Chapter Eighteen: This Time, I'll Sleep a Little Longer / Chapter Nineteen: Grow Up Quickly, Sakura

"Yes." Emiya nodded.

Having received an affirmative answer, Kiritsugu fell silent. His rational analysis had not been wrong, nor had his intuition deceived him.

Yet this answer had caught him off guard, striking his heart—which he had thought had long become a dead sea—with a heavy blow.

Is this my ending?

Emiya continued, "I inherited your ideal and became an ally of justice. I kept doing what I believed was just all over the world. In the end, I made a contract with the Counter Force and kept killing—killing to save others. Beneath me, countless bones piled up. Eventually, I became numb. This was my ending, the ending of an ally of justice."

A sorrowful expression crossed his face. These were memories he least wished to bring up, yet he told Kiritsugu all of them now, hoping only that Kiritsugu could find salvation and abandon that tragic ideal.

Hearing Emiya's words, Yuxian could not bear it. He walked over and patted Emiya on the shoulder, comforting him. "You're a true hero, Emiya. You are an ally of justice. No one can deny that."

Yuxian sincerely admired someone like Emiya, who had been able to uphold the justice in his heart to the very end. How many people in this world could achieve what he had?

What he had done deserved respect.

"Thank you, Shirou."

Kiritsugu tossed away the cigarette butt in his hand and spoke again, his tone utterly sincere.

He was not someone who hesitated. Since the ending he wanted could not be achieved, then he would decisively abandon it.

He turned his gaze to Yuxian and asked, "What should we do? You must have had a plan already."

Yuxian nodded at him, then looked toward Artoria.

At this moment, the King of Knights no longer possessed her former vigor. Her expression had become sorrowful, and her gaze was somewhat vacant.

Losing the hope of the Holy Grail had dealt her a far greater blow than it had Kiritsugu. When Kiritsugu realized that his goal could not be achieved, he could decisively cast everything aside.

Artoria could not. All of her tragic wishes had been placed upon the Holy Grail. Now that her hope had shattered, it was as though she had lost everything and no longer knew where to go.

Mash supported her at her side. Even the gentle junior could not think of any way to comfort Artoria.

Such an ending was cruel to her, but Yuxian had no choice but to do this. Only then could she wake up. It was ten thousand times better than what she herself had wanted.

If she truly made that unrealistic wish to the Holy Grail and became a hound of the Counter Force, that would only be even crueler to her.

Yuxian did not dare imagine what would happen when her knights received that news.

With the loyalty the Knights of the Round Table held toward her, they would surely go mad and do unimaginable things.

Walking to her side, Yuxian said softly, "It's time to wake from the dream..."

He pointed at the hole in the sky that continually poured out Black Mud. "Use the sword in your hand to awaken from this dream yourself."

Yuxian could have had Kiritsugu use Command Spells to force her to shatter the hole, but he wanted Artoria to make the choice through her own will.

He wanted her to do this herself, to follow her heart and break free from that unrealistic fantasy.

Yuxian believed she could do it. She was the renowned and revered King of Knights.

She possessed that kind of courage. Her heart had merely been temporarily clouded by a small moment of confusion. As long as she woke up on her own, she would surely be able to do it.

She would not disappoint anyone.

Artoria's face was filled with sorrow, and the hand gripping her sword began to tremble. It was her heart that was trembling.

She was going to personally destroy her own dream with the sword in her hand. She had no choice. She had to do it.

She wished to become an ideal king, but before that, she was a knight.

As the king of Great Britain and the lord of Camelot, she had many shortcomings. But as a knight, she was the model for all knights—the knight among knights, the king of knights.

Humility, honor, sacrifice, bravery, compassion, honesty, justice, soul.

Chivalry told her that evil must be eradicated and the weak must be protected.

"Lady Artoria..." Mash could not bear it and began to say something.

Artoria raised a hand to stop Mash, not allowing her to continue.

Her expression turned solemn, her posture straightened, and her eyes became resolute. At that moment, she became once more the invincible King of Knights, wielding Excalibur and revered by countless people.

She raised the golden sword in her hand and loudly declared its true name—

Excalibur

A dazzling sword light swept forth, illuminating the dim Great Chasm as brightly as day. Though it was blinding, no one could resist looking at it.

That brilliant radiance seemed capable of cleansing one's heart, causing strength to surge from the depths of anyone who saw it.

The hole in the sky was shattered, and Black Mud poured down like rain. Like a curse, this Black Mud would corrupt the mind of anyone it touched.

Mash immediately raised the shield in her hand and released its true name without hesitation—

Lord Camelot

Towering city walls stood before them, shielding everyone from the corruption of the Black Mud.

As long as the heart did not yield, the walls of Camelot, this chalk-white city, would never collapse.

Looking at the familiar wall before her, Artoria seemed to return to her territory, to her city of Camelot.

Her expression softened, and her body gradually faded. Her eyes held reluctance and nostalgia, but even more than that, relief.

Yuxian murmured softly, "I look forward to meeting you again, My King."

Camlann. Artoria woke from her dream. Before her stood Bedivere, the last knight to serve by her side.

"Return this sword to the Lady of the Lake."

After giving Bedivere this final command, she closed her eyes again and leaned against the tree, her heart filled with relief.

She no longer longed for the Holy Grail. She accepted that predetermined fate, and her contract with Alaya vanished along with her betrayal of it.

"This time, I will—sleep a little longer—"

The rain of Black Mud finally stopped.

Without the magical energy of the Greater Grail supporting them, those disgusting things gradually dissipated with time.

The Fourth Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City finally came to an end.

Yuxian could finally let out a sigh of relief, and the taut string within him could finally loosen.

At the center of the Great Chasm, as the Black Mud receded, Irisviel, who had been buried beneath it, gradually emerged.

Illya let out a startled cry and wanted to run to Irisviel's side.

But someone reacted even faster. Kiritsugu took several strides at once and instantly rushed to Irisviel's side, pulling her tightly into his arms.

"Iri..."

Kiritsugu, who never showed his emotions, was crying uncontrollably at this moment.

He tightly embraced the wife in his arms. She was the person he loved deeply. Never had he been so afraid of losing someone, and never had he so desperately hoped for a miracle.

For the ideal in his heart, he had nearly lost everything. At this moment, he did not want to lose anything more.

"Kiritsugu..."

Hearing Kiritsugu call out to her, Irisviel slowly woke up. She softly called his name and reached out, wanting to wipe away the tears at the corners of his eyes.

Kiritsugu eagerly grasped Irisviel's hand and placed it against his cheek, feeling that familiar gentleness.

His wife was still here. He had not lost her.

Kiritsugu Emiya could no longer remain calm. He began to cry loudly, venting the emotions in his heart. Like a child, he cried without restraint...

Yuxian had not held even the slightest confidence that Irisviel would survive. Surviving under those circumstances could only be called a miracle.

Avalon within her must have protected her. The ideal land isolated from the world truly deserved to be called the Noble Phantasm with the strongest defense.

Not a bad ending.

In fact, Illya deserved some credit for this. Without that strange medicine of Illya's, Irisviel would not have lasted until the final moment.

Illya's medicine carried her wish for everyone to be happy, and fortunately, it truly achieved the result Illya wanted.

The potion that usually produced all kinds of bizarre effects had miraculously produced the effect that best matched Illya's wish at that moment.

P.S. Poor Lancer, who never got there. Cry...

Hurry and grow up, Sakura

The Holy Grail War had ended, but the Greater Grail still existed. Yuxian told Kiritsugu about it.

Kiritsugu said he would handle it and completely dismantle the Greater Grail.

Days without a Holy Grail War were peaceful, yet warm. This was the life Yuxian wanted.

With some free time, Yuxian asked Emiya to teach him Projection Magic. He had planned to do this long ago.

Emiya said with a surprised expression, "Master never had the patience to learn Projection Magic before. Why are you suddenly interested now?"

Yuxian argued, "A sense of crisis! Do you understand what a sense of crisis is?!"

He did not know what kind of image he had had in Chaldea before. He was probably the especially lazy sort, which fit his old personality rather well.

Yuxian wanted to continue being lazy now as well, but considering that he would encounter all kinds of situations in the future, he could not help feeling uneasy if he did not learn some skills.

Emiya patiently taught Yuxian, breaking down the details of Projection Magic bit by bit. Even a beginner like Yuxian could understand it easily.

Perhaps Yuxian truly had decent aptitude as a Magus, or perhaps it was Emiya's teaching, but Yuxian quickly grasped the techniques of Projection Magic.

"For the rest, Master can only practice more and slowly become proficient."

Seeing that Yuxian had successfully projected something after such a short period of study, Emiya smiled in satisfaction.

Yuxian did not expect to use Projection Magic at Emiya's level. That was unrealistic.

He only needed to master the method of using Projection Magic so he could project objects when it mattered.

A few days later, Yuxian attended Tokiomi Tohsaka's funeral with Sakura.

He had promised Rin that he would bring Sakura to see her, but he had not expected it to be on such an occasion.

Sakura cried very sadly. In her heart, Tokiomi Tohsaka was still her father.

Losing a father was an unimaginably painful thing for a six-year-old girl.

Rin Tohsaka held back her grief and did not cry in front of her younger sister. She held Sakura and comforted her softly.

Though she was only one year older than Sakura, she showed the responsibility of an older sister and remained strong at this time.

Yuxian quietly watched them from afar without disturbing them. What the two sisters needed now was to rely on each other to get through this hardship.

Many people from all walks of life attended Tokiomi's funeral, and the ceremony was very solemn.

Although Yuxian somewhat looked down on Tokiomi Tohsaka, he had to admit that Tokiomi could be considered a winner in life. He lacked neither wealth nor status, and both his wife and daughters were outstanding.

Other than his wish to reach the Root, he had actually lacked nothing in this life.

Thinking of how only a handful of people had attended Kariya Matou's funeral not long ago, Yuxian sighed. Tokiomi Tohsaka still had to keep carrying the blame he deserved.

After the funeral ended, Sakura reluctantly said goodbye to Rin.

Makiri Sakura had been deeply affected by Tokiomi's death. Her body had grown weak, and she now sat in a wheelchair.

Sakura walked up to her, threw herself into her arms, and softly called out, "Mom."

Makiri Sakura stroked Sakura's hair and repeatedly reminded her of things. Sakura obediently nodded, showing not a trace of impatience.

On the way back, Yuxian held Sakura's little hand and walked very slowly. He wanted to give Sakura more time to ease the sadness she had just felt.

After spending this time together, Sakura had gradually grown familiar with Yuxian and was no longer as shy around strangers as she had been at first.

She was a well-behaved child. No matter where she was, she remained quiet, without the liveliness someone her age should have had.