"You actually... don't care whether Kirei Kotomine lives or dies, do you?"
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Sakutsuki showed no reaction to Gilgamesh's sudden remark, but his gaze turned cold.
Facing the young man who was beginning to get irritated, the blond king slapped the table and burst into unrestrained laughter.
"Yes, that look! Hahahahaha, that's exactly what I wanted to see! Arrogance, indifference—you merely found something troublesome, so you strangled a certain possibility in its cradle. In the end, it wasn't for justice or anything like that. They simply got in your way!"
Picking up the lunch box, the golden king rose to his feet with the satisfied air of someone who had eaten his fill.
"Really, the world today has become far too gentle toward people. So gentle it makes me sick, like foul liquor that tastes of honey. But you're different, Sakutsuki. You're different."
"You see filth by the roadside and find it disgusting. Since it refuses to change, you wipe it out along with the grass and flowers around it. When you judge a person to be rotten to the core, you treat them like trash and send them back to the garbage bin. If the entire world is beyond saving, then it would be better to destroy it outright—really, you're a tyrant through and through, even more unreasonable than I am!"
After quietly listening to Gilgamesh's assessment, the young man with smooth white hair and golden eyes as noble as a god's lifted his gaze and suddenly smiled.
"What did you see, Hero King?"
Amid killing intent so piercing it seemed capable of freezing one's soul, Gilgamesh, who had always been proud, did not choose to confront him head-on. Instead, he leisurely said:
"Are you going to settle this with me here, Caster's Master?"
"You don't look like... you have much longer to live."
After tossing out a "Not bad," Golden Sparkle, who looked more like a street punk than the Hero King, casually left with the box without even saying goodbye.
Still, the empty plates on the table revealed a certain truth.
Only Sakutsuki remained seated at the table, staring at the golden apple resting atop it.
The Golden Apple—
Gaia's wedding gift to Zeus and Hera; a treasure from Greek mythology that sparked the dispute among the three goddesses and indirectly led to the ten-year Trojan War. Now, Gilgamesh had casually tossed it to Sakutsuki as payment for the meal.
Since you pleased me, I shall reward you with this treasure, cook.
The smug expression on Golden Sparkle's face as he threw out the Golden Apple remained vivid in Sakutsuki's mind, to the point that merely seeing the thing made him want to throw it away.
Though the Golden Apple was precious, Gilgamesh was ultimately a Servant summoned by the Holy Grail, not the true demigod king. Naturally, the treasures within the Gate of Babylon no longer possessed the effects they had in the Age of Gods.
Put simply, it could maintain Sakutsuki's physical condition and keep him from self-destructing during the Holy Grail War.
"But only an idiot would eat it directly. What era are we in? Wouldn't it work better if I paired it with other ingredients and made it into a potion?"
After muttering a quiet complaint, Sakutsuki tossed the Golden Apple into his Imaginary Numbers Pocket, dispelled the soundproofing boundary field, and rose to walk toward Miyu and the others.
After eating and drinking their fill, Saber had been dragged into the car Kiritsugu had sent by Irisviel. From behind the window, she gazed at Sakutsuki with deep "affection" until the car started and vanished into the distance.
For Saber, who was used to mashed potatoes and dark cuisine, the lunch Sakutsuki had personally prepared would surely make her suffer.
Brief happiness had no meaning, especially since Irisviel, who had been provoked today, intended to cook for herself...
"Pfft." Sakutsuki had already laughed out loud without the slightest guilt.
"Come on, Miyu. We should prepare for tonight's battle too."
"Okay, Onii-chan."
Following behind Sakutsuki, Miyu stared at her brother's back, a faint and imperceptible worry appearing on her cool face.
Though she had obediently sat at another table and had not eavesdropped on her brother's conversation with Archer... her brother had never said Sapphire was not allowed to listen, had he?
Although it took some effort to infiltrate the soundproofing boundary field, Sapphire had still heard the latter half of Gilgamesh's words.
You don't look like... you have much longer to live.
And her brother, Sakutsuki, had not denied it.
"Onii-chan..."
When they returned to the Matou residence, Kariya and Sakura had yet to come back. In Kariya Matou's eyes, Sakura's happiness was far more important than some so-called Holy Grail War.
"So, Brother Lancelot, you're an old backup plan too." After patting the Black Knight on the shoulder, Sakutsuki whistled as he leisurely entered the basement, showing no sign that Gilgamesh's words had affected him at all.
"Ah, Miyu, you don't need to come down. What comes next isn't suitable for children."
"I'm not a child anymore, Onii-chan."
Though she said that, Miyu still obediently returned to her room.
Besides the spoils from their day of play, she also needed time to think of a way to help her brother.
Meanwhile, upon entering the basement, Sakutsuki's easy smile vanished. After narrowing his eyes in thought for a moment, he snapped his fingers.
"Assassin, report."
"As you command, Master of Shadows."
The purple-haired assassin silently emerged from the darkness.
"Following your instructions, we have successfully infiltrated the Tohsaka Residence, Einzbern Castle, and the Japanese-style residence you ordered us to investigate, where we have installed surveillance. Whenever you wish, we can monitor their every move."
"...Wait. Plant several bombs in Einzbern Castle. Remember, put them in Kiritsugu Emiya's room."
"As you command."
"Today, I only meant to take Miyu out to have fun. Running into Saber and Archer while neither was beside their Master really was an unexpected delight." Sakutsuki closed his eyes as though tired. "But that is not what I want to ask, Assassin."
"Did you find the people I sent you to locate?"
"My apologies, Master." The purple-haired woman lowered her head. "Though we searched with all our strength, we only found the trace of one of them."
After a pause, she spoke that person's name.
"Grand-Order Dollmaker, Touko Aozaki."
"You found the hardest one to locate first... perfect. I need to obtain some materials from her."
"Do you require us to act?"
"No. Do not underestimate the Grand-Order Dollmaker." Sakutsuki shook his head. "Once you find her, directly activate the familiar I gave you."
His voice paused, and Sakutsuki suddenly smiled.
Fates Codex Record Updated Hidden Condition 2*: 'Prepare food that stimulates Kirei Kotomine' completed. Reward obtained: Bajiquan · Master Level!
The sudden message made Sakutsuki pause, but he quickly smiled again.
"Excellent. Just as I expected, it seems the fake priest truly has no resistance to mapo tofu."
Though her former Master had been mentioned, Hundred Faces' bowing posture did not change in the slightest. Through the miracle of the Third Magic, Hundred Faces' loyalty to Sakutsuki had risen sharply, easily eclipsing her loyalty to her original Master, Kirei Kotomine.
"Continue lying low, Assassin. Tonight will likely be another sleepless night."
"As you command, Master... Please be sure to stay safe."
Touko Aozaki was an important character in the Type-Moon game Witch on the Holy Night, as well as the novel and anime Kara no Kyoukai. She was the elder sister of Aozaki Aoko, one of the few remaining magicians.
In Kara no Kyoukai, she was the guide of the story rather than a participant. She was the owner of the workshop Garan no Dou. Without her, Kara no Kyoukai could not be a story.
Come to think of it, that "Fallen Garan" legendary quest from a certain game might have been inspired by this...
He scraped up every last bit of sauce, stuffed it into his mouth, and finally set down his spoon.
The entire plate of bright red special mapo tofu had vanished, leaving behind only a pristine white porcelain dish.
"It's really the first time I've seen you like this, Kirei." Archer lounged on a sofa nearby, smiling lazily.
Only he had witnessed the wild, ravenous feast from a few minutes earlier.
After using every possible method to confirm that it was merely an ordinary plate of mapo tofu, Kirei Kotomine had tried a bite. Then—he had ended up like this.
Whether due to some distortion in sensation or another reason, Kirei Kotomine's sense of taste was dull. Only under the stimulation of extreme spiciness, something close to pain, could he perceive the deliciousness of food.
To him, this plate of mapo tofu was a rare delicacy.
It was just that... the fact that the dish had come from Sakutsuki made even Kirei Kotomine, who had witnessed all manner of human affairs, feel deeply strange.
The person trying to kill you not only did not threaten you, but even treated you to good food?
What was this? A final meal before execution?
Or perhaps... a declaration of war?
"So you both share the same thoughts. Interesting." Gilgamesh saw through Kirei Kotomine's thoughts at a glance, his snake-like eyes narrowing with interest. "Why do you not think Sakutsuki wants to reconcile with you?"
"Even jokes have their limits, Hero King." Kirei Kotomine calmly wiped the corner of his mouth and declared, "From the moment he began pursuing me—no, I understood it a year ago. He truly wants to kill me. I simply do not know why."
"That is because he noticed your true nature, Kirei." The regal king lifted his wineglass and looked down at Kirei Kotomine's troubled expression. "That cook judged that your future actions would affect him. So rather than allow you to act freely, he would rather extinguish you before you commit your sins."
Kirei Kotomine did not answer immediately. One word Gilgamesh had casually spoken caught his attention.
"You mean... 'commit sins'?"
"Oh? Did you hear something? This king said nothing at all, you know?" Gilgamesh smiled like a child tearing several sheets from a workbook because there were too many questions.
Realizing he could obtain no more information from Archer, Kirei Kotomine rose and silently headed outside.
"Where are you going, Kirei?"
"Just acting freely. There is no need for you to follow, Hero King."
After saying that with a hint of sarcasm, Kirei Kotomine put on his specially made mage robe, took several dozen Black Keys, and gazed through the church wall toward a distant point in Fuyuki City.
Though Tokiomi Tohsaka had not said anything, after Kirei Kotomine lost Assassin, he had indeed reduced his contact with this disciple. Yet this also gave Kirei Kotomine more opportunities to act.
According to the information Assassin had gathered "before dying," the Einzbern family's base should be hidden within the deep mountains near the national highway.
Though Kirei Kotomine firmly believed he could find the answer he sought amid clashing blades, Sakutsuki's repeated attacks had already proven that his killing intent toward Kirei Kotomine could not be shaken. If he appeared rashly, his only fate would be to die easily at the hands of that golden-eyed young man.
Then the only remaining candidate was the Magus Killer, Kiritsugu Emiya.
What answer can he give me?
Carrying the purest thirst for knowledge, the troubled-looking man stepped forward and began tonight's operation.
Behind him, the golden king revealed a mysterious smile.
A man who still had not realized the pleasure of his own nature;
A savior who strangled his heart for the sake of a wish;
A man of deepest feeling who followed only the laws within his heart.
To Hero King Gilgamesh, Kirei Kotomine, Kiritsugu Emiya, and Sakutsuki were his greatest sources of amusement in this Holy Grail War. The various accidents created by their collisions would surely offer him a spectacle more entertaining than any excellent play.
Amid unrestrained laughter, the empty wineglass fell onto the soft carpet, while the king who had used it had already vanished without a trace.
At dusk.
More than thirty kilometers west of Fuyuki City's urban district, a national highway ran east to west through mountainous terrain far from human habitation. Dense, lush green forests lined both sides of the road, as though they had been forgotten by the overwhelming wave of residential development.
Rumor had it that deep within this forest stood a "city of dreams." Only a very small number of magi knew that the castle truly existed.
This was a city of magecraft that welcomed its masters every sixty years and became a wartime base.
The castle was an alternate space protected layer upon layer by illusions and Magic Boundary Fields. Except under extraordinarily rare circumstances, it could never be discovered by the outside world. Those who knew the castle's true origins called this deep forest the "Einzbern Forest."
When the Holy Grail War began in Fuyuki, Jubstacheit von Einzbern, the old master of the Einzbern family, disdained establishing a base within the territory of their competitors, the Tohsaka family. He instead relied on his wealth to purchase the entire closest spiritual land to Fuyuki and make it Einzbern's base.
It was on the eve of the Third Holy Grail War, when the world stood on the brink of World War II—a time steeped in tension. Legend had it that Einzbern had turned the entire forest into a boundary field and relocated an entire secondary castle there from Germany. This alone revealed the family's astonishing wealth and persistence.
Most ironic of all, the Tohsaka family had been the ones running around handling the land purchase intermediaries and the local cover-up work.
And now, the participant residing within that castle, Kiritsugu Emiya, was waking from a corpse-like slumber.
Mental field-stripping—this was Kiritsugu Emiya's method of sleep. Through self-hypnotic incantations, he dismantled his consciousness and used powerful drugs to erase fatigue along with the domain of awareness.
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