"No losers. Everyone becomes a winner. Isn't a result like that good?"
"..."
The Servants fell silent together. Even Jeanne, acting as the arbiter, hesitated for a moment.
But soon the holy maiden strengthened her resolve, stepped forward, and loudly questioned, "Caster, you are a Servant yet you seized your Master's Command Spells, violating the rules of the Holy Grail War. Have you prepared yourself to face punishment?!"
"Ruler… hmph!"
Medea sneered. "You were summoned because you have no desire for the Holy Grail. You are completely different from Servants like us who pursue it."
"You simply cannot understand the feelings of ordinary Servants. What right do you have to criticize us?"
"Th-that… that's sophistry!" Jeanne frowned. "My position is indeed different from everyone else's, but does that mean your betrayal of your companions is noble?"
"At least I truly want to solve this problem and have taken real action." Medea seemed to have prepared all kinds of arguments beforehand. Her response was flawless.
"Everyone, please don't have doubts. Since I dare to say this, it naturally means I have conducted careful calculations and simulations and am absolutely confident."
"In the field of magecraft, you are indeed more professional than anyone else." At this moment Iori suddenly spoke.
"But most of us only understand it vaguely. Would you mind explaining it to us?"
"Of course."
Medea glanced at Iori in surprise, apparently not expecting him to help open the topic for her. But she quickly composed herself and calmly said, "Do you all know what the essence of the Greater Grail is?"
"A… magic furnace core?" Chiron had not interacted with the Greater Grail many times, but he could make a guess based on intuition and experience.
"It constantly draws power from the ley lines and stores it. As long as a clear command is input, it can use that magical power to turn the command into reality… It could also be described as a huge calculation device."
"Exactly! As expected of the great sage Chiron, that explanation is very accurate."
Even the proud Medea could not help showing some admiration.
"As Archer said, the reason the Greater Grail is called an 'omnipotent wish-granting machine' comes from the enormous magical power accumulated inside it."
"That is the accumulation of an entire first-class ley line over sixty years. Not only can it summon ancient heroes and sustain them in the present world so they can live and fight, it can also grant the final victor a wish 'within certain limits.'"
"I never expected that after the Age of Gods ended, human magi would still be able to construct such a miraculous device. It really makes me look at modern humans in a new light~"
"Normally, the Greater Grail needs to accumulate power for more than half a century before it reaches the minimum standard required to hold a Holy Grail War."
"The remaining magical energy inside is only enough for one Master-Servant pair to have their wish granted."
"But this time is different~"
"How is it different?"
The King of the Wild Hunt became interested. His dignified pale-gold eyes stared directly at Medea. "Don't tell me there's no limit on the number?"
"No, there is a limit."
Medea did not lie and answered honestly. "Because the previous Holy Grail War ended unexpectedly, the magical power accumulated inside the Greater Grail was not completely used up."
"Normally, after about ten years another Holy Grail War could have been started again. But Darnic of the Yggdmillennia knew his strength was insufficient."
"Once the information leaked out, he wouldn't be able to protect the Greater Grail with his own ability, so he kept postponing it."
"Then, once his forces had grown and he had fully prepared himself, he would launch the Holy Grail War to realize his wish... which is now."
"Because of Darnic's caution, the Greater Grail has never been this 'full.' The magical power inside is enough to grant three or four wishes of 'normal scale'!"
"Oh? Although that's quite astonishing, it's still not unlimited after all."
King Arthur looked uninterested. "If that's all, the Servants still have to slaughter each other to compete for the limited slots. Everything you said becomes meaningless."
"... Under normal circumstances that would be the case. But I have never been a mage who follows the rules."
Medea said confidently, "The explanation just now was only to make you understand that the Greater Grail is essentially a device that stores and uses magical power. As long as there is enough magical power, it can be considered omnipotent.
"So, if we can find more magical power and keep it in a fully charged state at all times, then all of your wishes can be fulfilled!"
"Stand in line and grant wishes, waiting sixty years for each slot?" Mordred grinned. "I still think killing the competition would be faster."
"Heh!"
A certain hero who claimed to be the fastest nodded in strong agreement.
"The reason it takes sixty years to fill it is only because the system deliberately suppresses the Greater Grail's absorption efficiency to an extremely low level in order to avoid affecting the ley lines."
Medea said calmly, "I can modify the Greater Grail so that it has an efficiency high enough to drain the ley line completely."
"In that case it could refill once every few weeks or even days, allowing all of you to realize your wishes."
"This…"
The heroes looked at each other. Even the great hero Karna was slightly moved, but it was not because he was interested in Medea's proposal. Instead, he was worried about the consequences.
"Once the ley line is drained, this land will gradually become barren and desolate… And if one ley line is not enough, you would need to move somewhere else and continue destroying a second ley line…"
"What's wrong with that?" Medea chuckled. "There are plenty of places like that in the world. Adding one or two more won't matter to anyone."
"..."
"Oh, right!" Achilles suddenly spoke up, interrupting the conversation between Karna and Medea.
"There's something I don't quite understand… If the magical power inside the Greater Grail can grant wishes, then why even hold a Holy Grail War? Why make the Servants kill each other?"
It couldn't possibly be just for fun... the look in Achilles's eyes became strange.
"The souls of Servants have their own use."
Medea pointed toward Iori.
"But the details should be asked of this great hero… and his Master from the Einzbern family."
Everyone turned their eyes toward Iori…
What use do Servant souls have?
Of course they are collected into the "Lesser Grail." Once enough are gathered, they are released together to punch a hole leading to the Root!
That was the true purpose behind the three great families establishing the Holy Grail War.
The Tohsaka family were traditional magi seeking to reach the Root, while the Einzbern and Matou families sought to save the world, though their methods differed.
As for the so-called "omnipotent wish-granting machine," it was actually bait created by the three families to lure outside magi to their deaths.
Of course, the bait was genuine. As a by-product of the Holy Grail War, the magical power inside the Greater Grail really could fulfill most conventional wishes. But compared to reaching the Root, that was insignificant.
In the original world line, if Kayneth had known that the ultimate goal of the ritual was the Root, he would never have participated with such naïve expectations… and the Mage's Association would not have ignored such a "small ritual."
To put it plainly, none of the three founding families were good people. Among their direct heirs, only Tohsaka Rin entered the war with the mindset of fair competition.
But then again, the abilities of the three founders deserved recognition, though their judgment and connections were quite questionable. Of all the partners they could have chosen, they ended up choosing each other.
One carried the curse of Rhine Gold, one had a hereditary bloodline that always failed at critical moments, and one was a "hero of justice" who basically broke heaven's rules in the Type-Moon world… When your three families come together, it would be strange if something didn't go wrong.
...Iori's expression remained completely calm. He had no intention of revealing these secrets.
"Since Lady Medea brought this topic up, we must trace back to the ownership of the Greater Grail."
Iori gave a small laugh. Instead of directly answering everyone's gazes, he continued, "As everyone knows, the main system of the Holy Grail War was created by the three great families, and the most important tools... the Grails themselves, both greater and lesser... were provided by the Einzbern family."
"In other words, that Greater Grail originally belonged to the Einzbern family. It was created specifically to host the Holy Grail War, only to be stolen later by Darnic of Yggdmillennia."
"Now, Lady Medea claims that the Greater Grail can be activated without bloodshed and fulfill everyone's wishes."
"If that's the case, may I assume that the Holy Grail War no longer has any reason to continue?"
"If that is truly so… then please return the Einzbern family's property.
"Rest assured, my Master and I have no intention of preventing any of you from achieving your wishes. Even if we reclaim ownership, Lady Medea would still be able to use it~"
"..."
The witch of betrayal slightly curled her lips in a mocking smile. She said nothing, but her attitude was obvious.
"It seems words cannot make people understand each other after all." Iori smiled as he drew the Ame-no-Murakumo Sword.
"Let's communicate in a more efficient way!"
"We just finished subduing Yamata no Orochi, and now you want to start the final battle between the Red and Black factions?"
Medea looked completely fearless. "Right now I am the only Master of the Black faction."
"What a coincidence. I am too!"
A completely ordinary pigeon suddenly flew into the devastated battlefield. Out of place with everything around it, the bird opened its mouth and dropped a rune-engraved shell before flying away gracefully.
The shell floated half a meter above the ground and projected the image of a young man wearing priest robes, with white hair, brown skin, and a constant smiling expression.
"I have also just become the 'majority Master' of the Red faction."
"The priest?"
Achilles and the others were surprised, and a bad feeling rose in their hearts. They had originally been watching the Black faction's internal conflict from the sidelines, but the moment Shirou Kotomine appeared, they were inevitably dragged into the situation.
"You guy didn't show yourself before, but now… wait a minute, what do you mean by 'majority Master'?" Achilles's expression turned hostile.
At that moment, the Red faction Servants all froze. After their brief shock, they looked at Amakusa with various emotions.
...Their contract partner had changed as well.
"What's going on?"
Achilles had a fiery temper. He immediately raised his meteor spear and pointed it at Amakusa.
"Hey, priest, why has my Master contract been replaced with yours?!"
After speaking, Achilles suddenly realized something strange. Among everyone present, only he and Jeanne reacted strongly. Others showed some surprise, but there were no intense emotional reactions…
"What's going on with this atmosphere… Did everyone already know about this beforehand?"
"Am I the only one who was kept in the dark?!"
"Calm down, Rider."
Atalanta said reassuringly, "We didn't know beforehand either. It's just that this development isn't particularly surprising."
"Huh?"
"Think about it carefully, Achilles."
The huntress spoke earnestly. "Since you were summoned, have you ever actually met your Master? All the orders came through that priest, didn't they?"
"Big sis… but I did confirm the contract. The mana channel and Master-Servant connection were completely normal."
"My Master transferred command authority while still alive and well. Otherwise I wouldn't have obeyed this guy."
Achilles retorted, "And according to common sense, a single human shouldn't be able to support the magical consumption of so many Servants."
"There are plenty of ways to fake things. Don't forget the Servant under this guy… the most ancient poisoner, Semiramis!"
"Although the Assyrian empress was summoned as an Assassin, she is also extremely skilled in magecraft."
"If Medea can do something, she probably can as well, though the method might be different."
Atalanta narrowed her eyes and looked at Amakusa Shirou's projection.
And this priest wasn't an ordinary magus either!
She had already obtained information about Amakusa Shirou from Iori and gradually confirmed it herself. So when Amakusa revealed everything today, she showed no surprise at all.
Sure enough, Amakusa Shirou continued, "Please don't worry. The Masters of the Red faction are perfectly safe and have not been harmed in any way.
They feared the intensity of the Holy Grail War and 'voluntarily' transferred their Command Spells to me. There was absolutely no coercion.
"I hope that after changing Masters you will not resist too strongly. I will do my best to fulfill your personal wishes, even better than your original Masters."
His actions were extremely vile, yet his gaze and sincerity were utterly genuine.
"Also, there is no need to worry about magical supply. Although those Masters relinquished their Command Spells, they are still willing to assist me and will continue supplying magical energy to all of you."
"Tch!"
Achilles clearly couldn't accept this, but Atalanta and Karna had no objections.
"Based on the facts, I believe I am qualified to represent the Red faction in negotiations."
Considering that aside from Sella and Kairi Sisigou, Amakusa was currently the only Master left in the Red faction... and he possessed the Command Spells of five Servants... even if he had not fully subdued every Servant, he could still claim that his will represented the stance of the entire faction.
"You want to represent us? Then at least earn our trust first."
"Archer?"
"The person we serve should be someone who takes responsibility for his actions... state your true purpose!"
Atalanta asked what everyone present, including Iori, was thinking.
"You chose this moment to reveal everything and are talking to us through a projection. You can't possibly be doing this out of boredom!"
"My purpose? Of course I have one."
Amakusa Shirou smiled faintly.
"But I have no selfish motives. Everything I do is justice. The reason I revealed everything now despite the risk is because Lady Medea's actions deeply moved me."
"Your proposal... to end the Holy Grail War peacefully rather than through conflict... greatly inspired me. Therefore I have decided..."
"On behalf of more than two-thirds of the Red faction Servants, I accept your proposal, sign a ceasefire agreement, and activate the Greater Grail together!"
"What?!"
Both the Red and Black Servants looked at Amakusa Shirou in shock, unable to understand his reasoning.
Medea's proposal sounded wonderful on the surface, but everyone knew there must be hidden problems.
And since this priest had already stolen other Masters' Command Spells, he clearly had ambitions of his own.
Yet he chose to cooperate with Medea? Was he really that confident he could gain an advantage from the witch of betrayal?
"Do not doubt me. My wish is to save all of humanity!"
"That can only be achieved using the Greater Grail. Lady Medea's method does not conflict with my wish. In fact, it perfectly meets my requirements."
"What a coincidence. I also want to save all of humanity!", At that moment Iori suddenly spoke.
"I also agree to a temporary ceasefire. Let everyone use the Greater Grail together. What do you think?"