hero King as a familiar, but as an ally with common interests.

In other words, there are other more effective ways to use the Command Seals he received from Risei. For Kirei, who did not have a Magic Seal, even if it was a consumption type, he had many means to back up his magic. Now, even if he fought against a skilled magician, he had a great chance of winning.

Tonight, the final battle between Servants will determine the direction of the Holy Grail. As a bystander, all Kirei had to do was wait for the opportunity. As a Master, he should consider the strategic battle outside of the Servants - in that war, there was Kirei's most powerful enemy.

Emiya Kiritsugu. If there was anyone who could take advantage of Kirei at this stage, it would be him.

Kirei had always been looking forward to the confrontation with him. However, since the opponent was a complete assassin, the kind of encounter he hoped for would not be possible. In order to create a situation where he would face off against Emiya Kiritsugu head-on, he had to constantly think about the battle situation and continue to secure the first move. Once Kiritsugu seized the initiative, Kirei would be killed from behind without even seeing his opponent. In that case, everything would be meaningless.

It was certain that Emiya Kiritsugu would not be able to grasp the situation in this reservoir. Otherwise, Uryu Ryunosuke would have been eliminated earlier. As long as he hid here, he would not be attacked by Kiritsugu's surprise attack. Now all he had to do was make his opponent anxious and clueless. The venue for the duel would be decided by Kirei.

The goal was to make Kiritsugu, who acted according to reason, fail to predict the outcome, so that he would have to take the initiative to appear in front of Kirei. All that was left was to wait for night to fall.

Hearing the painful groan, Kirei cast his gaze towards a corner in the darkness. Lying on her back was the Einzbern doll that Berserker had kidnapped. She was not lying there naturally, but was cast with a simple magic circle to allow the surrounding magic power to flow in. Although the site was not a leyline, in the past, because Caster greedily devoured the souls of the victims here, the remaining magic power from that time was still accumulated here. Regardless of whether this supply was comfortable for her, as long as she was stable, it was enough.

Of course, even if her abdomen was cut open and the "Vessel of the Holy Grail" was taken out now, it would not be inconvenient. However, for Kirei, he now hoped to have a chance to talk to her. It was for this reason that he wasted time supplying her with magic power.

"Woman, can you hear me?"

"..."

While breathing weakly, the android opened his eyes. The empty eyes lost focus, and her vision was obviously weakened, but she still judged the voice of her enemy.

"Kotomine... Kirei, just as I thought, it was you who did it..."

"The Holy Grail War will soon be decided. Perhaps, I will be the one who fulfills the long-cherished wish of your Einzbern family."

Although there is no arrogance that you will win, this can be said to be a conservative estimate of the outcome.

"Still showing such an uncooperative attitude, are you so dissatisfied with me?"

"Of course... There is only one person I want to entrust the Holy Grail to... That is definitely not you, the agent."

Although it was difficult for her to even speak, the hatred and momentum contained in her voice made Kirei frown.

"I don't understand. You are just a puppet carrying the Holy Grail. The ultimate goal should be to complete the ritual rather than the situation of winning or losing. At this time, why are you still obsessed with a specific Master?"

"Yes, how can I understand... You don't even have a wish to place your hopes on the Holy Grail."

The hateful ridicule made Kirei even more confused - is this woman really a puppet? Why does a homunculus without even a soul have these feelings?

"Kotomine Kirei... You are a vain man who doesn't even understand the meaning of this war. You will never be able to defeat that man... Be prepared, my knight, my husband will definitely destroy you..."

"... Why are you talking about me?"

What puzzled Kirei even more was the content of her words. Why could this puppet see his true heart so accurately? Tokiomi, even his father and wife couldn't do this.

"Hehe, are you scared? Well, I'll tell you... Your heart has been seen through by Emiya Kiritsugu, and that's why he is wary of you and regards you as his greatest enemy... Kiritsugu will definitely pounce on you more coldly and ruthlessly than anyone else. Be prepared..."

I see - Kirei nodded with satisfaction.

If it was that man, or if there was someone who understood him, that person must be the same type as himself.

Emiya Kiritsugu did not disappoint his expectations. Although they had never met, he gave the most appropriate evaluation of Kotomine Kirei.

"Thank you, woman. This is good news for me. Emiya Kiritsugu is just as I imagined."

However, Kirei was answered with a laugh.

"...What a stupid man. You want to say that you understand Emiya Kiritsugu?... Humph, don't make me laugh. You are a man who can't even keep up with him."

"——What did you say?"

The sudden sound made him tremble. This sentence was hard for him to forget.

"That's right... Emiya Kiritsugu can see through you, but you can't guess him... Kotomine Kirei, you don't have anything that exists in that man's spirit."

Before the mocking words could continue to flow out, Kirei grabbed her slender neck. Even if the fight to the death in the Einzbern forest were to take place again, the anger and confusion that arose in Kirei's letter now was incomparable to that of that time.

"...I admit that, indeed, I am an empty person. I have nothing."

His roar seemed calm at first, or rather, he was agitated later on.

"But, what's the difference between me and Kiritsugu? With that man who would only devote himself to a meaningless war - not get anything from it, just repeat the killing! So deviant from the norm, so futile, he is not a confused person or something ?”

Kirei asked in a hoarse voice.

His questioning was like the roar of his soul in distress after going through all the imaginable tests but not getting the answers he sought.

"Doll, please tell me if you can answer it. Why is Emiya Kiritsugu pursuing the Holy Grail? What is the wish that that guy placed in the wish machine?"

Kirei provocatively released his grip on the android's neck. Allow her to breathe in response. It contained a silent warning that would make her stop breathing if she got an ambiguous answer.

Even so, the woman still showed no fear. She squatted under Kirei's knees, looking weak and desperately sucking in oxygen as pitifully as a thread. Even so, the look in her eyes at Kirei still contained a victor's mockery and sense of superiority.

It was almost as if it was Kirei who was bending the knee.

"Okay, let me tell you - Emiya Kiritsugu's long-cherished wish is to save mankind. To end all wars and bloodshed and achieve eternal world peace."

To Kirei, this was just a joke. After a few seconds, he laughed uncontrollably.

"--what is this?"

"You can't understand it. That's the difference between you and him, whether you have faith or not."

Is this woman really talking about the character Emiya Kiritsugu? Kirei had doubts about this. Who is Emiya Kiritsugu pretending to be in front of this doll?

"...Woman, what do you mean to Emiya Kiritsugu?"

"As a wife, I gave birth to his children. During these nine years, I watched his heart and shared his worries... I am different from you who have never seen him once."

Could it be that the nine years, or rather this period, were just spent in lies? Kirei also had such doubts. However, his intuition believed that this was impossible. What existed in this woman's heart was undoubtedly her trust in Emiya Kiritsugu. It is unimaginable to form such a solid personality based on empty lies. This woman was originally just an ordinary doll.

The focus of anger began to shift away from the woman in front of him. Kirei let out a worried sigh and sat on the chair next to him.

"Irisviel von Einzbern, have you been a good wife during these nine years? Have you won the love of Emiya Kiritsugu?"

"...Why do you care about this?"

"I don't understand the bond between you - you are proud of Emiya Kiritsugu as your husband and trust him. It's just like a real couple. However, if Emiya Kiritsugu is a man who pursues the Holy Grail, you won't It should be just a tool to fulfill his wish. He has no reason to give you love."

"...If you laugh at him for being stupid, I won't forgive you."

These are firm words that only those who possess something that cannot be blasphemed would say.

"...I have no father or mother. I am not the product of love. Therefore, I cannot understand what a 'good wife' is. Even so...the love he gave me is everything to me. No one can insult this."

"Then you are a perfect wife. Irisviel."

Kirei said as if making a disinterested judgment. This was neither a compliment nor a sarcasm.

"But, precisely because of this, I cannot understand Emiya Kiritsugu. Since I love you as my wife, why... are you talking about eternal world peace? Why should you sacrifice the person you love for such a meaningless ideal?"

"...This question is really strange. A man like you who even admits his own meaninglessness...actually laughs at the meaninglessness of other people's ideals?"

""As long as a normal-thinking adult, anyone would laugh at it. "

A completely different anger than before was what swelled in Kirei's heart.

"Struggle is human nature. To eradicate it is no different from eradicating human beings. Isn't it meaningless or something? Emiya Kiritsugu's so-called ideal - it cannot be called thought from the beginning, it is just a child's dream talk!"

"...Because of this, he can only rely on miracles..."

Irisviel said this while trying her best to remain calm.

"He lost everything for the ideal he pursued... In order to save the contradiction of those who cannot be saved, he always endured punishment and was deprived of everything around him... I am also such a person. So far, he has More than once, I was forced to make the decision to abandon the people I loved..."

Kirei stood up from his chair and stared at Irisviel with a bottomless gloomy gaze.

"You're saying it's not just about this one time - it's about this man's way of survival?"

"Yes, Kiritsugu is too gentle. Even if he knows that he will lose him one day, he still does not hesitate in his love..."

For Kirei, these answers were enough. He had completely lost interest in the artificial man in front of him.

"……I see."

He grabbed the woman's neck with his strong fingertips, blocking her blood flow.

Looking at the other person's weak and painful expression, Kirei said calmly.

"I finally understand. This is Emiya Kiritsugu."

Kirei threw the unconscious woman aside and stared blankly into the dark space.

Judging from the results, Kirei was wrong from the beginning - his questions were answered, and his expectations turned into disappointment.

Emiya Kiritsugu was not searching for the truth in meaningless disputes.

That man just reduced everything meaningful to nothingness.

It’s not that he has no wishes, but because he has such a whimsical wish, he falls into the chain of nothingness. This futility, this waste, stupid and hopeless.

Kiritsugu might be able to see through Kotomine Kirei's empty heart, and he might be afraid of that emptiness and be wary of it. However, he never imagined the meaning of having such emptiness. Kirei's crazy desire was something he couldn't understand at all.

Emiya Kiritsugu's life can be summed up as giving up everything over and over again.

The joy and happiness that the man gave up. Even if it is just a fragment, in Kirei's eyes, it is worth protecting with his life, and even willing to die for it.

For a man who cannot find even a small piece of these joys and happiness and continues to be confused, Kiritsugu's living situation exists in his own envy and longing.

How can it be tolerated that those unsatisfied hungers, those unfillable deficiencies, are so belittled and fooled? How can we prevent him from feeling hatred?

The gloomy emotions welling up in his heart made Kirei's smile become distorted.

He finally understood the meaning of war.

I have no interest in the Holy Grail. It doesn't matter even if you don't have any intention of realizing your wish.

If I could personally crush the ideals of this man who focused everything on miracles - even the Holy Grail, which was worthless to me, would still have meaning in seizing it.

The excitement of the approaching battle made Kirei's hands tremble. The high-spirited fighting spirit burned in his chest, as if he was about to pull out the black key and pierce everything in front of him.

In the dark space that reeked of blood, Kotomine Kirei laughed loudly. The beating of the soul has never stopped in the past few years.

()