"Kiritsugu Emiya, give me Saber!"
Outside the castle, Guinevere's voice rang out. Her eyes aligned perfectly with Kiritsugu Emiya's sniper scope, making his heart tremble.
Upon hearing this, the King of Knights first looked incredulous, then adopted a defiant expression, as if declaring she would never yield.
She, too, had figured it out: if Guinevere was willing to offer herself as a bargaining chip, Kiritsugu Emiya would have no reason to refuse the deal.
Compared to her, Guinevere was stronger and far more compatible with him.
Moments later, they all moved inside the castle to negotiate. As expected, Kiritsugu Emiya did not refuse.
"I can become your Servant and guarantee that Irisviel will survive after the Holy Grail War," Guinevere stated. "All I ask is that you transfer control of Saber to me."
Though the decision was born of momentary anger, Guinevere quickly realized it was the best way to break the stalemate. Once she became Saber's Master, Saber's wish would no longer matter.
At worst, she could order Saber to destroy the Holy Grail herself. Even if Saber resented her for it later, Guinevere was prepared to accept the consequences.
"Is Saber really all you want?"
"You cannot use Command Spells to force me to do things I don't want to do. The Command Spells can only be used to enhance my abilities," Guinevere stated firmly. "Kiritsugu Emiya, don't even think about trying to trick me. I'm confident I can resist a Command Spell. Also, I won't call you 'Master.' I dislike that title."
Kiritsugu Emiya, still clad in his black coat and sporting a scruffy beard, fell into deep thought.
"Caster," he finally said, "I have one last question. Are you willing to capture Tokiomi Tohsaka's wife and daughter for me?"
Maiya Hisau had been captured, but Kiritsugu had recently learned she was still alive. A flicker of hope ignited within him—perhaps he could save her. One of his plans was a prisoner exchange.
This question was also a test of Guinevere's character.
A mournful wind rustled through the courtyard, tugging at the clothes of those seated on the ground. The scent of nearby flowers drifted through the air. Two Einzbern homunculus maids had arrived at the castle earlier than Kiritsugu and Irisviel to prepare it.
"Kiritsugu Emiya," Guinevere asked after a moment, "will you kill them?"
She took a sip of the red tea a maid had served her, her expression turning pained. Yet, she did not refuse the kidnapping mission.
"I can't guarantee it," Kiritsugu replied, "but I don't want to kill anyone."
"Caster, you might not believe this," Irisviel added, "but Kiritsugu's ideal is world peace."
Even though she already knew, hearing Irisviel say it aloud made Guinevere's lips tremble slightly. The King of Knights, too, was utterly dumbfounded.
In the King of Knights' eyes, Kiritsugu Emiya was a man who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals.
That kind of man wants world peace...?
"Irisviel, are you serious?" Saber asked.
"Saber, I'm completely serious. It truly is Kiritsugu's wish. We know it's impossible to achieve, which is why we've placed our hopes in the omnipotent Holy Grail."
"But according to Guinevere, if you wish for world peace, the Holy Grail will just slaughter as many humans as possible."
Despite being treated as a bargaining chip, with Kiritsugu showing no regard for her opinion, the King of Knights spoke up. She knew this wish would inevitably lead to disaster. She then revealed the details Guinevere had shared about the Grail's corruption.
After all, if the King of Knights wanted to make her own wish to the Holy Grail, she would need help. She couldn't solve the Grail's corruption on her own.
In the small courtyard, Kiritsugu and Irisviel exchanged stunned glances. Kayneth, however, had a sudden realization, finally understanding what the Holy Grail System truly was.
If my Servant were still here, he thought, I would genuinely compete for victory now.
As a Mage, he might not care about the Holy Grail itself, but he would absolutely be interested in reaching the Root. Reaching the Root, attaining True Magic—nearly every Mage in this world considered this their ultimate ambition.
"Heh," Kayneth scoffed. "You Three Families really know how to keep a secret. If it were known that the Holy Grail War was a path to the Root, Fuyuki City would be swarming with far more than just a few third-rate Mages.
"But I suppose I can understand," he continued. "If the truth about the Grail got out, your Three Families would likely lose your exclusive rights to participate. Variant Holy Grail Wars would start popping up all over the world."
As a Lord of the Clock Tower, he was a professional, and professionals dared to make decisive judgments.
"And don't even think about asking that old fossil from the Einzbern family," Kayneth added. "I've reviewed the records of past Holy Grail Wars.
"In the last war, the Einzbern family did indeed summon 'All the World's Evil.'"
"Furthermore, don't even think about trying to solve it," Kayneth declared. "That thing is far beyond what third-rate Mages can handle."
Kayneth's authority was undeniable, yet Kiritsugu still questioned his conclusion:
"Why?"
With a cold sneer and a disdainful glance, Kayneth announced, "Because even I can't solve it."
A heavy silence fell over the courtyard. Kayneth's reasoning, however, was exceptionally persuasive. At the very least, Kiritsugu Emiya had abandoned any thought of resolving the issue himself.
And with that, his hope of using the Holy Grail to achieve world peace shattered.
"Kayneth," the King of Knights interjected, "is it possible for the corrupted Holy Grail to send me or my memories back fifteen hundred years? Or could it directly erase the public's perception of Guinevere as a harlot?"
"I said it can't be solved, not that it can't be replaced," Kayneth replied. "Isn't Irisviel right here? Didn't the King of Knights already explain? The Einzbern family prepared a living Lesser Grail precisely for cheating the system."
The mention of the Root had rekindled Kayneth's desire to rejoin the war. But after considering the Lesser Grail, he dismissed the idea.
The family destined to use the Holy Grail had, in truth, been decided from the very beginning.
Rather than wallow in this mire, he'd be better off creating his own Holy Grail System. He had complete confidence in his own abilities.
As Kayneth steered the conversation toward Irisviel, the King of Knights first grasped the logic behind his words. Then, a harsher realization dawned: even if Irisviel replaced All the World's Evil as the Holy Grail's core, the wish she would grant would still be Kiritsugu Emiya's.
"Kiritsugu Emiya," she demanded, "even after I've guaranteed Irisviel's survival, would you still sacrifice her for your ideal?"
Kiritsugu closed his eyes, his breathing growing ragged as he sank into thought. In just twenty-four hours, he had been forced to abandon Maiya Hisau, and now he was being forced to choose between his wife and his ideal.
After a long silence, he finally spoke. "So, if we do nothing, the current Holy Grail is just a massive bomb capable of blowing Fuyuki City sky-high?"
This time, it was Guinevere who nodded. She already knew what Kiritsugu would say next and spoke first:
"It seems you've decided to sacrifice your wife for your ideal."
With a sigh, Guinevere resigned herself to the inevitable. Tokiomi Tohsaka's wife and daughter would have to be kidnapped.
If Kiritsugu was willing to be cruel to his own family, he wouldn't hesitate to do the same to others.
"Kiritsugu Emiya, do you need me to kidnap that mother and daughter first, and then we can sign the contract?"
"That won't be necessary, Caster," Kiritsugu replied. "I'll kidnap the Tohsaka wife and daughter myself. You go sort out your family drama with Saber first."
He lit a cigarette, his gaze fixed on the floor, unable to bring himself to look at Irisviel.
As for Irisviel, her initial joy at surviving had given way to a serene acceptance of her inevitable death.
Yet, a deep sadness still shadowed her face, and her heart felt as if it were being scraped by countless dull, rusty files.
"Kiritsugu," she said, forcing a smile as she sat beside him and wrapped her arms around the man who had made this choice countless times before. "You don't have to grieve for me or feel guilty. I was always meant to die."
Compared to her, Kiritsugu's heart had long been ground to dust—a consequence of his own making.