According to mysticism, beyond this world lay the pinnacle of dimensional theory—"Force."
The "Root Vortex," defined as the coordinate origin from which all things began and the lifelong aspiration of every magus... was both the origin and endpoint of all things, the throne of a god that recorded everything that happened in this world and created everything within it.
Two hundred years ago, some people had attempted to reach this "beyond the world."
Einzbern, Makiri (meaning "little knife" in Ainu), and Tohsaka. These three, known as the founding families, sought to recreate the "Holy Grail" mentioned in countless legends. In order to summon the Grail that could grant any wish, the Magi of the three families exchanged their secret arts, finally bringing into existence this Grail that could be called an "omnipotent cauldron."
...However, this Grail could only grant one person's wish. The instant that fact came to light, their cooperative relationship immediately became a bloody conflict.
This was the beginning of the "Holy Grail War." Thereafter, every sixty years, the Grail would reappear in Fuyuki, the Far Eastern land where it had once been summoned. Then the Grail would select seven Magi qualified to possess it, distribute a portion of its immense Mana among them, and allow them to summon Heroic Spirits known as Servants. Through a fight to the death, they would decide who was truly worthy of raising the Grail.
This was information Kirei Kotomine had learned from his father and his current teacher—Tokiomi Tohsaka—roughly three years ago. At the same time, he had been assigned to study magecraft under the original Tokiomi and assist him in winning the Holy Grail War.
Like a precision instrument, Kirei Kotomine meticulously studied and made arrangements according to the established plan. Yet during rare moments of leisure, confusion over his own "meaning" would still rise within him—the meaning of his birth into this world, the meaning of his life, the meaning of everything he did. His teacher and father undoubtedly belonged to the kind of people who possessed clear definitions of "meaning" and unwavering convictions. They were entirely different from him.
Throughout more than twenty years of his life, he had never possessed anything resembling a sense of purpose. Nor had he ever considered any ideal lofty, or found any entertainment enjoyable. Yet such a man behaved like the most devout believer, convinced of God's existence, attributing his inability to perceive true nobility to his own immaturity. But deep down, he knew with absolute certainty that God's love could not redeem his empty soul. Thus, no one had ever understood the severe flaw in his personality.
"Perhaps the Holy Grail, said to grant every wish in the world, will give me an answer?"
Proclaim. (Listen up.)
Your body shall be beneath me, and my fate shall be entrusted to your sword. (I give you Mana, and you work for me.)
Answer the summons of the Holy Grail. Those who submit to this will and this reason, answer me! (Those press-ganged by the Holy Grail, if you can hear me and roughly agree with me, make a sound.)
I am the one who accomplishes all good in this world. I am the one who accomplishes all evil in this world. (Let's be clear beforehand: I might have you do good things, or I might not.)
Entwined with the three great Words of Power, come forth from the seven days. (I have three Command Seals. Obey me properly for seven days. Once they expire, do whatever you want.)
Cross the ring of restraint and appear, guardian of the scales! (I will not reimburse your travel expenses to get here. Figure it out yourself. Those are the terms, there are no shady dealings, and the Holy Grail retains final interpretation rights.)
(The parentheses contain the plain-language version.)
"Back when I was in my edgy phase, I memorized this too. And that whole sword-bones chant. I didn't think much of it then, but now that I think about it, it's unbearably edgy. The cringe level is off the charts. Sure enough, being a magus isn't a job for anyone with normal values."
If you can't find it by searching the book title, try searching for the author. Maybe it was just renamed!
Though she mentally mocked the Heroic Spirit summoning chant, Jizi knew she still had to keep up appearances. Just minutes earlier, while practicing her abilities, she had suddenly heard the Administrator, who had been calibrating some machine nearby, let out a cry. Then, as an emotionless, hollow, numb male voice gradually rang by her ears, she knew the moment that was coming had arrived.
Her appearance lacked the dazzling lights and thunderous spectacle of Emperor, Gilgamesh, or the Cowlick King. Accompanied only by a ripple through space, she was transported onto a summoning circle so simple it could even be called crude. After delaying for a breath (to complain internally), Jizi addressed the man before her in a voice made ethereal and difficult to distinguish by her mask. "I ask of you, are you my Master?"
Kirei Kotomine cooperatively followed the procedure as well, revealing the markings on the back of his right hand.
"Here, the contract is sealed. The Assassin Heroic Spirit is here. Let us fight together to pluck the final fruit of victory, Master."
Was this a Heroic Spirit? A hero who had achieved feats great enough to be praised for generations, worshipped by mortals, an existence that continued to protect this world even after death? Looking at the Servant he had summoned, whose body was concealed beneath a black robe and whose face was covered by a bizarre mask, Kirei Kotomine felt a rare flicker of curiosity. At the same time, information regarding "his" abilities appeared in his mind. For an Assassin, his attributes were already quite excellent. Yet Kirei, with the discerning eye honed through years of work experience (killing people, killing people, and more killing people), could still tell that the body beneath the robe was not particularly robust. On the contrary, it even seemed "frail." Seizing upon this rare curiosity, however long it might last, he issued his first command as Master.
"Remove your mask, Servant."
What was this? This wasn't in the script, Coach—wait, the original story never described the scene where Assassin was summoned, so she couldn't say the script was wrong. Could it be that Mapo had always harbored strange thoughts about Black Uncle? The Kirei-Kiritsugu shippers and Kirei-Tokiomi shippers were all too naive. Who could have imagined the truth was here—regardless, she could not fall into depravity. Though Jizi's thoughts raced wildly, only an instant passed outwardly. Having made up her mind, she flatly refused Mapo's request. "Forgive my refusal, Master. My appearance has nothing to do with the Holy Grail War." It was true. If she had Nero's, Mordred's, or even Joan of Arc's face (they all looked the same... heh heh), she could at least interact with Saber or Caster for fun. But the face of the Water Chairman had no particular appeal in the Nasuverse, right?
"The face of the renowned Old Man of the Mountain, surely..."
"Master, someone is coming! Please stay alert!"
At a time like this, there was only one person who could appear near Kirei Kotomine's summoning circle—old man Risei Kotomine. Naturally, he was no one they needed to guard against, but Jizi certainly would not let go of such a perfect excuse to steer the conversation away from her appearance. She casually summoned Stripe and stood between Kirei Kotomine and the owner of the approaching footsteps, imitating the way imperial guards shielded their lord in costume dramas.
"Lower your weapon, Assassin. This is my father, and also an ally on our side."
Risei appeared to be an elderly man full of vigor. He first expressed his respect for the Heroic Spirit, while also pointing out that "a hero who had accomplished an unparalleled legend in history should prioritize the greater good." Jizi: Sorry for being a fake. Then he went on about "the decline of the mystery-related fields in modern times due to scientific and technological advancement," about how "modern Magi were mostly selfish people without aristocratic upbringing or lofty pursuits, who might use the Holy Grail to do things harmful to the world," and about how "an existence that protected the world certainly could not permit such things to happen." Then he said, "Tokiomi Tohsaka—Jizi: Aha, the source of all this karmic misery!—is one of the few orthodox Magi with elegant aristocratic bearing, and he is so very, very excellent. Giving him the Holy Grail would absolutely be fine," and "if the Grail falls into someone else's hands and causes harm, it would not look good for you as a Heroic Spirit before the Counter Force either, right?" The core message was, "Go die for the world and the greater good, then give the Holy Grail to Tokiomi. I have faith in you." Jizi: Sure enough, it was all Tokiomi's fault.
As an outstanding young woman who upheld the Five Lectures, Four Beauties, and Three Loves, Jizi naturally expressed her admiration for such a respected elder, who, though advanced in years, never went outside to stage fake falls and instead worried about the world before anyone else. At the same time, she lamented this "ostentatious and irreverent" age. Finally, before righteousness, she resolutely accepted the task of "I'll go die, I'll take the blame, and you can have the Holy Grail" with the spirit of "sacrificing the small self to fulfill the greater self—if I do not enter hell, then who will?" The meeting reached a consensus that satisfied both sides amid an extremely friendly atmosphere.
Jizi: So Assassin had supposedly been persuaded like this, which was why he served Mapo wholeheartedly and had no regrets even after dying? No matter how she thought about it, that was impossible! It had to be the story that could not be told between Black Uncle and Mapo that made him so devoted, right? Love truly was great.
Taking advantage of the momentum, Mapo also said he would introduce Assassin to Tokiomi. Thus, he and Jizi left the Fuyuki Church under Risei's send-off. The two had not exchanged much along the way, but as they neared the Tohsaka residence, Jizi—who had been continuously thinking about the plot and her plans, to the point of becoming somewhat distracted—was pulled back by an emotionless voice. "Did you truly believe what my father said? Was the reason you answered the Holy Grail something you could abandon so easily?"
"..." After a brief pause, Jizi's slightly teasing words reached Kirei Kotomine's ears. "Those who answer the Holy Grail's summons, or are chosen to participate by it, all harbor some wish for the Grail. Perhaps my wish is to protect the world. If that can be achieved without the Holy Grail, then there is no question of abandoning anything. But what about you, Master? Why do you seek the Holy Grail? Your father's and teacher's orders? The one who needs to think carefully about that question is you. Heh heh heh..."
Without waiting for Mapo's reply, Jizi dissolved into spirit form and vanished before his eyes. After planting a seed, one had to give it space to slowly sprout on its own. Though the eventual fruit might be Gilgamesh, that did not stop others from getting involved. It might come in handy later. For example, perhaps he would spare her from being gang-raped by a thousand-man best-friend brigade in gratitude for helping him "wake up"... something like that. (It would be useful, right?... Probably.)
(Actually, it didn't copy that much of the original in the end, did it? T^T)
Before you continue