You Are Guilty (8K Words)

"Damn it! Tokiomi Tohsaka, aren't you usually so arrogant? Aren't you always so tough? Get up now... What kind of logic is it to die so easily?!"

"If you die, what will happen to Aoi and Rin? How will they, a widow and her child, live? Didn't you say you'd give Aoi happiness? What are you doing now?! You should take care of your wife and daughter yourself! I came back to give you a good beating, and you just ran off like that! I won't allow this!!"

Looking at the dying Tokiomi Tohsaka before him, Matou Kariya felt a complex mix of emotions.

He was clearly his enemy, and he had ruined his life, making him a bastard he could never forgive.

But at this moment, seeing him about to die in front of him, Matou Kariya felt no joy at all, but rather endless sorrow and anger.

That damn bastard...

If I were to die like this, wouldn't I be unable to defeat him forever? How could I confront him face-to-face? How could I use my Personality Correction Fist to correct his distorted views?

Although she disliked this guy and sometimes cursed him to die, Matou Kariya couldn't feel happy at all when she thought about the scene of Tokiomi Tohsaka losing her father and Aoi losing her husband if Tokiomi Tohsaka died.

He didn't participate in the Holy Grail War to see Tokiomi Tohsaka, but to personally teach him a lesson and to question him on Sakura's behalf...

If we just run away like this, what kind of talk is that?!

"Tokiomi Tohsaka, you bastard, you think you can die so easily? Not so easy!"

Fueled by burning rage, Matou Kariya and Berserker continued their frantic run through the streets with the dying man, but at their current speed, it was clearly too late to get Tokiomi Tohsaka to the hospital for emergency treatment.

So, in this critical moment, Matou Kariya anxiously looked around at the shops, trying to find a place where he could help.

"Huh? I've got it!!"

Finally, his anxious gaze abruptly stopped in front of a pet hospital.

"Berserker! We have to get there right now!"

He hurriedly shouted at Lancelot.

"—Arrrrrrrrrr!!"

Upon receiving the order, Lancelot smashed through the glass like a cannonball and rushed inside.

On the other side, at the Matou Family.

Seeing that Matou Kariya on the phone, Matou Zouken felt lost and confused.

"That brat, he didn't show up for the banquet we agreed on, where did he run off to?!"

Not long ago, he received a notification from Rovey that Matou Kariya had not taken Lancelot to the banquet, but had instead disappeared somewhere.

The thought that his useless offspring dared to openly disobey his orders at such a critical moment reignited Matou Zouken's anger.

He just spread his arms, ready to release his familiar to go out and bring that good-for-nothing back.

Suddenly, when he saw the news on TV about a fire caused by a gas explosion, he paused and then stopped completely.

Matou Zouken stared at the news on television with a strange expression, a bizarre possibility suddenly popping into his head.

'That brat Kariya, could he have taken advantage of the fact that no one was around and led Berserker to attack the Tohsaka Residence?!'

Upon realizing this possibility, Matou Zouken's dry eyes suddenly widened.

Chapter Sixty-Five: You Are Guilty (8,000 words)

The Holy Grail War —what an interesting name! Its essence is not some kind of Magecraft ritual at all; it's a war filled with desire and conflict.

Here, any dirty and underhanded means are permitted, and any deceit and treachery seem perfectly reasonable. Contestants can use any means necessary, and that's precisely why it's touted as a dirty 'war,' rather than... a battle or something like that.

If there were any who initially underestimated the enemy or harbored wishful thinking in this inevitable war, those negative attitudes have now vanished.

After all, any Magus who has witnessed the earth-shattering power and personally felt the domineering spirit and untamed arrogance of the ancient heroes should put aside their frivolous thoughts and seriously face everything that may come next.

Yet even in such chaotic warfare, order still exists, though it is not true order, but merely a facade in the name of justice.

There are ironclad rules in the Holy Grail War that no one is allowed to violate or break.

That is, the balance maintained between reality and mystery must never be broken, which is what the mystical world often refers to as the principle of concealment in the demonic path, and these things must never be discovered by ordinary people.

However, the Master and Servant in this Holy Grail War have undoubtedly trampled this important rule into the ground.

Aside from the port battle on the first night, which barely adhered to this rule, all other actions caused quite a stir. Whether it was bombing the most luxurious hotel in Fuyuki City or brazenly piloting a golden airship through the sky, these deeds, to some extent, violated this tacitly agreed-upon ironclad rule.

He recalled his old friend, Tokiomi Tohsaka, and the earnest promise he made when he sought his help before the war began.

He will absolutely do his best to keep the Holy Grail War to a minimum and prevent the battles of the Heroic Spirit from disturbing the people of the present world.

But now it seems like this wasn't accomplished at all?!

For a moment Risei Kotomine couldn't help but wonder if Tokiomi Tohsaka had lost his mind because of the imminent victory, or if he had forgotten the promise Tohsaka had made to him.

But after thinking about it carefully, he quickly put the idea out of his mind.

After all, the years of contact and friendship cannot be faked. In addition, his son is now assisting Tokiomi Tohsaka, and he will definitely remind him of this important matter. So he must be overthinking it.

However, when Kirei Kotomine was mentioned, Risei Kotomine couldn't help but feel a little worried.

"Sigh, still no news all day. I wonder how Kirei are getting along these Tokiomi?"

In the dark and empty church, Risei Kotomine looked at the vast, deserted church with a complex mix of emotions. At that moment, a very ominous premonition suddenly arose in his heart. He looked at the sky outside the church and silently prayed to God for the well-being of his son and old friend.

Now that the Holy Grail War is nearing its end, he can't help but worry because neither his old friend nor his son, who should have been reporting to him on time, have sent any messages.

But then I thought about it again. Tokiomi Tohsaka has his son Kirei Kotomine by his side, and he also has two Servant, so there shouldn't be any problems.

The lack of a message today might be due to other matters. He simply needs to wait here for them to come and take the final trump card at the last moment. These items will help them win the Holy Grail War without any doubt.

As Risei Kotomine was pondering this, she reached out and gently stroked her right arm, which was covered with red curse marks. Dozens of bright red Command Seal remained on it.

No one expected that the precious curse marks, which the Master regarded as their trump cards, actually numbered in the dozens in the hands of this elderly priest who had never shown himself. If anyone could obtain these things, they would probably be able to sweep through this war without any tactics, right? However, what surprised them even more was that the Church's Executor always touted justice and was full of benevolence and morality, was actually blatantly blowing the whistle unfairly. Even the victory of the Holy Grail War was promised to someone before it even began.

"Well..."

After waiting a while, Risei Kotomine let out a long sigh. With the completion of his prayer, the unease he had felt subsided considerably. He was about to return to his room to rest. But the next moment...

—Crunch!

With the creaking of the door hinges turning, the starlight outside shone in through the windows and into the church through the open door.

Just as the starlight was illuminating him Risei Kotomine instinctively shielded his eyes, then stepped back slightly to avoid the gaze of the bright moon outside the door, moving his already guilty body away from the pure white light. In the process, he seemed to vaguely see a slender figure with black, tousled hair slowly walking towards him in the cold moonlight.

Risei Kotomine narrowed his aged eyes.

Tokiomi Tohsaka?

Kirei?

No, none of them. The other person's posture doesn't match up at all. It seems to be just a stranger visiting the church.

"I'm sorry, the church is closed so late. If you want to pray or confess, or if you need any help..."

He spoke in his usual kind tone.

"No, I never pray, nor do I confess to anyone."

Rovey smiled slightly and spoke to the old man in front of him as he approached.

"I never pray to the gods, because even the gods cannot know what I want to do; I do not ask the gods for help, because I know that the Almighty God is too high above, and His work is too busy. With so many believers, He may not be able to take care of me, and He may not like to hear such voices."

Upon hearing these remarks, Risei Kotomine paused slightly, his expression momentarily stunned.

"The reason I don't confess to him is because I know that even if I did, I wouldn't receive real guidance, but only a perfunctory forgiveness and tolerance. But can that really make up for your past mistakes and atone for your sins and karma? If you can forget your mistakes and start a new life just because of the approval of the gods, then what about the people who were hurt? The people you hurt will not be compensated by the gods."

"Father, I'm a rather pragmatic person, but also a bit stubborn. Rather than believing in so-called gods or seeking forgiveness, I firmly believe in one thing. Would you like to hear it?"

In just a few words, Rovey had already arrived in front of the elderly priest. He chuckled and sat down in the closest chair, looking down at him as if he were on a throne.

"—Whatever you desire, then it shall be your law."

"It means to believe in your heart, that is your True Magic. So I believe more in my own heart, my own hands, and that I am the god within myself than in any so-called god."

Although it was a question, Rovey's posture clearly showed no intention of seeking the thoughts of the elderly priest in front of him. From the moment he entered, it seemed as if he had been talking to himself the whole time, not even offering a polite greeting, let alone the most basic respect.

Although Rovey is not a believer in God, he does not reject people who have faith and are able to carry it out.

After all, most of the teachings of the gods encourage people to do good. If Risei Kotomine can be fair, impartial, and do his best to preside over this Holy Grail War and maintain stability, then he is willing to call him Father Kotomine and express his appreciation for his efforts.

Unfortunately, the result was unfortunate.

Faced with a choice between justice and faith, duty and morality, this dedicated priest, who had devoted his life to his profession, ultimately chose personal desire and went against his own beliefs and doctrines.

Since that's the case, he, as a clergyman who broke the precepts, is naturally a sinner. Therefore, Rovey has absolutely no reason to respect him.

Looking at the young man in front of him, Risei Kotomine, and at the same time, a bad premonition suddenly rose in his heart.

The stranger in front of him had such a strange aura that it made his aged body break out in a sweat, and it was so dangerous that his heart, which was usually unmoved even when fighting the Dead Apostle, was suddenly filled with immense turmoil.

From the moment he entered through the door, the other person's words were undoubtedly blasphemous. Under normal circumstances, he would have rebuked them sternly and then used force to drive this rude person out, but now...

His keen Instinct, honed over many years, kept reminding him not to do so. Some unknown threat was watching him from somewhere he didn't know, and if he acted rashly, the consequences would undoubtedly be dire. This situation made Risei Kotomine increasingly uneasy.

Even so, he did not give up. He extended his fingers and secretly activated the Black Keys armor hidden in his sleeve for self-defense, holding it tightly in his palm, waiting for the opportunity to counterattack.

"Ah!! What is this?!"

A painful scream rang out.

The next moment, a burning sensation made him involuntarily make a sound, and even the Black Keys in his hand slipped from his grasp and fell to the ground with a crisp clanging sound.

He looked back in astonishment, only to see that the original Black Keys, as if scorched by something, were now burning red-hot, even their form subtly distorted and altered. Beside the young man, a crimson, winged, ethereal shadow hovered silently, its presence causing the surrounding air to hum and hum. This phantom stood guard on Rovey's right side like the most loyal protector of a king.

"An archangel?!"

The moment he saw the phantom, the name immediately came to mind for Risei Kotomine, a believer.

Even with some discrepancies, the vague impression of that phantom was remarkably similar to the legendary Michael. Moreover, given that this was a church, even knowing it was impossible, he couldn't help but think that way when faced with the figure emerging in the night.

Are you referring to Michael?

Upon hearing Risei Kotomine's surprised voice, Rovey Wei laughed.

Although he has gradually become confused due to old age, his perspective is still quite sharp. However, this person is certainly not Archangel Michael, who possesses a status comparable to that of a chief god, but he is indeed connected to him.

This is an elemental familiar he specially created by combining the Angel Summoning from the Law Book as a foundation with Alchemy theories. Since there is a saying in Christianity that the four archangels correspond to the four elements, and there are also four elements in Alchemy, as well as special theories about elemental spirits, he used Alchemy and the angelic theories in Christianity to stitch them together. From the holy fire on the right, that is, the fire spirit Salamander is connected with the archangel Michael who corresponds to the fire element, thus giving birth to this unique fire angel familiar beside him.

Although it is a level below the true archangel in terms of power, it is more than enough as a familiar. Moreover, having incorporated many of Michael's images, it is indeed very intimidating. This can be said to be one of the trump cards that Rovey has been keeping hidden.

Now that it's come to the final moment, he naturally abandoned Kenneth's Volumen Hydrargyrum and Jewel Magecraft, and naturally revealed his true skills, namely the real Magecraft secrets of the Crowley Family.

"What... what exactly is going on?"

Faced with the fiery figure before him, especially seeing its eyes filled with hatred for evil, Risei Kotomine, who had committed a sin, couldn't help but tremble.

His mind kept telling him, "This is fake, this must be fake."

In this day and age, even divine revelation is almost gone, so it is impossible for the archangel to descend to earth again.

But, but...

The Elemental Angel before them indeed possessed a great deal of Michael's elemental essence, including his innate hatred of evil and his instinct to judge sinners.

Therefore, even though his sense of self was weak, when he saw a cultist like Risei Kotomine who had committed sins, the divine wrath within him was still ignited.

That's enough.

Just as he was about to wield the flaming sword to strike Risei Kotomine, Rovey raised his hand and then shouted a rebuke.

In an instant, the phantom of the Elemental Angel hovering around him vanished, and the burning anger also disappeared. Risei Kotomine he had just been dreaming. However, Rovey remained seated, smiling at him, and then slowly spoke.

"Hey, Father, let me ask you, is the Lord right?"

Faced with Rovey's sudden question, Risei Kotomine, though feeling uneasy and puzzled, still answered very seriously.

"The Lord is right, for it is He..."

"Is it because He created the world?" Rovey's smile vanished as he interrupted him. "But if He created the world, why leave behind so much sin and error, causing misfortune to repeat itself on earth?"

"This is a trial given to mankind by the Lord."

Risei Kotomine provided the answer once again, following his own teachings.

"So... the reason why disasters keep repeating is because humanity has never passed the trials given by God?"

Rovey stood up and slowly walked past Risei Kotomine. He stood alone in front of the huge cross hanging in the center of the church, then looked up at the stained glass windows above him, which shimmered with iridescent colors under the moonlight. "You mean to say that humanity has failed time and time again and should have been eliminated long ago. But the merciful God has been giving humanity opportunities, so we humans should be grateful, right?"

"You..."

Risei Kotomine stared in astonishment at Lovi, who was facing the cross and asking Rovey this question directly. He felt a surge of shock in his heart.