Fate/Apocrypha Opening

The Holy Grail War

Although called a war, it wasn't truly a war in essence. It was merely a competition, a struggle centered around the "wish-granting machine of all creation"—the Great Holy Grail.

The first and, to date, only Holy Grail was jointly created by the Three Founding Families: Tohsaka, Einzbern, and Matou.

It was an artificial product that touched upon the realm of magic, with Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern, the most outstanding homunculus of the Einzbern family, as its core.

Initially, the Holy Grail War did not attract the attention of the Mage's Association. After all, their magical accomplishments in the Far East were generally considered inferior to those in the West. What capabilities could country bumpkins possess? This was the unilateral belief and perceived reality of the Mage's Association.

It wasn't until after the Third Holy Grail War that the Clock Tower began to give the Fuyuki City Holy Grail War some consideration, which led to the tragedy of Lord Kayneth.

However, in one particular timeline, during the Third Holy Grail War, Darnic Prestone Yggdmillennia, one of the seven Masters, along with Justeaze (whose name is also ridiculously long), directly colluded with the military and absconded with the Great Holy Grail.

The method was simple and crude, but for the Three Founding Families, this was a complete disaster. Especially for Matou, as the Old Bug had been counting on this thing.

Incidentally, during the Third Holy Grail War, Darnic also had quite a few harmonious and fierce clashes with the old man of the Matou family.

But don't think that Lord Kayneth would be safe without the Great Holy Grail in Fuyuki City. Afterward, due to the emergence of a Sub-Holy Grail War, our Lord Kayneth also joined the fray and met his end. By now, the grass on his grave might be tall enough to walk through.

So, some people are truly not suited for this kind of thing. But we're not here to talk about Kayneth's unfortunate fate, but rather another story—a story about humanity fulfilling its wishes.

Although, not many people actually had their wishes fulfilled.

Fuyuki, Romania

In the dimly lit hall of an ancient castle, the full might of Yggdmillennia was gathered. Seated on a high platform was the first Servant summoned, the black faction's Lancer, Vlad III. Standing beside him was his Master, Darnic, the patriarch of the Yggdmillennia family.

On the other side of the platform was the Caster's Master, the twelve-year-old puppet master, Roche Frain Yggdmillennia.

And below the platform, the remaining Masters of the red faction in this Holy Grail War:

A stout middle-aged man, a mage who utilized Einzbern's alchemy, Gordes Musik Yggdmillennia.

A young woman with purple paint on her nose bridge, a mage who used sorcery, Sereinike Icecolle Yggdmillennia.

A girl in a wheelchair, designated as the next matriarch of the Yggdmillennia family, Fiore Forvedge Yggdmillennia.

A boy wearing glasses, Fiore's biological younger brother, Caules Forvedge Yggdmillennia.

Their expressions were solemn, as the magic they were about to perform might be the highest level of magic they would ever cast in their lives.

"Silver and steel be the basis, and gold and the great duke be the foundation. Your color is 'black.' The surging wind is blocked by the four walls, and the four gates are closed. Appear from within the crown, and wander the crossroads leading to the kingdom."

As the first stanza of the incantation was spoken by the four, the summoning circle before them began to emit the characteristic magical glow.

The wind began to blow.

"—I declare"

"You are my charge, my sword is my master.

To the call of the Holy Grail, if you wish to follow this will, this righteousness, then respond."

"Here I swear, I shall do all the good in the world;

I shall destroy all the evil in the world;

I am the one who holds the chains."

"You are the seven heavens bound by the three words of power, from the guardian of the Wheel of Heaven, the scales!"

When the light faded, what responded to their four calls was not the corresponding four Servants, but—five Servants!

A swordsman with silver-gray hair, clad in armor and carrying a greatsword; an archer with brown hair, wearing leather armor and a quiver at his waist; a young person with pink long hair, dressed in ornate clothing that obscured their true gender; a youth with red hair, wearing a red and white coat; and a girl with cherry-blossom short hair, wearing a coat of the same style as the former, only different in color and gender model, with a "derp" face.

"We, the 'black' Servants, have come at the invitation of the summons. Our fate is with Yggdmillennia, and our swords are your swords."

Seeing that most of the Servants had arrived, Darnic, who stood at a high position in the hall, exchanged a look with the Servant beside him, the black faction's Lancer, Vlad III, the protector of Romania. He then stepped forward and shouted, "Do not be afraid, for we already possess the wish-granting machine of all creation, the Great Holy Grail!"

The red-haired youth was naturally Shirou. To enable him to exert higher combat power in the Holy Grail War, Alaya had specially prepared an adult body for him.

Listening to Darnic's words, although Shirou's expression remained unchanged, he had already mentally scorned Darnic several times, thinking: Don't be afraid? Let's see how panicked you are when the enemy comes flying in to attack your home!

The solemn atmosphere created by Darnic did not last long. After a momentary flicker, the light bulbs in this "Throne Room" were turned on—this ancient castle had lighting facilities.

"Hehe, it seems I've participated in some strange and interesting Holy Grail War! I don't mind at all," said the black faction's Rider, Astolfo. At the same time, he looked around and discovered a serious problem:

"Wait, Saber, Archer, Rider, Berserker… Hey! Why are there five Servants?" Astolfo counted them and finally pointed at Shirou and Okita Souji's positions, asking.

For a moment, everyone's attention was drawn to Shirou, Okita, and Shirou's Master, Caules.

Due to the dim light earlier, Okita Souji, who was wearing darker clothing, had not been noticed. Now that the lights were on, Okita Souji could no longer hide.

Even Vlad III and Darnic on the high platform looked over, clearly valuing this issue.

"Oh, you mean Okita? She's my Servant, her class is Alter Ego!" Shirou said, pointing at Okita Souji.

"And you?" Afu asked again.

"Me?" Shirou pointed his thumb at his chin, tilting his head, and said, "Of course, I'm Berserker! What's wrong, Rider? Do you have a problem?"

"A huge problem!" Astolfo exclaimed in frustration. "Why is Berserker so rational? This doesn't fit the definition of a Berserker at all!"