"No—"
Illya's corpse fell to the ground, and Irisviel let out a miserable, furious roar.
She sprang up and lunged toward Illya, who had fallen to the ground, crying out incoherently.
"Illya—Illya, Illya!!!"
Tears filled Emiya Kiritsugu's despairing eyes.
Almost numb, he chambered another round in the pistol in his hand.
Then he aimed it at Irisviel's head.
"Why!?"
Smack!
Before Emiya Kiritsugu could fire, Irisviel fiercely knocked his hand aside, crying out with a twisted expression.
She truly was not the real Irisviel. She was the Holy Grail, possessing Irisviel's personality and memories.
But precisely because of that, even if she had been taken over, even if she had been corrupted, she truly carried Irisviel's feelings within her—those were not false.
"Why, this time—"
"Did you have to take our Illya—!!!"
She grabbed Emiya Kiritsugu by the collar and roared furiously.
But—
Smack.
Emiya Kiritsugu grabbed Irisviel by the throat.
By now, he understood.
He understood what kind of existence the Irisviel before him truly was, and so he became even more
despairing.
"Dar, ling. Why?"
With her neck gripped by Emiya Kiritsugu, Irisviel clutched his wrist tightly with both hands. Even in agony, she struggled as she painfully spoke to him.
"Why reject it?"
"Reject the Holy Grail, reject us."
Emiya Kiritsugu's grip tightened further.
"Urgh—ah—"
Irisviel let out a pained groan.
Illya's blood still stained Emiya Kiritsugu's face.
His body trembled violently.
"Compared to six billion humans—"
"I curse you, Emiya Kiritsugu!"
Unforgettable hatred filled the Holy Grail's eyes.
"Just two family members—"
"[All the World's Evil] curses you."
The Holy Grail's curse continued.
"I will—"
Emiya Kiritsugu gritted his teeth, but his eyes held an immeasurable sorrow.
"Suffer. Regret it."
"Until the day you die,"
"I absolutely—"
"Will not."
"I will kill you."
Tears fell