"How... how is this possible?!" Shirō Emiya's voice trembled with disbelief and shock.
"That annoying guy turned out to be me?!" he muttered to himself, his eyes filled with confusion.
Although he had formed an alliance with Rin, their Servants were like oil and water. Shirō vaguely sensed that Red A harbored an indescribable resentment toward him—or more precisely, a deep-seated prejudice.
"You're saying I... become him?"
Shirō Emiya couldn't accept this reality, his expression growing increasingly complex and conflicted.
…
The scene before them left the magi present utterly astonished:
[Lord El-Melloi II: This is simply too legendary! The Master and his Heroic Spirit self appearing in the same era—is this fortune or misfortune?]
[Young Da Vinci: Speaking of which, the Throne of Heroes exists beyond time. In other words, it's not entirely implausible for Shirō Emiya to become a Heroic Spirit in the future and be summoned back to our time. Once one becomes a Heroic Spirit, they transcend the constraints of time and space. Whether past, present, or future, Heroic Spirits can appear anywhere.]
[François Prelati: Not only that, but summoning oneself from the Throne of Heroes is theoretically possible as well.]
[Aozaki Tōko: Yokihime, you seem quite knowledgeable about this...]
[François Prelati: Damn it...]
…
Meanwhile, Artoria looked at her Master's troubled expression and nodded solemnly:
"Shirō..."
"What those on the light screen say is correct..."
"It is entirely possible for a future version of yourself to become a Heroic Spirit and be summoned into the past..."
"..."
Even so, Artoria, who had been summoned for two consecutive Holy Grail Wars, felt a pang of emotion.
She, too, struggled to accept the fact that Archer was Shirō.
As a Heroic Spirit herself, she knew that attaining such a status was never an easy path.
If Archer truly was Shirō, then his future must have been filled with unimaginable suffering—perhaps even death in this very Holy Grail War. If that were true, it meant that she, as a Heroic Spirit, had failed to protect him.
She couldn't help but feel that she was not only incompetent as a king but also unworthy as a Servant.
Recalling the past, a wave of sorrow washed over Artoria's heart...
…
"Emiya... Shirō?!"
Kiritsugu Emiya's expression was equally complicated.
As the sole heir of the Emiya family, he was certain that his ancestors were not legendary heroes qualified to become Servants.
This seemed to be merely a coincidence of sharing the same surname... but was it really?
Kiritsugu felt a headache brewing, as if a vicious curse had long clouded his heart, refusing to dissipate...
"But... the priority now is to obtain the Holy Grail..."
"There's no reason to retreat..."
"..."
Even with the variables growing more complex, Kiritsugu's resolve remained unshaken—
No matter who dared to stand between him and the Holy Grail, he would show no mercy.
For the sake of all humanity, he was willing to bear the karma of becoming a demon, even if it meant enduring infamy for millennia.
…
The Fifth Holy Grail War—Tōhsaka Residence
"Rin..."
Red A remained silent for a long time, unable to offer an explanation.
He never expected the light curtain to expose his identity so abruptly, catching him completely off guard.
He had joined this Holy Grail War with one purpose: to kill his past self—a wish he could never explain to Rin.
Seeing Red A's hesitant expression, Rin grew even more certain of the Servant's identity.
—Archer was Shirō Emiya!
Her Shirō Emiya!
And Heroic Spirits were those who died with unfulfilled wishes, ascending to the Throne of Heroes only to walk the world once more as Servants.
Tōhsaka Rin's eyes trembled slightly as she gazed at the man who had "deceived" her, her heart filled with worry:
Shirō, what have you been through...
…
[Video continues to play]
[After the endless darkness, ruins...]
[After the Fourth Holy Grail War——]
On the light curtain,
Blazing flames mercilessly devoured the entire city, causing skyscrapers to collapse one after another, reducing everything to broken walls and rubble.
In this catastrophe, countless lives were buried beneath collapsing buildings and raging fires, their agonized cries echoing through the annihilation.