Chapter 126. The End of the Holy Grail War 2/3
As soon as we arrived in the courtyard of the Einzbern castle, Illya's maids came out to greet us and led us to the common hall, where almost all of the war's surviving participants had gathered; even Sakura and Rider were here. The only ones missing were Medea and her Master, who were currently in the Ryuudouji Temple, right above the Holy Grail.
After greeting everyone and taking a seat at the table with them, something piqued my curiosity.
"Where's Shiki?"
"She said it was time for her to go back," Shirou, who was sitting next to Sakura, answered me.
"I see… well, if that's how it is, then so be it," I decided not to dwell on it.
"Now it's time to discuss important matters—specifically, the end of the Holy Grail War," I announced.
"What exactly do you plan to do?" Illya tensed up; the last few days had been nothing short of absurd for her.
"First, we need to decide which Servants intend to stay in this world after the Holy Grail War is over, and whether their Masters are able to support them.
Second, we need to meet with Caster and her Master. Depending on how it goes, Caster will either continue living with her Master or be destroyed.
Third, I will personally supply the Holy Grail with enough energy through its main mechanism inside the mountain to make it descend, after which I'll cleanse it of this world's evil.
And finally, fourth, Mordred and I will leave your world. And here's a question for Artoria," I looked at the blond woman.
"What's the question?" she asked calmly.
"You said you wanted to see how things would go if you weren't king. Of course, it's not going to be a completely fair comparison, since I'll be helping Mordred, and it's unlikely that the opposing force will dare to intervene and stop the continuation of the Age of Gods. Still, if you want to see it with your own eyes, I offer you a contract—if you accept, we'll go together."
Artoria took her time before answering. Although a similar question had come up before, back then it was only about cooperation, not about making a contract.
"How much time do I have to think it over?" she finally spoke.
"A couple of hours, during which I'll sort everything out."
"All right. When the time comes, I'll give you my answer."
"So, are we going to beat up the witch now?" Mordred asked enthusiastically; she hadn't had much fun in this Holy Grail War.
"Mordred, the first point isn't about fighting Medea, and as for the second—it's mostly a conversation, not a battle."
"I remember all that. But it's not up to us to discuss who will stay after the war, it's up to the individual Masters and Servants. Actually, I can already guess who'll stay and who won't."
"That gloomy guy over there's obviously going to leave." She nodded towards Archer. "Rider is clearly staying—she obviously wants to protect her Master for life. As for Heracles, I'm not sure. The only reason he might hesitate is because staying would mean he'd consume more mana and could endanger his Master. And my father still needs time to think before deciding. So really, there's nothing much for us to do here."
"And regarding the witch, it's obvious one can achieve a lot more with a sword and a kind word than with just a kind word."
After her words, the whole hall fell silent.
...
"So what?!" The knight-girl finally burst out, unable to endure the stunned silence.
"Mordred, I'm so proud of you," I said, wiping away fake tears.
"Master!" Mordred protested at this obvious act.
"It's the first time I've seen you use your head for something other than smashing an enemy's face or eating. You've really grown," Artoria joined in.
"I…" Mordred's face turned bright red from embarrassment and a smile appeared on her lips.
"Wait, Mordred, that was totally an insult! Don't be so happy!!!" I screamed internally, but I couldn't bring myself to say it out loud.
"Ahem, anyway, we're off to see Medea," I coughed, deciding that—as a good fiancée—it was my duty to rescue Mordred from an embarrassing situation she hadn't even realized yet.
"All right," Mordred nodded happily and got up from the table with me.
"Wait," Artoria called after us.
"What is it?" I looked at her with interest.
"I'll go with you."
"Sure," I agreed without hesitation, and while she approached, I began to draw a teleportation circle using Satoru Gojo's technique.
When I finally finished:
"Ladies, please step into the circle," I addressed Mordred and Artoria.
They both gave me stone-faced looks, but stepped into the circle, and the next moment I sent them straight to the foot of Mount Enzo. Where they had stood just a moment ago, a crater appeared.
"Miss Fischl, we sincerely hope you will refrain from further damaging Einzbern property," one of Illya's maids addressed me coldly. Was that Lizrit, or maybe Sella? Who knows—they're basically clones with identical faces and clothes.
"Is damage like that really a problem? Even Tohsaka could remove it with a single spell," and to demonstrate, without even chanting, I reproduced the spell Rin once used to repair Shirou's windows with a simple snap of my fingers.
"What do you mean 'even'?!" the girl in question protested, but by that time I had already teleported to join the two waiting blondes.
"Something hold you up?" Artoria asked.
"I just had to fix the floor, nothing special," I waved her off, focusing my attention on the long staircase ahead—no one was on it.
"Strange, shouldn't Sasaki Kojirou be on guard here?" I muttered, then remembered.
"Oh right! Zouken summoned the True Assassin! What a shame—Sasaki Kojirou is such a cool heroic spirit, I'd love to see his Noble Phantasm that ignores space and time."
"Is he strong?" Mordred asked.
"Well… in terms of stats, as a Servant, he's far from the strongest, but his swordsmanship is so advanced that his Noble Phantasm isn't even magical—it purely bypasses space and time through sheer skill to strike three times at once. Also, he's the perfect Servant for someone who can't provide a lot of magical energy. Though with a stronger Master, I think he could do even more."
"I'd like to cross swords with him," Artoria said thoughtfully, clearly impressed by my high praise.
"In two of the three possible futures I know of, you actually got the chance. But, alas, Matou Zouken interfered this time." I shrugged and started climbing the mountain.
"Too bad I didn't get the chance to punch him in the face," Mordred sighed.
"Don't worry, I missed out on that pleasure, too," I snorted.
Soon we reached the top of the stairs and entered a wide courtyard, where two figures stood.
A stone-faced man in glasses and a formal suit stood beside a woman in a cloak, most of her face hidden under a hood.
"Have you come for the final battle?" Caster spoke first; she didn't seem eager to fight.
"That depends on you, Medea of Colchis. I have a proposal."
"I'm listening."
"I know you've already found what you're looking for—a beloved you want to spend your life with—and I'm more than confident that a mage of your caliber can support yourself even after the Holy Grail War ends, without doing anything as vile as killing children, like Gilgamesh did. So—give up on the Holy Grail, and just live a normal, peaceful life with your beloved."
"…And if I refuse?" Medea asked after a brief pause.
"Then I'll destroy you both," I said coldly, removing the bandage from my left eye and summoning storm clouds overhead. I saw her involuntarily flinch as soon as I looked at her without the bandage: even in a world of magical combat, being seen through by the Six Eyes was very unpleasant, to say the least. Now, with the addition of the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, it was on another level—it no longer felt like being seen through, but rather the sense of absolute and inescapable annihilation of both body and soul.
"…All right. I won't interfere in the Holy Grail War, but I want a contract stating that you won't harm us either," Medea finally replied, looking slightly drained.
"Hm. Fair enough," I agreed, walking up to her.
"No tricks," Mordred reminded her, as I extended my hand to seal the geas.
"Wouldn't dream of it," the witch's lips curled in a sweet smile.
Since Medea was a clever woman, the procedure went smoothly and we parted entirely satisfied with each other.