An Oath
Chapter 1 - Worlds Apart, Prelude of War
[-182:29:35] until Zero
...
Shirou had stumbled into quite a few strange situations before, whether good or bad, for better or worse this is on the top of his list of the most mind-boggling things he had been dragged into.
A kidnapping, an illusion, whatever it is, even his rather lack of common sense, he understood that the situation he ended up in is not normal at all.
What felt like just moments ago he had battled Angelica and the Gilgamesh card and died in the aftermath, he ended up somehow surviving and waking up in this bedroom that is luxuriously decorated, European if he had to guess, he never went outside of Japan before, and as such could only rely on the "memories" he inherited from the Heroic Spirit EMIYA or rather instincts.
He thought that the mansion he had lived in is already unnecessarily large and expensive, but this takes the term "luxurious" to a whole new level, he'd wager that just this room alone could buy the mansion he lived in and still have enough cash to spare to pay the electricity bills for a couple of years.
Although he would've liked to continue his train of thought, he noticed a concerning amount of chains that is locking him to the bed he's on.
They seem to be just normal chains so given the strength he had he could free himself anytime he wished, keyword "had", at the moment that strength is not something he has right now.
His magic circuits were still damaged from his last battle, though considerably in better condition than he would've thought, after all, it had been overloaded with too much magical energy to adjust to in the short time span it occurred
And even worse, his body felt like it has been repeatedly burnt, pounded, and dipped in cold water as if he's a blade being forged.
Oh, the irony that his body is in fact truly made of blades.
"Ah, you're awake." A kind voice took his attention away as he turned his head over to the direction of the voice
A woman entered his peripheral vision.
She was inhumanely beautiful is his immediate conclusion. Dressed in a long white gown trimmed in gold, with crimson red eyes, hair as white as snow, there's something about her that is triggering his instincts or perhaps EMIYA's, but he couldn't exactly tell what it was that is causing such reaction.
"I take it that you're the one who imprisoned me here?" He got straight to the point and asked the woman, carefully reading her expression
The woman apologetically smiled towards him "Apologies for that, but my husband is cautious towards strangers, much less someone that spontaneously appeared without his intention."
Shirou's cheeks slightly reddened at the comment, 'Was that how I appeared to them?'
Certainly, there's a possibility that the woman was trying to deceive him and summoned him intentionally, however, he couldn't find any benefits to that end. Aside from that, he had an instinctual feeling that he could trust her word.
"Where am I exactly?" There's a chance that he was kidnapped and not whatever she had just said happened, however, he had a hard time thinking about their intentions with him.
"We're currently in my family's main residence, the Einzbern's castle, have you heard of us?" The woman asked
Einzbern, Einzbern… No, he couldn't recall any family named as such, although for some reason once again his instincts reacted to that name for an unknown reason.
"Sorry, but that doesn't ring a bell" He shook his head
"Don't be so, it's not expected that anyone aside from Magi to have a reason to know that name, besides that, you must be an irregular Heroic Spirit, and possibly a newly ascended one summoned straight after the end of your legend judging from the poor state you were summoned in." That set him immediately on alert
"How did you know that?... and also who are you?" He cautiously questioned
"Ah, sorry I haven't introduced myself yet, have I?" The woman sat down on a chair right next to the bed
"My name is Irisviel von Einzbern, you can call me Irisviel, and I was the one who had healed you." He raised his eyebrows
"Healed me?" That explained his surprisingly well condition, however, it was a little hard to believe considering the last thing he remembered was being halfway to the afterlife.
"Yes, last night, I and my husband were attempting to summon a Servant for the Holy Grail War, it succeeded, but not in the way we had expected it to." She explained while she inspects my body
"Servant?" Now that's a term he didn't expect to be used
"Yes, they're containers designated with a certain class which is intended to hold a Heroic Spirit." He knew that, but… That is only because of the knowledge he had inherited from his future self's card.
Irisviel observes his reaction and came to her own conclusion.
"The Holy Grail War if you don't know is a war between seven magi and seven servants to obtain an omnipotent wish-granting device called the Holy Grail. Using a variation of the Heroic Spirit Summoning, it would summon heroes of legend into a class container, but they require a Master to feed them mana and anchor them to the world, that's where the term Servant comes from." That explanation should've given him answers, but he obtained more questions instead
It shouldn't be possible, this could be an illusion but he couldn't feel it was anything but reality. The Heroic Spirit Summoning ritual shouldn't be possible by the Holy Grail, at least not a true summoning of one but flawed class cards. There isn't any possibility that this was the same Grail War that he just participated in.
That gives him a slight breath of relief that his wish had fully gone through. But yet… Could it be the influence of the Kaleidoscope that the situation he got to was made possible?
The woman named "Irisviel" claimed that it was the Holy Grail War. The general rule was still the same, however, the method of achieving it is different.
"Wait, so you're saying we're going to fight against the actual heroes themselves?" Irisviel responded with a nod
Instead of fighting other Magi with the power of the Class Cards, she claims that this Grail will summon the Heroes that resides within the Cards instead.
He didn't know how he should react to this information, he had barely been able to defeat watered-down card versions even with his advantage of being synchronized with a card who is none other than a future possibility of himself.
He nods mindlessly trying to isolate his thoughts. That reminds him of something.
"Who is my Master then? I certainly don't feel any connection to you."
"Back to the story, we were intending to summon Saber and let my husband be the Master, but something interfered with the summoning and had caused me to become the Master of Saber instead," She raised her arm and reveal the back of her hand, strange marks coloured in blood were there
Huh, that must've been quite an unfortunate turn of events- wait, if she did summon the original intended Hero, then that must mean that…
"Your Master is my husband. The Grail has been said to summon someone that is most compatible with the summoner when used without a catalyst, so I'm sure you'd understand him the most out of all of us." She said with a serene expression, with her eyes glittering with hope
"Yes, his methods might make him seem ruthless, however, he's kinder than anyone else I know, so I put my faith in you and Saber to help fulfil his wish for the salvation of the world." She finishes before unravelling the ambiguous amount of chains binding him
"I'll see that for myself, if I agree with him, then I shall assist him to win the war." He said with conviction, he was assuming the role quite fast considering he wasn't even quite sure how he would even compare to real heroes.
He could use this wish to find his way back to Miyu, and fulfil the promise he made to Kiritsugu along the way if the Master he had is truly what his wife Irisviel makes him out to be.
"Thank you, … " She suddenly stopped to think
"What's wrong, Miss Irisviel?" He stretched his arm out, adjusting to it.
"Do you perhaps have a name?" She asks curiously
"I guess you could call me Shirou." He responded without much thought
"Shirou, that's an Eastern name. Are you perhaps a hero from the East?" Irisviel asked curiously
"No… I wouldn't say that I'm a hero, there are others who deserve that title more than I." He had already taken up the role of the Villain, the turning point between good and evil has already been passed.
"How humble. I'm sure you're undervaluing yourself." Irisviel had a nostalgic smile as if recalling something in the past
Shirou stood up whilst ignoring the pain flowing throughout his entire body. He attempted to open his magic circuits to check their current condition, although immediately he felt a sharp pain in his body as it was as if it was burning.
He stumbles and fell over in the immediate aftermath.
As he tried to adjust, a soothing feeling came over him as circuits gradually calmed down.
"You shouldn't use your circuits yet and let it heal, Shirou." Irisviel's voice entered his ear as she helped him back up
"Ah… Yeah, sorry for the trouble." He scratches the back of his head
"Although I did say you're my husband's servant, I don't think you should fight anytime soon with your condition." Irisviel looks with concern
"I could still fight from a range, I'm proficient with a bow too," Shirou reassures her, he was surprisingly getting used to this idea
"Speaking of, what is your ability as a Heroic Spirit? Kiritsugu was unable to view your Noble Phantasm." He froze the moment his father's name was mentioned
He paused for a second, before muttering "Kiritsugu?"
Irisviel puts her hand on her cheeks as her head tilts sideways with an apologetic expression.
"I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you your Master's name, didn't I?" She apologizes
"Emiya Kiritsugu is the name of my husband and your Master."
For a split moment, it was as if the world itself stopped.
Thousands of thoughts race through the mind of one named Emiya Shirou as his brain tries to comprehend the bomb Irisviel just dropped on him.
Could she be speaking the truth? Is it possible that Kiritsugu was the one who summoned him? Since when did Kiritsugu have a wife? Could his secret already be exposed?
He halted his train of thought to preserve the calm facade he is displaying on the outside.
Backtracking a bit, he started to logically sort through this.
Whydunit is one of the principles of solving a case. It was something someone EMIYA remembered as "Lord El-Melloi II" used the most often to solve cases, especially related to the moonlit world.
In this case what motivation could Kiritsugu have summoning him? As the Magus Killer, he is despised throughout the moonlit world and has no end to the number of enemies he made, and as such, it is important to him to have his partner be both skilled enough to get the job done and is willing to help him even against the worst of the worst in the world.
Even if Kiritsugu knew of the him of this world, why would he possibly trust him to such a degree, as a Magus it wasn't until he installed the Archer did his magecraft finally shown enough result, before then he was a complete failure without any talent for anything, with strengthening being the only spell he was able to consistently accomplish.
It was clear that the Grail War of this world isn't using the Class Card system that allowed him to consume the Heroic Spirit EMIYA's knowledge and skill. That only leaves the unlikely option that the him of this world somehow met all the conditions to gain Kiritusgu's trust for a job like this, hell it's nowhere enough to justify taking a risk trying to summon a Hero that might not even exist.
In that end, how does Kiritsugu have a catalyst for someone like him? It should be completely impossible to know for sure, and aside from that, why would he hide such a thing from his wife Irisviel, and for what reason?
In the span of the fifteen seconds he had been thinking, he finally came to what should've been the most obvious conclusion.
Simple, he didn't. Obtaining the catalyst for him, then hiding information of him from someone he loved and trusted enough to marry, and summoning the one named Emiya Shirou directly after he made a contract with the Counter Force.
Such a train of coincidences is near impossible without having every single factor that leads to this point be perfectly executed and favourable. Which means…
The catalyst does not lie with Emiya Kiritsugu, but in fact, it was the one named Emiya Shirou that held the catalyst.
Suddenly he snapped back into reality as he realizes that he has unconsciously moved from the position he was in.
"Shirou? Are you listening?" They were walking through a hallway and he at some point projected his clothes
"Ah sorry, could you repeat what you said?" His hand reaches into the pocket of his trousers
"Kiritsugu is out with Illya at the moment, so you should meet with Saber first since both of you are working together." Irisviel excitedly pulled on his hand as both of them walked
His left hand finally felt the item of suspicion within his pockets, his face slightly frowned unknown to Irisviel
He knew couldn't remember when or why he brought it with him, but within his pockets was a container. This container within the pocket of his pants was most likely the key of his summoning
As he is a hero from the future, an unconventional one at that, he has no catalyst within what he assumed to be the past.
Therefore, to be able to summon him, it would mean that the Heroic Spirit must have an item tied with the summoner.
He pulled the container, it was a steel-cased container with no discerning features. He opened and took a peek within it, before closing it back and pocketed it.
That's right, within it is one of Kiritsugu's Origin Bullets that he had inherited.
Just as they turned a corner, they bumped into a blonde girl wearing a black suit.
"Irisviel? What are you doing walking around with…"
"Oh Saber! We were looking for you! Meet Shirou!" Irisviel got behind Shirou and pushed him towards the scrutinizing eyes of the servant of the sword
"Uh… Nice to meet you?" He awkwardly said, unsure of what to say towards the first-ever real Hero he has ever met
Judging by her form, she does exude the sharpness and experience of a warrior, and if her expression was to say anything she's evaluating him right now.
There was a tense silence. Shirou felt intimidated and would've at this point turn avoided her cold eyes if it were not for the fact that it might just dissatisfy the girl in front of him.
"I see, the position you took is deceivingly advantageous, positioning yourself closest to the exit and standing at the edge of the range of a broadsword from me while taking a subtle battle stance that gives you time to react at any time. You're no Assassin, but the fact that you need to take such precautionary measures doesn't inspire confidence in your strength." Saber coldly told him his analysis with confidence, completely seeing through his intentions...
However… All the one Emiya Shirou is currently able to think was, "What?"
"What is it that you are confused by? Seeing as your Master is most likely of similar nature to you, you would similarly be cautious at meeting a potential enemy, and that's the reason you've established yourself in such a way, is that not true?" No, it's completely off, but Kiritsugu would probably take a step further than that if Shirou were, to be honest.
He could tell her the truth and tell her that she was a misunderstanding, but her eyes had already drawn her own conclusion, and if he tried claiming he wasn't, then this "Saber" would probably grow even more suspicious of him than she already has.
Huh… So this is what he got for by sheer coincidence to be summoned by Kiritsugu. He knew Kiritsugu was bad at talking to people and may do things that cause the ire and severe misunderstanding of other people, but what could he have done to have accomplished the feat of making a Heroic Spirit, a Knight at that, to be immediately suspicious and hold biased opinions of anyone that was related to him.
"You've completely seen through me Saber, but now you understood my intentions, are you going to use that against me?" He bluffed
She shooked her head, "Nay, we would be cooperating under the same camp, and as such on my honour as the King of Knights I pardon you."
King of Knights? That must be it, it could only mean that the girl in front of him was the famed King Arthur… Wait for a second… King Arthur was a girl?
The one named Emiya Shirou had certainly inherited a portion of the knowledge held by the Heroic Spirit EMIYA, however out of all things, this is not one of them.
Shirou's expression visibly turned from a cautious, emotionless stare, into one of absolute surprise, but upon realization, his expression defaulted back.
"Well then, shall I reveal my name now that you told me yours?" He sarcastically asked, he didn't have any intentions of doing so as it would probably do no good
"That would be convenient, yes." Another voice cuts in
Everyone turned to look at the one who joined in the conversation they were having.
"Kiritsugu…" Both Irisviel and Saber said at the same time
"So you must be my Master? Unfortunately, I cannot reveal it at the moment." Shirou spoke and met the eyes of the Magus Killer
"Do you not trust us, Shirou?" Irisviel chimed in and asked
"It's not a matter of trust, rather it is because I possess trust as it is something I must keep to myself, besides none of you will be able to find my legend in the first place." Shirou shook his head
"Then what can you offer, Servant? With Saber here, surely you understand that victory is inevitable whether you fight or not." This is it, the most important point of this conversation
With a brief moment of silence, Shirou finally spoke up.
"A team's strength is only as strong as the weakest link, not to be rude, but you're the only human combatant, my strength only goes as far as you are capable to command me. If you are a weak master, then I shall do my best to ensure your safety, but if you are a competent one, then regardless of my weaknesses, victory is assured."
There's a double meaning behind his words, from most people's perspective it would sound like Shirou is admitting that he's weak as a servant and depends on the Master to make it work.
However it is, in fact, the opposite, his greatest strength isn't his power, but instead his versatility. If his master is weak, he would ensure his Master's safety by finding the easiest way to victory without risking his master's life, proving his bravery and confidence in his own ability to adapt and plan, and if his master was adequate, it would only further enhance his capability by having a competent master to exploit his versatility to its very limit.
A moment of silence came to pass before Kiritsugu gave a small nod acknowledging that he got his message across.
"Very well, then. If you stick to your word then there aren't any problems in working together?"
[5 Hours Before Departure]
...
"Shirou, seconds please!" Saber chowed down all the food on her plate with blinding speeds, completely abandoning her calm and dignified facade.
"Alright Alright, don't eat too fast otherwise you'll choke on the food," Shirou advised while with a hint of surprise still lingering
After all, this is the supposed King of Knights, and yet she's mowing through the food like a child who tasted something delicious for the first time. Although he's partly to be blamed, the ingredients that are stored within this castle is so extravagant that he couldn't help but overdo his cooking.
"Oh my." Irisviel looked at Saber with the most "Oneesan" look Shirou has ever seen up to date
Meanwhile, Kiritsugu didn't react at all to the food, then again this is the same person who orders fast food for everything and couldn't cook to save his own life.
And lastly sitting beside him is Illya, the daughter of Irisviel and Kiritsugu, who's curiously tasting each of the dishes he had cooked.
"Shirou, what's this?" The little snow fairy asked while pointing at one of the plates in the dessert section.
"That's a dorayaki, it's similar to a pancake, in the middle there's some red bean paste," Shirou explained while he reached out towards the plate
"Dor-Dorik-Dooryakyi?" Watching her struggle pronouncing the name of the dish makes her look cute
"Doriyaki, do you want some?" Illya pouted cutely but nodded, the image of Miyu overlaps for a moment in Shiroy mind.
Shirou placed one of the confections on her plate and couldn't help but stare at the red-eyed snowball nibbling at the pastry.
It was peaceful, yet lively at the same time, a sharp contrast to how it was when Shirou ate with Kiritsugu and Miyu, it was silent there, no one spoke when there isn't a need.
"Mm!" Illya made a hummed happily while chewing
"Mama Papa! You need to try this!" Illya excitedly pointed at the dessert
Irisviel happily obliged her daughter's request and brought one to her plate. She ate it with a satisfied expression.
Although Kiritsugu on the other hand stopped eating it after the first bite.
"Is it not to your liking?" Shirou asked the man
"No, that's not it." Kiritsugu shook his head and ended it right there
Dinner continued through the night without any problems, and nearing the end, Kiritsugu rose from his seat.
"Shirou, once you're done meet me as soon as possible at the office." Shirou nodded in response
Walking through the bright yet empty hallway, Shirou walking towards the office of the Magus Killer.
He intended to do the dishes however Irisviel insisted to leave it to the two maids Sella and Leysritt. Both of them were homonculuses, the same goes for Irisviel and Illya, that's just how the Einzbern family operates, without any human successors.
It at first surprised him to learn of it, however thinking over it logically it makes sense why he had always felt something inhuman about Irisviel, although he had a feeling there was something deeper, he wasn't going to question it unless it's necessary.
After all, he has his own secrets to keep, there's no reason why they would tell theirs.
Upon arriving in front of the room, he knocked on the door before going inside.
It was a relatively normal room, with only the necessities littering the entire room, an office desk, an antique printer model, cabinets where Shirou presumes is the location of all the materials Kiritsugu had collected thus far.
The room was dead silent, if it wasn't for the fact that the man he's looking for was standing right here watching out the window Shirou would've thought the room was devoid of any lifeform.
"..."
Shirou stood there silently waiting for Kiritsugu to say something, after a period of radio silence, Kiritsugu hadn't even made a move, in fact, his entire body was impossibly still, it was as if he was detached from his own body.
"Master?" Shirou reluctantly started the conversation,
"You're here." Kiritsugu finally spoke, his tone was monotone as if a machine.
"Yes, I am. I don't suppose you'd inform me of what you want to talk about?"
"Yes, before going to the War, I'll briefly inform you of the layout of the city, and our known adversaries. Take that folder." He points towards a folder on the desk.
Shirou walked towards it and picked it up. There wasn't anything special about it, just a file folder with a black cover.
It made sense considering it was Kiritsugu that he was talking about, only doing the things that are necessary, even his food he either buys one on the go, or cooks with whatever that was available to him, and they were horrendous.
The first time he tasted Kiritsugu's home-cooked meal is within months after he was adopted, even when he had a slight idea that there was something wrong with himself this one takes the cake, the food was so wrong in many ways that after that one single experience he vows to learn how to cook.
Shirou opens the folder and flips to the first page, it was a map similar to Fuyuki, though there are differences.
"This city is split into two sections, Shinto and Miyama. Our known adversaries, the Tohsaka and Matous live in the foreigner district of Miyama Town." Kiritsugu pointed at the two locations he marked beforehand
"Our main adversary here would be the Tohsaka, as while the family head Tokiomi Tohsaka was a mediocre magus who specializes in fire magic, their household has the hometown advantage, as they have been living here since hundreds of years ago and has procured some connections to high places, with their household located right on top of a Leyline, if they were to get a catalyst for a powerful Servant, then they would certainly be able to support it." Shirou nods and turned to ask something that has been on the back of his mind
"What of the Matous?" He recognised this family name, how could he not?
Kiritsugu shook his head "There's nothing special to say about the Matous, their location isn't particularly strategic, their Master is Kariya Matou who had abandoned the moonlit world in his youth, in the span of time he has returned, it is very unlikely for him to match any half-decent mage.
Shirou was still unsatisfied with the information provided but doesn't voice out his thoughts. He wanted to know how the Matous are involved in this war, he never had an opportunity to ask-
Sakura… His thoughts get cloudy recalling the events of the previous night, guilt builds up within him, being unable to give back an answer to her.
As soon as they appeared, his thoughts get flushed out by his rationality, he could ponder about it later, but certainly, the time is not now.
As if sensing his inner monologue, Kiritsugu continued "If you want more about them, it's already been compiled on pages eleven to fourteen."
He thought over it for a bit before making up a response "...I understand."
"Alright then, we that's all for the known opponents which reside within the city, we have two more that we know of, flip to page 23. The next opponent would be one of the Lord of the Clock Tower, Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald "
At the mention of "El-Melloi", Shirou's caution rose back up. He could recall from his inherited memories that the Lord El-Melloi II was a peerless detective and the greatest instructor of Magi in the modern age. The predecessor to someone as prestigious as him must be someone who couldn't be scoffed at.
"Lord of the Department of Mineralogy, nine generations worth of a magical crest, an extremely talented Magus, with by far the greatest magical power and control of any known mages that are participating. A "Brand" rank Magus, with a dual affinity of water and wind, an expert at Summoning, Necromancy, Alchemy, Spiritual Evocation, and more."
"-And with his self crafted Mystic Code Volumen Hydrargyrum, he would be a formidable Mage to face." Kiritsugu finishes, pulling out a cigarette and lighting one up.
Shirou isn't particularly knowledgeable about the Clocktower and their standards, however being the second-highest rank achievable for a Magus, and with expertise in many forms of Magecraft, this man could be said as a man with many talents. For the "Magus Killer" Kiritsugu to call him formidable, there's no doubt in this man's capability.
Indeed as a human Mage, it could be said that this man is only surpassed by holders of Noble Phantasms and the Five Magics. Certainly, as a Lord of the prominent Mages Association, there's no doubt that he could procure powerful catalysts on a whim.
Even so, Kiritsugu no doubt could eliminate him, the fact he had called the Lord Mage "Formidable" means he is perfectly capable of eliminating him out of the competition, if all fails, the extremely lethal Origin Bullet will surely be deployed, and it can and will completely wipe out any trace that the man was ever a Magus in the first place, much less a Brand ranked one.
"Our last known opponent and the most threatening to our victory, a Church Executor named Kotomine Kirei."
"Kotomine… Kirei?" He tried restraining himself, but the surprise couldn't help but make an appearance on his face.
He couldn't imagine how someone like him would be like in his youth
"The son of the mediator of the war, he is a Church Executor, an elite fighter experienced in hunting down heretics such as Magi. Alchemy, Summoning, Necromancy, Healing, Divination, he studied many categories of Magecraft, but yet… Every time he nearly mastered them, he abandons it for another." Kiritsugu stopped for a bit, exhaling the smoke from the cigarette.
"To tell you the truth, this man terrifies me. What could he be seeking to abandon everything he learned like disposable trash, what is he searching for? A man with no passion is my evaluation of him, he has switched his role in the church three times. I couldn't understand this man, I could not predict his actions, I could not find a way to defeat him, aside from direct combat that is."
"But even so, fighting against him directly is equally as bad as attempting to fight him any other way. His close quarters capability is unmatched, with superhuman strength and agility, his body strengthened to such a degree that lower calibre bullets are ineffective against him. An expert in unarmed combat via the martial art Bajiguan, and extremely skilled in using black keys in combat, with him being able to fight effectively with six of them at the same time when normal Executors usually use two." He finally finished the last page and sets aside the folder
"Why are you telling me this?" It is unlike Kiritsugu to talk so much to someone he barely knows about, much less to express his true thoughts, even if his expression remains unchanged.
"I'd figure you'd be better off knowing this, in your current condition Iri said you wouldn't get back to full capacity until a week, actually…"
"I forgot to confirm this earlier as you were dragged around by Iri alongside Saber and Illya, but how exactly do you fight?"
"I'd say I'm most proficient at close range combat using any bladed object, but specifically swords, my skill in archery is also probably good enough to land me as Archer. Then there's my Magecraft…" Shirou puts more emphasis on the last one
"That's right, you did have the skill Projection Magecraft at rank A, but could you elaborate on that?"
"It is my most defining trait as a fighter, conventionally Projection is not particularly good, consuming a large amount of mana to sustain its existence, and typically the items created through it would immediately be sacrificed for a ritual." Kiritsugu only gave him a blank stare, but his eyes tells him to continue
"But via my personal method, by utilizing my equally as impressive Structural Grasping proficiency, I am able to obtain more information than most people would out of an object, then by through the information I gathered, I would "Imagine" the weapons in my mind, and replicate them by imitating the existences and presence of the originals."
"Are there limitations to this ability?"
"The more further the item I project was away from the concept of "Sword" the more magical energy it would be required to project them. The second limitation was that the more "presence" the weapon I was trying to imitate possess, the shorter it would sustain itself without injecting mana into them." He could still think of some more weaknesses, but it's not likely that they would run into the problems caused by them.
"I see, then are you capable of replicating something of Excalibur's calibre?" Shirou flinched a bit at the sheer amount of expectancy behind Kiritsugu
This is what he gets for withholding information he supposes.
"Yes and no, I could not project it at a whim unlike other Noble Phantasms, it requires the fulfilment of a special condition, not that I've ever tried." The special condition was that it requires the Reality Marble "Unlimited Blade Works" to be unleashed.
"So you have the potential to?" Kiritsugu raises his eyebrows
"Probably, although it wouldn't be comparable to the real thing, unless Saber lets me touch and study it for a bit, it might let me obtain more details about it. But as of the current situation, even with that certain condition fulfilled, I would only be able to replicate its outer form, its core that made it the "Greatest Holy Sword" however would be imperfect."
It was the best explanation he could offer, there's only so much that even the Heroic Spirit EMIYA understands, the Holy Sword was out of his reach most of the time, so he never pursued in perfecting it, instead, he was simply content that it was in his world in the first place.
"I understand now, with this ability of yours, we'd have a massive advantage, you would have access to a wide variety of weapons to adapt to unexpected situations to support us. The greatest warrior and the greatest forger, while our chances of winning are not absolute, we have a large advantage over the competition." A slight tinge of hope dawned on his expression
"Master… If I may ask, what is your wish?" Shirou too forgot to ask an important question
He needed to confirm something, the wish he and his father had…
Kiritsugu took a moment to figure himself out, before making a response.
"My wish? My wish is for the world to be at peace, that way… No one has to suffer any longer." It truly is the same man as he knew,
No, this Kiritsugu is not the same as his father, they seek the same wish, however, this Kiritsugu had people to fall back on, the safeguards that would pull him back up from the eternal darkness and despair that was being a Hero of Justice.
"Truly a noble wish, then let us see the end of this war and realize it." He did not lie, even if he had played the role of the villain, this ideal, he had yet to throw it away, merely suppressed it.
"I agree, let this be the last conflict." Kiritsugu walked away from the window and exited the room
…
Hours passed by, my Servant Shirou and I exited the cab and walked through the gates.
Passing through security checks wasn't as risky as it was ten years ago, as I had not brought any of my weapons, they're with Maiya who has already arrived in Fuyuki.
The Servant was a mysterious figure, his identity shrouded in mystery, the ability he has confirmed himself possessing doesn't match up with any heroes of the past.
It wasn't hard to believe considering all the little details. The Servant showed a reaction when El-Melloi was mentioned, but it's clear that he didn't know about this El-Melloi. His probing about the Matous seemed to be out of curiosity, however even though he hid it very well, he had made a split-second mistake and his eyes gave out the fact that he knew them through some occasion. And when mentioned of Kotomine, his face turned to one of surprise and true recognition to who I was referring to, even when he had not flipped to that man's page yet.
What connection does this Servant have with all of them is the question at hand, all of the coincidences are suspicious and downright incriminating at worst.
Iri had also mentioned the fact he was an unusual Heroic Spirit, one that is summoned alongside with his true body, which means he had even less of control over him than Saber, as he does not require an anchor or magical energy to sustain himself, the command seals are the only measure of obedience he has, and only three of them are available.
He felt as if he could trust his Servant, but it is exactly because his instincts told him that he suspects the man(boy?) even more, as he could not find anything conclusive that the Servant was that trustworthy.
So at the moment, he's trying to learn more about his Servant through pretending to "care" for his tool's wellbeing. He in fact does, but he typically wouldn't reveal so much this early, as that's a guaranteed path to losing, information is opportunity.
Although the entire process was productive if his Servant had told him the truth, then this ability to create imitations of weapons would be a game-changer, there are many different applications of this ability, it almost seemed laughable that he had any chance of losing, however as he had learned and exploited, being overconfident in one's ability would leave on unprepared for unexpected situations.
.He had already bought tickets beforehand for both of them, and they had been the last one to board the plane.
Placing their bags into the storage compartment, they sat down in the business class isles.
Their journey to the land of the rising sun would certainly take a while. At midnight, the last flight to Japan took off.
...
[-167:29:35] until Zero
Author's Notes:
Next Chapter: Setting the Stage
I've returned temporarily from the dead, today's chapter is worth around 6400 words plus some several hundred in the PV. I have to apologize to my readers for albeit unintentionally misleading that there were going to be updates since months ago, well it was well within my intentions to do so, but the amount of workload that came with school took an unexpectedly drastic turn, partly blamed on my habit of procrastination that I hadn't completed them earlier, however recently I had no time to write, nor much motivation and truth be told, even after I finish writing this chapter, I doubt I'd much time to write afterwards. I'd give an estimation of once every 2-3 weeks, but don't hold it against me when I didn't update on time.
In the time I've been stuck on hold, I've written a plot, albeit limited from Shirou and Kiritsugu's perspective, the number of chapters may or may not fluctuate as I come up with ideas of what to add to expand the world of this fanfiction. There is a possibility that this story would be filled with a god chunk of Waver and Rider's team as after writing my plot I had realized the fact that Waver's team would hold a lot of significance, and that if I had the creativity and time to, I could probably make a full fanfiction dedicated just from their perspective.
In any case, I'll just mention things that might or might not be important in the future.
- Rider's Reality Marble "Ionioi Hetaroi" surpasses "Unlimited Blade Works" in magical foundation as a Noble Phantasm of the EX rank, and as such for Shirou to overcome Ionioi Hetaroi, he would need to have an outside intervention.
- Shirou's hidden A+ Rank luck would be able to save his and his team from many unfavourable situations, although there's a limit to how much it could help him and if he wasn't cautious enough as he was lucky, then certain opponents may be able to defeat him.
- Shirou's catalyst was the Origin Bullets he had inherited from Kiritsugu, as the rule were that if the Summoner didn't have a catalyst of a Heroic Spirit, then the catalyst would be a catalyst held by the Heroic Spirit that is held by the Summoner.
- It needs to be noted that while Shirou is within the world of Fate/Zero, he wouldn't be able to trace Divine Constructs as easily as he did in Miyuverse. The reason being that in the Miyuverse is a world where "the conditions of wrought iron are possible", or in other words, the strain of tracing Divine Constructs was significantly less. He might be able to replicate it more proficiently than for say UBW Shirou though, as reality marbles rely on the mental state and logic of their users, and because in his world "he" is capable of tracing such constructs, his version of the Reality Marble may be able to carry over those traits if he believed hard enough.
- Irisviel's healing capabilities can be infused with Avalon's to a certain extent, at least in this story, it would explain she had healed certain wounds that I ought to have assumed to take a lot of magical energy to heal, especially in an instant.
That's all we'll have for this chapter. Although one more thing I must add which contributed to how long this chapter took was that I was getting back into reading other fandoms, and even joined new ones while I'm at it, which admittedly wasted more time that could've been used to contribute to this story and my other one. If there was an upside to this was that I managed to finish watching Fate/Zero and made some progress into its light novel, which is how I partially finished planning the story. I had also watched the 3 Heaven's Feel movies while I'm at it.
Preview #1 A Glimpse to the Future of a Nameless Hero | Sponsored by Kaleidoscope Services
...
I am the bone of my sword.
Steel is my body, and fire is my blood.
I have created over a thousand blades.
Unknown to Death,
Nor Known to Life.
Have withstood pain to create many weapons.
Yet, those hands will never hold anything.
So as I pray, unlimited blade works.
The path of the truest "Emiya Shirou" to ever exist, the embodiment of Emiya Kiritsugu's ideals.
An ally of justice.
This was the only intended path the man named "Emiya Shirou" will ever take.
Some may try to find ways to prevent themselves from taking this same path or perhaps refuse to believe this was their path at all, but at the end of the line, their failure gave them the taste of true despair such as him.
Some others may long for something more precious, and dedicating their entire being to their chosen. Yet in the end, most took measures that took them to the very same path that led to him.
Among them, there was only one who had succeeded as far as that man was concerned. Living in a utopia, forever with the one he treasures.
I… am one of those people whom have ended up on his path. Why does it hurt so much?
My heart is steel, yet… Why is it still beating?
Every time I moved my gaze, there would be a new set of people to eliminate.
Their cold and limp corpses falling to the ground, as my body mercilessly moved to kill them.
This is the truth to being a hero, sacrificing the few for the many. The true purpose of us Guardians.
To clean up the messes left in humanity's wake, for humanity's survival.
Each step I took… brought despair to others, it shouldn't hurt for the Emiya Shirou that was I, after all… I essentially did the same thing eternities ago, fighting against that false King of Heroes, just to….to….
Why did I do it?
For what reason did I desperately opposed them? For what reason had I forsaken my entire world and my afterlife for?
Isn't such action contradictory for the one who decided to take the path of an Ally of Justice?
For what reason…. For what reason am I even hurting so much?
Wasn't this the goal? To fulfil Kiritsugu's dreams of becoming a Hero of Justice? Sacrifices need to be made for the betterment of humanity… right?
Why do I feel as if that was not the complete truth?
Could it be that I feared the judgement of that girl if she ever meets me again?...
No… While my feelings for that girl was true, it was not the real reason…
For why was I saved? For why was I killing? For why had I made the enemy, yet became an ally of humanity? For why was I summoned in that War?
What could've I forgotten in the millenniums I've served?
Why is the flame… Which should've been put out since long ago, still burning under the blizzard world of steel?
It was unable to stop as if It is trying desperately trying to show me something.
What important piece of my core had I dropped along the way to this point? Who and what have I forgotten?
"Onii-chan…" To whom does this voice belong? Why is my body crying out tears that had already run out long ago?
The machine that was the Heroic Spirit EMIYA Shirou begins awakening as the eternal nightmare nears its conclusion.
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