A dimensional journey starting from the Dragon Clan

Chapter 1207 The Killing Continues

Knowing that she shouldn't kill him, she still killed this person who shouldn't be killed. Saber is now just a captive of obsession - just like Diarmuid's rebuke to him at the last moment, she stepped on many corpses and wanted only the miracle of the wish-granting machine. This is the truest side of Saber at this moment.

"Even so, I still want to get the Holy Grail."

Tears dripped on the trembling gauntlet, mixing with the blood of Berserker that slid down the blade.

"If I don't do this, my friend... If I don't do this, I won't be able to make any compensation to you at all."

"——It's so sad. Even now, are you still looking for excuses for your fight?"

A nostalgic voice.

Looking up, the knight was looking at the tearful king with his usual calm eyes, like a calm lake. Abandoning the contract with the Master, he freed himself from the crazy spell while the gap had not yet disappeared.

"Lancelot..."

"Yes, I'm very grateful. Perhaps, I can only convey my thoughts in this way..."

Looking at the sword that pierced his body with a compassionate look, Lancelot continued with a wry smile.

"Actually... I wanted you to punish me personally at that time. King... I really hoped that you would blame me for your anger at that time..."

The betrayed knight, Lancelot, who was called the culprit of the flaws of the Round Table, spoke sadly to the only friend who never blamed him until the end.

"If I can be punished by you... If you can ask me for compensation... Then I will definitely believe in atonement... I will definitely believe that one day I will find a way to forgive myself. ... The princess should be the same..."

This is the regret of a man and a woman. They have the same ideals as the king, but they are too weak to carry out this ideal.

And these two people have not been redeemed until their death. They deeply blame themselves for betraying the most important people, and they carry this self-blame for their whole lives.

Who should I tell such pain to, and who should blame who in order to get relief?

With a deep sigh, Lancelot relaxed his body and fell into the arms of the Knight King. The body in his arms was very light, and Saber couldn't help but feel a blockage in her throat. The Servant's body gradually disappeared, and it was almost weightless.

"Although it was in this form, I still borrowed your chest in the end..."

As if dreaming in a nap, the Lake Knight murmured and sighed calmly.

"Dying in the arms of the king, in front of the king... Haha, I am just like a loyal knight..."

"You-don't say that-"

Saber answered anxiously. Before he disappeared, she had something to tell him. She hoped he could understand.

Not "just like", but "just like".

She wanted to tell him that you are a loyal knight. No one knows better than me how sincere you are to the country and the king.

So don't blame yourself anymore. Even if it is a mistake that should not be made. Your character cannot be overturned by such a mistake.

I don't want to humiliate you, I don't want to lose you. It is because I have such a wish that I can sincerely deny the so-called sin you committed.

This was Altria's true thought, but it could not be the salvation of the knight.

The knight closed his eyes as if he was sleeping, and his body was gradually dissipating. Seeing that he would soon disappear, Saber still didn't know what to say.

"Lancelot, actually you...!"

You are not a sinner - what meaning does such a word have to him.

Even if someone denied his sin, the one who was most entangled in this sin was not others, but himself.

Why didn't he notice his lonely thoughts at that time? Why couldn't he free the noble soul of this knight from the almost crazy self-blame.

- The king will not understand other people's feelings -

Who said this sentence when he left the round table?

The dead body of the knight said nothing more, and with the last residual light, he disappeared.

"- Wait... Wait... Lance -"

Looking at the weightless and empty arms, Saber sobbed.

She couldn't even make a sound. She didn't allow herself to make even a little sound. Facing the loyal knight at his last moment, I couldn't even say a word of comfort to him. What right do I have to cry now?

The king can only be lonely and proud -

I said this to myself, while looking for a way to save the country, how many people's thoughts and troubles did I ignore.

Gawain, who sacrificed himself heroically, and Galahad, who died for his mission, what were they thinking in their last moments. Did they also die with regret and unwillingness? Why can I insist that this is not the case?

Saber cried and felt as if countless thorns cut her heart.

Could it be that as a king, I shouldn't be so high and mighty -

If so, wouldn't it bring about a devastating ending? Would everyone be saved?

"... It's not over yet."

From the sobbing throat came the persistent voice of the ever-victorious king.

"I can still compensate...it's still too late...I still have the Holy Grail. I still have the miracle that can overturn fate..."

Saber stood up holding the sword of victory.

Even if you can't listen to people's hearts, even if you are accused of being an aloof king, it doesn't matter at all.

Even so, as long as she can personally win victory for her hometown and her subjects - this is what she requires of herself, and what she must do as a "king".

As long as you can get the Holy Grail, you can make up for everything and correct all mistakes.

Now, this belief is everything Saber has chosen to be a king.

With scars all over her body, Saber took steps forward.

············

The killing continues.

bullet. dagger. poison. bomb.

Through. tear. combustion. immersion. overwhelming.

The significance was never in doubt. After carefully weighing its value, choose the side that the scale favors. The other side should be left empty, so kill. Kill, kill, keep killing.

Yes, that's correct. In order to save the majority, someone must sacrifice. If there are more happy people being protected than unhappy people, then the world is closer to being saved.

Even if there are countless corpses underfoot.

If any life is saved, then the most important thing is these lives being protected.

"-Yes, Kiritsugu. You are right."

Turning around, he saw his wife standing next to him. She approached Kiritsugu with a gentle and loving smile, and stood side by side with him on the mountain of corpses.

"I knew you would definitely come to accompany me. I believe that if it were you, you would definitely be able to get here."

"Ellie——"

A fondly remembered face. But something else felt a little off.

Perhaps it was because she was wearing a black dress that he had never seen before. Although this was also one of the reasons, Kiritsugu still felt that he had overlooked some important issue.

By the way, how is Saber doing? What happened to the remaining three groups of enemies? Where is Kotomine Kirei? There are so many questions, what should I ask?

Kiritsugu had no choice but to ask the question he originally wanted to ask.

"Where - where is this?"

"This is the place where your wish will come true. The inside of the Holy Grail you seek."

Irisviel replied with a smile. Kiritsugu was speechless and turned to look around.

Black mud rolling in waves like the ocean.

There are mountains of corpses everywhere, which are gradually sinking into the sea.

The sky is red, as red as blood. Amid the black mud rain, a dark sun dominated the sky.

Wind is curse and sorrow.

If you use any words to describe it, where is this place if it is not hell?

"You said...this is the Holy Grail?"

"Yeah, but don't be afraid. This is just something like an unformed dream. It's still waiting to be born."

Look there——Irisviel pointed to the sky. The black vortex in the sky was initially mistaken for the sun by Kiritsugu. There is the center of the world, a "hole" in the sky. The unfathomable darkness inside seemed to be so dense that it could crush everything.

"That is the Holy Grail. Although it has no form yet, the container has been filled. Then all you have to do is pray. According to the entrusted wish, it can change into a corresponding form. Then it can acquire the posture and shape of the real world, and then Can appear in the 'outside world'."

"..."

"Okay, hurry up and pray. Hurry up and give it a 'pose'. Only you are the one worthy of defining its form. Kiritsugu, pray to the Holy Grail."

Kiritsugu said nothing, just stared at the terrible "hole".

No sane human being would think that "hole" is a good thing. But even so, why can Irisviel still smile so calmly. By the way, her smile is the most unusual thing.

If you want to say why——

"……Who are you?"

Kiritsugu suppressed the fear in his heart with anger and asked his wife in front of him.

"If the preparations for the Holy Grail have been completed, it means that Irisviel is dead. Then, who are you?"

"I am Irisviel. That's all you need to think about."

Kiritsugu raised the magic gun in his right hand - and pointed the muzzle of the Contender that he had been holding in his hand while fighting Kirei at the person in front of him.

"Don't fool me, answer quickly!"

Facing the muzzle full of murderous intent, the woman in black skirt smiled a little lonely, as if she was expressing pity for Kiritsugu who was pressing for the truth.

"...Yes, I don't deny that this is just a mask. If I don't borrow a 'body' that already has a personality, I can't communicate with others. I just pretend to be like this to convey my wishes. But, I The personality of Irisviel is genuine. I was the last person to come into contact with her before she disappeared, so I inherited Irisviel's last wish. Look' appears."

After hearing this, Kiritsugu understood intuitively.

This place is called "the inside of the Holy Grail", so the person in front of me who claims to be "nobody" should be——

"——Are you the consciousness of the Holy Grail?"

"Well, that's a correct explanation."

Through Irisviel's body, it nodded in agreement. But this time, Kiritsugu frowned in confusion.

"Impossible. The Holy Grail is just pure 'power'. It is impossible for it to have any consciousness."

"Maybe it was like this before, but it is different now. I have consciousness and wishes. My wish is 'I hope to be born in this world'."

"How is it possible..."

It is too strange. This is too unbelievable.

If this is true, then it is not the 'wish-making machine' that Kiritsugu pursues and can be manipulated at will.

"--Since you said it has consciousness, then I ask you, how will the Holy Grail fulfill my wish?"

As if she had encountered a difficult problem, Irisviel tilted her head slightly.

"Kiritsugu, you should understand this question better than anyone else, right?"

"...What did you say?"

"Your existence as a human being is already infinitely close to the Holy Grail. Therefore, you can remain rational even when communicating with me like this. If it were an ordinary human, he would have a mental breakdown the moment he was touched by the mud."

Irisviel spoke cheerfully and happily.

For some reason, her smile made Kiritsugu's heart turmoil.

"You already know how to save the world. So I will follow your example and fulfill your wish as you have always done."

"What are you talking about?"

Kiritsugu did not understand. Because he did not want to understand it that way anyway.

"Answer me, what exactly does the Holy Grail do? What will happen if that thing comes to the world!?"

Irisviel sighed helplessly and nodded at the irrelevant answers.

"--There is no other way. Then, you can only ask your own heart."

The white and soft palm covered Kiritsugu's eyes--

Then, the world was dark.

There were two ships floating on the sea.

There were 300 people on one ship and 200 on the other, a total of 500 crew members and passengers, and Emiya Kiritsugu. Assume that these 501 people are the last remaining humans in this world.

Next, Kiritsugu only needs to act out a play based on the following propositions and roles.

"Both ships have fatal holes in their bottoms, and Kiritsugu is the only one who has the technology to repair ships. While one ship is being repaired, the other will sink. So, which ship will you choose to repair?"

"...Of course, the ship with 300 people."

"After you make your decision, what will you do if the 200 people on the other ship hold you hostage and ask you to 'repair this ship first'?"

"This..."

Before he could answer, a machine gun appeared in Kiritsugu's hand. 2? "J8w5O # t-F*j

The gun suddenly fired bullets like an automatic machine. Kiritsugu could only stare blankly at everything in front of him.

A bullet pierced through four people, and in an instant, all 200 people were shot dead.

"--Correct. This is Emiya Kiritsugu."

Kiritsugu watched the ship carrying a mountain of corpses sink into the sea motionlessly. Every corpse on the deck seemed to be someone he knew.