I'm Not A Master, I'm A Director
Chapter 468: What's It Like to Have Three Different "Farming Methods" in One Movie?
"I'm sorry."
On the set, Ritsuka lowered his head and apologized after being scolded by Kiyohime.
Shinji and EMIYA's banter hadn't affected the actors' performances at all.
Looking at his own hands, Ritsuka said weakly,
"I'm no different from those soldiers... I'm only standing here because I thought this was what I should do."
"Senpai..."
Mash wanted to step forward and comfort him, but Kiyohime stopped her with a look.
Ritsuka gave a miserable smile.
"Even though I understand it all, I still can't become decisive. I..."
"There's no need for you to be decisive."
At that moment, Siegfried—who had been unusually silent because he felt bad about messing up right at the beginning—finally spoke.
"Huh?"
Facing Ritsuka's confusion, Mr. Sorry gave his answer.
"Victory lies at the end of endless sacrifices. War is something built upon that premise."
Siegfried stepped in front of Ritsuka, blocking the cruel sight of the distant battlefield.
"But even so, humans still cherish life and still struggle over abandoning it. That is exactly how humans should be!"
With his back to Ritsuka, Siegfried spoke the simplest and most sincere words from his heart.
"Master, I don't think there's anything wrong with your pure feelings."
Looking at Siegfried's broad back, Ritsuka's eyes became moist.
Seeing the two men seemingly "attracted to each other like gorillas," Kiyohime played with her folding fan and complained,
"Honestly, doesn't that make me the bad guy here?"
Mash hurriedly expressed her stance.
"Not at all! Thank you very much for your advice, Kiyohime-san!"
At this moment, Mash had no idea that the woman before her was the future villain who would constantly try to seduce her Senpai.
Otherwise, forget standing beside her—Mash would most likely have rewarded her with a shield to the face.
Of course, all of that was merely one of Shinji's little fantasies.
In reality, the scene had been filmed perfectly.
"Cut!"
Holding a megaphone, Shinji announced,
"Everyone did great. This take is good."
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
"Still, it's pretty ironic."
After filming ended, Sakura wiped the sweat from her forehead and sighed to Shinji.
"Even though she's such a perfect woman, she can never find a husband because of her personality. Kiyohime really is an interesting character—she's practically the textbook example of a tragic perfect woman."
Shinji smiled.
"It's precisely because she can't obtain what she wants that she goes crazy. But the crazier she becomes, the less likely she is to get it, creating a vicious cycle in the end. That's how she earned the title of the final boss of Chaldea's yandere group."
"One can admire her from afar but not get too close. The ideal Yamato Nadeshiko in people's hearts might only be suitable for appreciation through a screen. But that also makes Kiyohime feel more real."
"True."
Sakura nodded.
"But speaking of that yandere group of yours—"
Pointing at Kiyohime, who was chatting with Charlemagne in the distance, she quietly whispered into Shinji's ear:
"She won't get too immersed in the role and actually fall in love with Charlemagne, will she? You've got a rival now, Onii-sama~"
"Acting and reality are two different things. Kiyohime knows the difference very well. Besides, I have no intention of having that kind of relationship with her."
Shinji rolled his eyes at Sakura and added,
"And you're Mash right now. Stop calling me 'Onii-sama.'"
Sakura ignored the reminder. The corners of her lips curled upward into a devilish smile.
"I know you don't have those intentions~ But don't forget, Anchin was burned to death precisely because he had no romantic feelings for Kiyohime~"
Shinji: "..."
I think you're threatening me, but I have no proof.
Faced with his sister's wonderfully "loving and respectful" behavior, Shinji began contemplating the possibility of getting Kiyohime to latch onto Sakura instead.
According to FGO's setting, regardless of whether Ritsuka is male or female, Kiyohime becomes their captive.
If that's the case, then it means that the Kiyohime of the Nasuverse is entirely capable of proposing to girls as well.
Sakura suddenly shivered.
The way her brother was looking at her sent chills down her spine.
"Onii-sama, what are you thinking?"
Wrinkling her nose, she asked cautiously,
"Don't make such a scary face. Even if you end up with severe burns and spend the rest of your life bedridden in a hospital, I'll take care of you until the end. After all, you're my Onii-sama."
Those words immediately made Shinji suck in a cold breath.
"Hiss... Don't raise a flag like that!"
Other people might not know, but how could he not know the ending of Shinji Matou in the Unlimited Blade Works route?
Sakura might only be joking, but what if her ominous words actually came true?
To prevent her prophecy from becoming reality, Shinji decisively changed the subject back to acting.
"Sakura— I mean, Mash. It's fine for you to relax now, but when we get to the next film, Final Fantasy: The End of the World, your crisis is coming."
Sakura raised an eyebrow.
"You mean Kiyohime is going to steal Ritsuka away? But you're the one who decides the winner in the script, aren't you? What kind of crisis do I have to worry about?"
As she said this, she shook her head.
"I'm telling you, I'm not interested in either Charlemagne or Ritsuka. Neither of them is my type."
"Who said anything about men?"
Shinji gave his sister a strange look.
"I'm talking about screen time. If Kiyohime gets a good response, I'll increase her role in the following scripts. And Mash, whose character fills a somewhat similar niche, will have some of her scenes cut."
"Wait, aren't I the heroine?"
Sakura's expression immediately soured.
"Onii-sama, that's fraud!"
"Why did you suddenly switch to a Kansai accent?"
Seeing that Sakura was getting anxious, Shinji patted her shoulder with satisfaction.
"Mash, your important scenes are coming up next. Don't lose to your 'junior,' Kiyohime, when it comes to acting!"
This brother of mine!!
Matou Sakura could only nod gloomily.
However, looking at Sakura in Mash's costume reminded Shinji of something else.
Back then, due to health issues, Risa Taneda had to leave the FGO project midway through. Before leaving, she had voiced a total of four Servants: Mash, Marie Antoinette, Kiyohime, and Mata Hari.
If Hundred Years' War of Evil Dragons had voice acting, it would definitely be a carnival for Taneda fans.
Fortunately, Shinji's movie adaptation had only summoned Kiyohime. If he somehow managed to include all of those characters in person, there would likely be a situation where three different Tanedas were talking at the same time, and the audience wouldn't be able to tell who was who.
Although Taneda used different voices for each role, you could still tell that it was the same person.
For the movie itself, this would be a good thing. But for Shinji, a devout believer in the "Taneda Method," it was also a source of regret.
"Hmm... My feelings are really complicated."
Under Sakura's utterly confused expression, Shinji voiced his thoughts.
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
The next scene to be filmed was indeed one involving Mash.
In fact, it was the very same location as the scene where Kiyohime had been lecturing her husband.
Shinji had simply redecorated the set so that no one could tell it was the same place.
There was no helping it. Although the setting described the final battlefield of Hundred Years' War of Evil Dragons as an endless, vast grassland, Fuyuki City's available land was only so big. There simply wasn't enough room to work with.
Shinji genuinely wanted to use a real prairie as the battlefield, and he certainly had the budget for it. Unfortunately, it was a case of "an ant trying to mate with an elephant"—he had the will but nowhere to apply it.
Actually, Shinji wasn't exaggerating when he said this was an important scene for Mash.
This was the scene where Mash came to Mozart's rescue after he had been completely overwhelmed by Sanson.
According to the story's progression, Mozart only did three things throughout the entire movie—
He was:
A diehard fan of Queen Marie.Playing the funeral music for Sanson.Giving Mash advice.
The first two were both related to Queen Marie. As the woman who, according to the setting, was beloved by France itself, Queen Marie was the idol of all the Heroic Spirits from that era.
Whether it was Sanson, Mozart, or d'Éon, they were all hopelessly devoted to her.
The only difference was that, due to Jeanne Alter's summoning and the influence of the Holy Grail, Sanson and d'Éon had directly turned into dark, obsessive yanderes, while Mozart had retained just a tiny sliver of sanity.
And it was precisely that remaining bit of reason that allowed Mozart to encourage Mash, giving her the motivation to make her own choices instead of simply going with the flow.
This was an extremely important step in Mash's growth throughout the entire FGO series.
If Sakura really couldn't portray Mash's transformation properly, Shinji genuinely might increase Kiyohime's screen time.
On the set, Yan Qing, who was playing Mozart, was currently getting absolutely demolished by Enkidu, who was playing Sanson.
Logically speaking, a battle between two bronze-rarity Servants shouldn't have turned out this way. On top of that, as a Caster, Mozart even had a class advantage over the Assassin-class Sanson.
Unfortunately, the current Sanson was no longer an ordinary Sanson.
After Queen Marie's departure, Sanson completely lost his mind. Having also been modified by Jeanne Alter, he had transformed into a monster with a dragon's body and a human head.
That was also why Enkidu had been chosen to play Sanson. Humiliating a Heroic Spirit in such a way carried the risk of getting chopped to pieces in one's bed at night, even if it was only a Pseudo-Servant.
For the sake of his own life, Shinji decisively let Enkidu handle the role.
"■■■!!"
In his dragon form, Sanson let out a beast-like roar. Having changed from the Assassin class to the Rider class, he made Mozart keenly understand what class suppression truly meant.
"Tch!"
Faced with Sanson's relentless, storm-like assault, Mozart had no choice but to rapidly play musical notes to bind him and restrict his movements while trying to widen the distance between them.
"I'm such an idiot. What kind of mage fights in close combat...?"
Mozart hurriedly retreated.
Bang!
A guillotine blade suddenly sprang out from the dragon claw on Sanson's right wing and viciously struck Mozart.
"It hit me?! Did I misjudge the safe distance? Or could it be—"
Clutching the wound on his chest, Mozart slowly raised his head. The black monster and its coldly gleaming executioner's blade were right in front of him.
"This is bad... At this rate... My body... Move! Body... Why won't you move?!"
Perhaps Sir Lancelot's spirit had truly possessed him, because at this moment, Mozart couldn't even use his musical notes to block Sanson's attack.
"How embarrassing. To be in such a sorry state as a senior..."
Mozart let out a sigh.
"As expected... teaching others is something Salieri is much better at..."
Just as Mozart resigned himself to his fate and waited to return to the Throne of Heroes—
Clang!
A cross-shaped shield blocked the black executioner's blade.
Mash had arrived!