The Holy Grail, even when tainted, has not lost its functionality—it has merely transformed into something paradoxical.
Alaric was well aware of this.
The plan he had meticulously devised over the past four years was built on the premise that he could control the situation. Under this premise, he aimed to kill the entity within born from the Holy Grail.
Using the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, he intended to kill Angra Mainyu, annihilating the entirety of All the World's Evils that had polluted the Grail's colorless energy and occupied its interior. This would restore the purity of the Great Holy Grail System's colorless energy.
But that was impossible.
Alaric lacked sufficient information about the Angra Maintu, leading to flaws in his plan.
Although the Angra Mainyu within the Grail had not yet truly manifested, the moment it did would bring forth a disaster beyond Alaric's control.
If Angra Mainyu were to truly fuse with the nameless girl and become the Evil of Humanity, the resulting calamity was not something Alaric was willing to accept.
Absolute Evil—the primeval demon god, Angra Mainyu—just how powerful could it become?
Would it compare to a lower-tier deity like Jaguar Man, or surpass a higher-tier deity like Ishtar? Or perhaps... would it ascend to the level of a supreme god?
Regardless of the degree of strength possessed by the demon god, combined with its inherent power to defeat and destroy humanity—
Faced with the taunts of Guardian Emiya, even Alaric had no choice but to alter his plans.
The catalyst for this change lay in one realization:
Absolute Evil's corruption didn't seem to affect him. With his abilities, Alaric could fully withstand the erosion of All the World's Evils.
This created a contradiction within his plan.
Initially, Alaric's plan to purify the Holy Grail was merely to avoid any potential aftereffects of using a tainted Grail.
After all, unlike the Grail envisioned by the Einzbern family, the current Holy Grail's colorless energy had been polluted by the necessary evils of humanity's wishes. This granted Angra Mainyu corresponding power and authority, while also causing Evil to occupy the Grail's interior.
With such a Holy Grail, would its power manifest any unexpected changes? Would it be twisted or corrupted by the Evil inside? Alaric had no way of knowing. He had never been able to access the inner workings of the Grail to truly observe All the World's Evils. This lack of understanding caused many of his plans to be based on hazy impressions and conjectures.
But now, things were different.
The fact that Absolute Evil's corruption did not affect him proved that by coming into direct contact with the cursed black mud, Alaric had successfully grasped its nature and power.
If this were the extent of it, Alaric would not have been corrupted.
Moreover, Alaric could not allow Angra Mainyu to become the Evil of Humanity.
The choice before him seemed to leave only one option—to use the Lesser Grail to achieve the Third Magic and take the lead in materializing the soul.
As Alaric spoke, the nameless girl, who had begun to develop a rudimentary intellect, took deliberate steps toward him.
A torrential surge poured down from the heavens, but before it reached the ground, it was pierced and slain by the iron chains, preserving the harmony of the city.
Reaching out toward the nameless girl, Alaric fixed his gaze on her—and the shadow beneath her feet.
Within that shadow, a pair of smiling eyes stared back at him.
Tap. Tap.
The moment Alaric noticed that gaze, he stepped forward abruptly, closing the distance between himself and the nameless girl in an instant.
Grasping the girl's wrist, he locked eyes with her and said, "Open the Holy Grail. Activate the Third Magic."
Before the girl could respond, a voice echoed from below, accompanied by laughter:
"Hahaha! Oh no, that's not going to happen!"
The shadow rose. Emerging from it was a deeper darkness—a young man wielding two bizarre, mismatched short swords held in reverse. The grotesque weapons, akin to sharp fangs, launched an attack on Alaric.
Without even turning his head, Alric swung his holy sword backward. Yet, instead of the expected sensation of impact, what followed was—
Clang!
A strange collision sound, accompanied by a biting motion, locked the holy sword in place.
Only then did Alaric turn his head, his cold gaze landing on the youth and the weapons in his hands—blades bearing the name of the demon god, Zarich.
Even though Alaric held the advantage in raw strength, his weapon was still inevitably bitten and immobilized.
He couldn't even pull it free; he could only watch as the youth swung the other short sword.
Under Alaric's watchful eyes, after the holy sword was bitten, the second short sword followed up in an instant, cutting through the magical blade Alaric had constructed.
"The weapon in his right hand is Zarich, so the one in his left hand must be Tawrich."
Alaric's gaze swept over the two short swords. Their blades bore tattoos reminiscent of All the World's Evils.
Though surprised by Angra Mainyu's actions, Alaric decisively released the broken sword and punched him.
The terrifying force of the punch compressed the atmosphere, producing a sharp, explosive sound.
At such close range, the sheer strength behind this blow would surely shatter Angra Mainyu's head.
Facing Angra Mainyu, whose abilities were unclear, Alaric did not hold back, intending to end the battle with a thunderous strike.
But in that instant, something unexpected occurred.
With an almost impossibly narrow margin, Angra Mainyu evaded the lethal punch and, using his weapon—which was only ranked at C-level—bit through Alaric's arm.
The blood that sprayed forth fell onto the shadow, causing intricate tattoos to appear. These markings eventually enveloped the youth, revealing his full form.
It was a nameless youth, completely covered in tattoos, his original appearance erased.
Forced to bear the title of a demon god, he had become a necessary evil—a being now walking the earth as the Evil of Vengeance.
Alaric's severed arm flew high, and the blood gushing from the wound painted the night sky with its most vibrant hue, reflected in Alaric's eyes.
Was it his weakness in strength?
Or his inferiority in skill?
Was it Angra Mainyu's ability?
What was the reason he couldn't kill Angra Mainyu and had instead been injured?
This question lingered only briefly, as, in his moment of self-reflection, Alaric arrived at the answer—[Absolute Victory Over Humanity].
The youth bearing the title of Angra Mainyu did not possess overwhelming strength. His existence was solely to embody necessary evil.
And with that came the property of absolute victory over humanity.
As if to respond to Alaric's inner question—
"Hahahaha!! I see it now! Are you one person? Or a dozen?"
Angra Mainyu burst into laughter. In such proximity, with even Alaric's blood staining him, he finally saw what this man truly was.
In this world, nothing was closer to or more representative of humanity than him!
And because he was human, there was no doubt—Alaric would be defeated, killed, and conquered by Angra Mainyu!