In the quiet streets of Fuyuki City, nothing stirred. All was silent as no servant, hunter, beast, or cosmic horror roamed around the barren streets.
Perfect for Aoi Tohsaka as she moved as fast as she could.
"Sakura I'm coming for you," She muttered as she rounded a corner and saw that she was not far from the Matou Estate. Just thinking about that place gave her a sense of dread that she couldn't place a finger on. Maybe it was the warnings that Kariya had given her whenever she tried to pry about the Matou secrets.
"Kariya," She thought as she ran past a familiar ice cream shop. This was where they would spend their evenings, savoring the delectable ice cream that the place made. It had made her long for the good old days where everything was so simple.
"If it wasn't for Tokiomi acting the way he was now then maybe I wouldn't have to resort to this." It wasn't like she hated Tokiomi, but recent events had showed a side she didn't want to know. He was such a kind gentleman in the beginning, always being considerate of her feelings before their marriage.
After marriage however, she got to know what she believed was the true Tokiomi. Always insistent on his own ways, he made sure that his word was law. When it came to anything she wished for, it always required his word on it. When Rin was born and anytime she spoke up against him...
Kariya had looked on in concern when she tried to hide the bruises on her body. At least with him her wellbeing was always his first concern. His caring nature for her had sort of grown on her and maybe, just maybe in another life, she could see herself being with him.
"We just have to live with our decisions," She quoted Kariya when he had defended why he was leaving his family. Something inside of her wished to join him, to be free of the magus lifestyle; but she was too weak back then. Always clinging onto others for courage.
Now as she stood in front of the Matou Mansion, its gates open wide for her to enter. She knew that this was a trap but for Sakura, her daughter that she should've never let go of.
It was time to take a step of courage by herself.
"Kariya enlighten me on who Zouken is as a person," Ludwig asked as their group walked down the streets of Fuyuki. The mansion just happened to be on the other side of the city where the temple was so they had time to spare.
"Huh why would you want to know about him?" He curiously questioned. His father wasn't someone you wanted to know about all the details surrounding him. The less you knew, the better.
"Well for starters, he is your father. A son plotting to kill their father is not the easiest thing to do after all."
"Father? That insect is anything but that," Once upon a time Kariya had considered Zouken as a father. At a young age he had adored his father, eager to learn the Matou's magecraft as he had a childhood dream of being a wizard.
Then one day he had ignored his father's warnings and ventured into their workshop wanting to see the magical wonders within.
He saw a person being devoured by his father's crest worms. The horror on their face as they were being eaten alive by insects had traumatized the young Kariya. His father had come in, shocked to see his promising son witnessing the horrors of his workshop. Demanding answers, Kariya had hoped to hear how this was all a big misunderstanding, how this was all just a bad dream.
His father had showed his true colors that day and that was when he had seen the true horrors of the magus life.
He wasn't going to associate himself with this hell and left his family, not caring if his bright future no longer existed. The day he left he had tried to convince Aoi to leave her family, telling what horrors he had seen in the workshop. But she wasn't budging, she didn't want to leave to her family and the life she had built.
"You're a great man Kariya, not many have the courage to do such a thing," Ludwig patted his shoulder assuredly.
"And what good that did," He gestured to his crippled state.
"Oh, I am not so sure about that, great actions are always rewarded my friend. They just take a while to be gifted." Ludwig wisely spoke before stopping, Kariya doing the same.
"We are here," Valtr announced as they looked up to see the countless boundary fields surrounding the estate. It seems that Zouken had found them out and set his estate into a full-on defense mode. The prana that the boundary fields produced was heavy and suffocating for any that came near. Decades of staying alive had translated to the creation of multiple boundary fields to ward off any intruders.
"M-maybe I can enter, see if I can get the old man to drop it," Offered Kariya as he basically volunteered to go on a suicide mission. He did not come this close to saving Sakura just to be stopped now!
"That is a bad idea, Zouken knows of your involvement and will kill you without a second glance," Valtr argued.
"T-then what...," He was cut short as the crest worms in his body finally decided to act and begin feasting on his body. He hunched his body over and quickly threw up blood onto the road.
"It seems that he no longer has a use for you," Valtr noticed before turning back to his League. "But he has acted too late as death waits for him on his front gate!" With a thunderous shout, the League got riled up. The hunters cheered and shouted as they pulled their weapons out and prepared themselves to storm the estate.
"Step back Kariya, or I may kill you on accident," Stepping forward Ludwig unstrapped his Moonlight Greatsword. With a wave of his hand, the blade assumed its mystical green glow. The cosmos within the blade shined brightly in the night.
"It is good to see you again my mentor," For Ludwig, this blade had seen him through his darkest of nights. Even when he had lost himself to the thralls of beasthood, his guiding moonlight was still by his side, and now...
It would deliver justice once more.
"SHINE!" He shouted as he thrusted the sword forward. The cosmos within shot forth like a tidal wave as it collided with the estate's boundary fields. The boundary fields glowed for an instant, before collapsing under the might of the greatsword. Within a second, all that Zouken had built was gone in a blink of an eye.
The now defenseless estate was now at the mercy of the League, who were eager to cleanse the horrors within.
Zouken however was not going down without a fight.
The courtyard suddenly buzzed with life as a massive centipede arose from the ground, other insect monstrosities joining it. It screeched into the night as it revealed its inner mouth of teeth before shooting off to the disgraced heir, mouth open wide to devour the sorry magus.
"Vermin," Valtr muttered with malice as he positioned himself in front of Kariya, his Whirligig Saw roaring with life as he placed it in front of himself. The poor centipede shredded itself down the middle as the saw tore through its flesh like tissue and before long the corpse split in two as the remains sailed past them.
Kariya was about to thank Valtr when his words died in his throat when the helmeted hunter turned around. The blood stains on him now changed this once innocent hunter to a demon itself.
"Cleanse this estate my League, expunge any filth that you see," He called out and in doing so released the hounds of war. With a shout the League rushed into the estate, tearing through any insects they saw. The estate soon dissolved into chaos as the League pushed themselves into the estate as the insects inside revealed themselves and Valtr soon joined them.
"Come Kariya," Ludwig rested his Moonlight Greatsword on his shoulder as he motioned at the open path to the estate, the insects too caught up with fighting the League to be able to stop them. "Let us save your child." Ludwig started to walk to the front door
"Yes lets...Wait! She's not my child!" He yelled as he ran up to Ludwig, trying to frantically deny what he had said.
"What is this!" Aoi shouted as she held her dear Sakura in her arms, protecting her from the monster that stood a few feet away from her. Sakura held on for dear life as the torture that she was enduring had now ended and she found herself back in her mother's embrace. She didn't want to return back to her new life and wanted to be back with her family.
"Oh? I thought you knew Aoi Tohsaka. This was what your husband wanted for her after all." The head of the Matou family motioned to the infested walls of the workshop. Each part was swarming with insects. A little ring of fire that she had chanted surrounded them but the fire would soon die out and the insects would swarm them.
"Mommy I don't want to go with him," Sakura muttered into her dress, tears soaking it. The little girl had no idea if she was dreaming or not but would not let go of the hope of a peaceful tomorrow.
"Don't worry baby, mommy has got you," Aoi kissed the top of her child's head before glaring at the monster in front of her.
"So, you are the one that Kariya holds to such a high esteem," He mused. "You don't look like much yet he would come back to my family for you."
"Kariya?" She questioned. Her best friend would not have come back to his father's family, not so easily.
"Hahahaha did you think he came willingly?" He laughed as he begun explaining. "No, you misunderstand child, Kariya would never come back to me even if I held a sword to his neck." If there was one thing, he had to commend his child for was the tenacity that he inherited from him. Even if he was working with meager funds the boy still refused to join him, a pity. "But the moment he got word that your little girl was now mine he came and begged me to let her go, so..." He held up one the many crest worms he had given him so that he could have a chance in the Grail War.
"N-no you don't mean," She trailed off as she realized what he was referring to.
"Oh yes my son would destroy his own body just so that he could have a chance at winning the Grail War, he would spit on the dreams of his family just to impress a girl that he can no longer get; how far the Matous have fallen." Zouken said in distaste.
While she should've felt dread that her best friend was essentially killing himself for her sake; she must admit that it flattered her. Feeling her heart beat in a way that she forgot for such a long time was a very pleasant feeling.
"Zouken!" A voice shouted as the workshop door opened and the disgraced heir entered. It seemed that he didn't see Aoi and Sakura when he entered as he gave no form of acknowledging their presence. With a shout he jumped off the stairs and onto the floors of the workshop, Berserker materializing right beneath him to catch him.
"Well if it isn't my son, finally grown a spine, have you?" Taunted Zouken.
"You know what's coming for you and you know it you bastard!" He shouted as Berserker settled into a fighting stance.
"K-Kariya?" Asked a shocked Aoi, staring in shock by this new personality of her friend.
"A-Aoi!?" An equally shocked Kariya exclaimed as he turned around to see his crush right behind him.
Such an action opened him up as Zouken acted. He commanded any of the crest worms inside of him to frenzy and devour the poor man's body from the inside out. It would be amusing to see this bravado that his son had turn quickly into pain and suffering.
One second had passed.
Then another.
And another.
"Why aren't you dying!" He shouted as the crest worms inside of him weren't responding to his commands.
Then a bright light emanated from the master as a cosmic slug wormed its way out of his pockets and floated to the floor graciously. The little slug looked around as it established dominance by standing upright as high as it could and began wiggling its two tentacle antennas menacingly. One insect was brave enough to try and challenge the slug.
Only to get vaporized by the cosmic power the slug held.
"Did you think my master did not know about the crest worms within Kariya," Ludwig spoke as he arrived and dropped down and joined Kariya.
"While we may have not had enough time to expunge the crest worms within, we were able to block your connection to them with a greater authority nearby," He motioned to the slug that was glowing as a way of gloating.
"So, you are one of Caster's lackeys, a shame that you have chosen a life of slavery rather than that of riches and power."
"What would an insect know of grandeur of riches, you claim to want power but all I see is a poor excuse of a man who would wait for something that will never come rather than try to and take it for himself." Ludwig mocked.
"The path to greatness takes time, and the human body is simply not capable of waiting that long," He motioned to his body that was no longer human but rather insect familiars that all shared one mind.
"And if you are unable to achieve anything in your life normally then you shall achieve nothing with immortality, fools like you and Wilhelm cannot see this," The Church hunter coolly stated.
"Tch enough of this, I will just kill you all myself!" He shouted as he forced every insect to swarm the group. The workshop was filled with screeching as the swarm descended upon the magus, hunters, and servants.
With a wave of his sword, Ludwig shot out a wave of moonlight energy as the first wave of insects disintegrated on contact. There was a noticeable number of insects killed by the strike but was soon overlooked as they were seemingly replaced by double the number.
Berserker howled before pulling out his own weapons. The League had found the mad servant a worthy member of the League and decided to gift him some of their weapons.
Specifically, a Beast Cutter and a Whirligig Saw; though Lancelot had changed it considerably. For instead of wielding both weapons, his Noble Phantasm had combined them into one scary creation. The new weapon retained the Beast Cutter's notorious whip mode but now at the end of it was attached the saw of the Whirligig.
He had essential created a weapon made to kill hordes.
With a swing the new weapon massacred anything that got caught in the serrated edges of either the whip or the saw. Sure, the workshop was able to create the insects almost infinitely but with Lancelot flailing his weapon around like a madman, it didn't matter. However, Ludwig could tell that the servant couldn't keep this up indefinitely so he needed to end this with one strike.
"Be with me," He intoned as held his beloved sword up. The blade began to draw energy as it slowly illuminated the room, growing brighter with each second.
Zouken realized what was happening and doubled the swarm of insects in hoped of defeating the group before the Noble Phantasm was released. Kariya instinctively placed himself in front of the girls while Berserker flailed his weapon more erratically to stop the flood from overtaking them.
"In the darkest of nights, where all else cannot be seen, where hope can no longer shine the way," He held up his sword above his head, now a beacon in the workshop. The light that spilled forth from the blade could now be compared with the intensity of the Sun.
"But I shall not fear for I am not alone," He turned the sword from facing upward to facing downward at the floor.
"Mondscheinsonate (Moonlight Sonata)!" With a downward thrust the Holy Moonlight Greatsword erupted in a shower of cosmic energy. The cascading energy bathed the room entirely as any insects that were in were vaporized at the contact. The cosmic slug that was brought glowed brightly as the cosmic energy parted away from it and avoided any that had been blessed by the slug, which so happened to be the Kariya, Berserker, Aoi, and her daughter Sakura.
With one more bright flare of the Noble Phantasm, the workshop was now devoid of any insects. Zouken Matou was longer present in the room as it seemed that he had been wiped out by the strike.
"Come Sir Kariya and Miss Aoi, the prey has been slaughtered," Ludwig picked up the cosmic slug and placed it on his shoulder before motioning for the stairs out.
As the group walked out of the workshop, they marveled at the devastation the League had inflicted on the mansion. Not a single inch of the estate had been spared as the floor and walls had been torn apart and insect blood painted the walls. Decades of Matou heritage destroyed in a single raid by the League.
They walked out of the house to see the League were celebrating at the courtyard. It seemed that everyone was accounted for and were currently enjoying their victory. Many of them were toasting with blood cocktails, a delicacy in Yharnam, as they danced and laughed the night away.
"Ah it seems that we are successful after all!" Valtr greeted them joyously.
"Thank you for your help, please give Caster my thanks for his help this night," Aoi sincerely thanked as she held her daughter, who fell asleep from the realization that she was back in the arms of her mother and not the sinister embrace of Zouken. She could now dream peacefully without fear of being tortured once more.
Kariya's face fell a bit hearing his crush give her thanks to Valtr but in the end all that mattered was Sakura's safety.
"Oh, but Madam Aoi, your thanks should be for Sir Kariya," Valtr pointed at Kariya who froze from this sudden shift of praise. He looked at the Master of the League with confusion and he could've sworn that he saw the hunter wink at him through his helmet.
"Yes, Caster would've never done this if Kariya did not deliver the most inspirational speech," Ludwig butted in. "His words moved our dear master by the sheer conviction in it of how he wished to make his queen happy."
"Queen!" Inwardly shouted Kariya as he stared at the two hunters as if they got their heads cut off. For Aoi she could not stop the blush that came to her cheeks and she felt like her teenage self that fell in love all those years ago.
"Kariya always bought me my favorite snacks and told me bedtime stories every night," Sakura softly spoke as she woke up from all the talking.
"A-Aoi I can explain," Kariya tried to come up with a rational explanation with what the hell was happening. He nervously gulped as Aoi put Sakura down and moved closer to him. "I-I mean I really d-didn't want Sakura to suffer..." His rambling was cut short when Aoi reached up and kissed him on the cheek.
"T-Thank you for saving Sakura," Aoi thanked with a blush as she tucked a hair strand behind her ear.
Kariya felt like he had died and went to heaven. This was real right!? He looked behind Aoi to see Ludwig holding Sakura and Valtr looking at him before giving him a thumbs up. Sakura didn't know what was happening either but joined with giving him a thumbs up as well. He couldn't berate them as Aoi decided to catch up with him on recent events as the pair suddenly began to grow closer.
"You think it was wrong for Caster to manipulate Aoi's feelings for Kariya," Whispered Valtr. He felt a bit guilty in knowing that this was sort of staged.
"If there was nothing there then yes but those two obviously feel something for each other, all it took was just a simple push in the right direction," Ludwig was happy seeing his fellow man find his true love. Many thought the Hunt was cruel to all but in reality...
One could find great happiness within it as well.
Meanwhile back at the Matou workshop, it stirred with life. What once was a room filled with insect familiars now was devoid of life. However, Ludwig's Noble Phantasm had not taken out all the insects familiars so in turn, Zouken Matou still lived.
He slowly emerged out of his remaining familiars and looked around his workshop in hate. Decades of planning and biding his time only to be destroyed in one fell swoop. He swore to make Kariya pay for his treachery. His revenge may not take place soon but once he left Fuyuki and re-gathered his resources, then the boy would pay.
"Yes, such a great plan assuming that you leave this place alive," A voice called out as a person materialized right in front of the Matou leader. With a bow Caster arrived, tipping his hat in greeting.
"Caster!" Sneered Zouken as he sent whatever remained of his insects to kill the servant responsible for his loss.
"A pity," Boomed Caster as he decided this little charade of a fight was over. With a burst of cosmic energy any and all insects preparing to kill him died, the only insects left were the ones maintaining Zouken.
"Some fools don't deserve redemption, lest certainly you," Zouken fell pathetically on his butt as he tried scrambling away from the approaching servant with fear. For the first time in decades the Matou was the closest to death and having lived for so long made him fear for his life.
"Please I'll do anything, don't kill me!" Pathetically bawled Zouken.
"Disgusting," Muttered Caster as he caught up with the insect magus who had his back against the wall. "There is something you can do from me. Describe to me what you see." Was all he said before placing both his hands on Zouken's head. His eyes flared with energy as Zouken found himself in an alternate reality.
He found himself floating in realm that seemed almost like space. The blue cosmos surrounded him as he could faintly see planets in the distance.
"You wished to obtain the Root did you not," A voice called out as Zouken turned and saw a massive eldritch creature standing over him. Towering over him was this titanic Cthulhu monster as its mouth tentacles grabbed the man and brought him closer to see the Lovecraftian deity. Its eyes of the cosmis peered into his soul.
"Then behold the Root in all of its glory," He boomed as his eyes flashed brightly, letting the magus absorb all the knowledge he held.
"Yes, Yes, YES!" Manically shouted Zouken as his mind begun absorbing all he information. Info that magus spent decades in finding to which he was receiving for free. All his desires laid bare before him and once he got it all nothing could stop him.
Beautiful!
BEAUTIFUL!
BEAUTIFUL!
Zouken Matou's body writhed before the insects holding his body collapsed in a pile. The insects tried to reform but the mind of Zouken had been shattered by the eldritch truth he had absorbed. It mattered not if his body was immortal if his mind could no longer support it.
Staring at the remains of Zouken, Caster reformed back into his human form. It was refreshing to turn into his Great One form but he was itching to use his true form. However, using his true form would lead to some repercussions that he did not want to deal with.
"Still though it's great that a happy ending could be found in this mess," Kariya and Aoi would make a great pair but something else needed to be addressed before he could let them go. So, Caster warped back to the Ryuudou temple to prepare one last thing.
After all, The Matou Family needed an heir to take Zouken's place.
Chapter 13 is done! Yes, I do plan for Kariya and Aoi to get together, I mean ya boi Kariya needs a happy ending and with all that's he done I think he needs a happy ending. That means Tokiomi is going to get it sooner or later ( I hate him). Ludwig's Noble Phantasm is derived from the fact that Ludwig Van Beethoven made the Moonlight Sonata, which our Ludwig was derived from. Translate that to Beethoven's nationality of German and boom! Noble Phantasm made.
I also made Caster's Great One form Cthulhu himself, I mean c'mon was there really a different choice I could make. He does have one more form but that's reserved for his status of Grand Foreigner.
Welp that's all for now and as always...
May The Cosmos Shine In Your Favor This Day!