Final Objective, Moment of Parting, All or Nothing

Through the familiar's observation, on the eve of the Lesser Grail's appearance, Kiritsugu Emiya was facing Kirei Kotomine one-on-one.

Spiky-Haired King and Gilgamesh were also fighting one-on-one. Spiky-Haired King was in far better condition than in the original story, while Gilgamesh was still willful enough not to start with the Sword of Rupture.

I brought Ushi Gozen before the Greater Grail and easily broke in through the World-Breaking Mystic Eyes. I asked her, "Can you destroy it? Use all three Command Spells to strengthen your power."

Ushi Gozen replied, "Our very existence was created from the magical energy accumulated by the Greater Grail. Honestly, even if I activated my second Noble Phantasm and perished alongside it, I might not be able to destroy it."

Then it seemed the Fifth Holy Grail War was unavoidable. Still, destroying the Greater Grail had only been an idea. It did not matter much if it could not be destroyed, as long as the final objective could be achieved.

"Destroy the Lesser Grail? I can still manage something on that level."

"The Lesser Grail? Someone will handle that for us. My ultimate goal is to kill Kirei Kotomine and Gilgamesh."

I then explained the consequences of destroying the Lesser Grail and said, "Mother, could you compress the range of your second Noble Phantasm so that it would be just enough to swallow the Black Mud and the fire?"

"If possible, I hope you can fire it at that black hole in the sky. Black Mud will flow out of it. Detonate it directly inside the hole and see if we can kill the Black Mud before it is born."

After thinking for a moment, Ushi Gozen said, "Detonating the Great Divine Envoy early, reducing its charging frequency, and triggering self-destruction before its magical energy reaches its limit."

"It can suppress the range of destruction, but the self-destruction's power will be much weaker before its magical energy reaches its peak. It may not be enough to suppress the Black Mud and the flames."

"If I self-destruct the Great Divine Envoy directly at the hole leaking Black Mud, it only has a brief jumping ability and cannot fly. I cannot be sure whether it can reach the target."

Kirei Kotomine would actually be killed by Kiritsugu Emiya. It was just that the Black Mud would turn him into a living corpse. If Gilgamesh had not been bathed in the Black Mud, he should have disappeared once the time limit was up. So the problem was still the Black Mud.

I asked again, "Can the Great Divine Envoy be transferred away before it self-destructs?"

"In theory, yes, but it would require an enormous amount of magical energy."

After thinking for a moment, I said, "I have an item that can forcibly teleport someone to a designated location after four seconds. Can it teleport the Great Divine Envoy? Its activation condition is manually supplying a small amount of magical energy, and you cannot let go during that time. That probably will not work, right?" I sighed.

"It can succeed," Ushi Gozen said firmly. "As long as I use it, I can activate the item and teleport together with the Great Divine Envoy before it self-destructs at maximum magical energy."

After hearing that, I said, "Absolutely not. You will not be able to avoid an explosion like that. I absolutely will not allow it."

Ushi Gozen said, "I would disappear once the Holy Grail War ends anyway. A little earlier makes no difference. Besides, my wish has never changed from the very beginning. Helping my master fulfill his wish is my wish."

"Could Master really bear to deprive me of my wish? It can fulfill my wish, fulfill Master's wish, and save countless humans. That makes it killing three birds with one stone, does it not?"

I was left speechless. It truly was a good plan. Then I said, "The Great Divine Envoy's self-destruction may not completely stop the Black Mud from leaking out. It is still not safe enough."

"I know the Great Divine Envoy's destructive power very well. It can do it. And, Master, do you have any other choice? There is not much time left, is there?"

That was true. Spiky-Haired King had already confronted Gilgamesh at the theater. Once Kiritsugu Emiya defeated Kirei Kotomine and walked out of the black chalice's consciousness, he would give the order to destroy the Holy Grail.

Ushi Gozen continued, "Master, I am a tool. Please use me properly. And as long as Dojigiri Yasutsuna remains, we will meet again someday."

After accepting reality, I said, "Let me correct you. You are not a tool. You are my most important mother."

"Please spare me that title alone. At this stage, I am only sixteen years old," she said, blushing as she exposed her own age.

What was that supposed to mean? Her physical age was even younger than mine. Then I gave her a heartfelt hug. We were still family.

A long-unheard system notification sounded.

A high-quality historical member, Ushi Gozen/Minamoto no Raikou, has joined the family.

Rewarding the host with 10 draws. Item obtained: Ushi Gozen's Past and Present Lives (Part One). Collect Parts One, Two, and Three to synthesize the complete Ushi Gozen's Past and Present Lives. The host may use this book to travel to that era and find and take her away.

This item may randomly trigger whenever a high-quality historical member joins the host's family. When rewarded, there is a chance of drawing the Universal Past and Present Lives Selection Book instead.

I was stunned. The damn system had come back to life. I had thought the Holy Grail War would trigger a mission, but it had kept playing dead. Now it was handing me an unbeatable trump card.

I immediately used all ten draws to see whether there was anything that could resolve the current crisis without sacrificing Ushi Gozen.

Fantasy was beautiful, but reality was cruel. Even after using all my draws, no item appeared that could change the situation. However, I did get the newly released Universal Past and Present Lives Selection Book. I did not choose immediately. If I chose now and later obtained Part Two or Three, I would be losing out badly.

"Master, what are you thinking?" Seeing me spacing out, she asked. I said, "Do not call me Master. We are family. I am one year older than you, so call me Big Brother, or Onii-chan."

This time, Ushi Gozen was the one who froze. "Well, although I am only sixteen, I am someone from a thousand years ago."

I immediately rejected that. "You are you. Ushi Gozen, a sixteen-year-old girl—my family, my little sister."

Under my sincere gaze, Ushi Gozen blushed and said, "Big Brother."

Looking at my little sister before me, I was deeply reluctant. But I knew there was no time left. I resolutely said, "Then we will proceed according to the plan. This is the teleportation item. I will find a way to arrange for a plane to carry the coordinates up there. You prepare to charge your Noble Phantasm."

All three Command Spells were used at once. "Avenger, unleash your strongest Noble Phantasm and destroy that black hole."

Before leaving, I said, "Wait for me. I will definitely come find you."

Ushi Gozen said, "Mm. I will definitely wait for you, Big Brother."

I contacted the family and arranged for a supersonic fighter jet to come over—the kind Lancelot had possessed in the original story. With connections in political and business circles, it was ready in less than five minutes. I told the pilot to wait for me at the designated location, then simply hypnotized him into flying according to my will.

At that moment, Kiritsugu Emiya walked out of the Holy Grail's mental world and staggered toward the Lesser Grail's location. I tried it out—if I fully activated Reinforcement Magecraft, I could throw a pebble with the force of a Barrett rifle.

Ushi Gozen's Noble Phantasm could charge for one minute at most. Deducting the four seconds needed for teleportation, it should reach its limit after fifty-six seconds. But no one knew whether it would arrive exactly at fifty-six seconds or if there would be a delay. After discussing it, we decided to activate it at fifty-two seconds. I stood atop the fighter jet.

When we were roughly three thousand meters from the hole, the light of the Sword of Promised Victory appeared at the theater.

Seeing that light, Ushi Gozen began charging her Noble Phantasm. When the charge reached forty-two seconds, a pillar of light shot into the sky. I knew the Lesser Grail had been destroyed.

It would take time for the Black Mud to pour down. I silently counted the time. There were ten seconds left before Ushi Gozen used the item. I maximized Reinforcement Magecraft, made the motion of throwing a baseball, counted down, "Three, two, one," and threw the coordinates.

As we neared the black hole, the Great Divine Envoy suddenly appeared and crashed into it.