Words Count: 4624

A/N: Well, it doesn't show for me but apparently Webnovel rating has reached 10. Fair's fair so here's another Ep.

Anyway, here's my usual spiel:

You can start reading up to Episode 47 of the Sequel – Fate: False Sovereignty in advanced. The Tier starts from as low as 1USD, check it out! (C'mon, you know you want to… I'm using Jedi mind trick on you)

P(a)(treon).com(/) LiamThePoor


"– Is he gone? Thank the Lord–!"

I heard the echoes of Francesco's whisper mere moments after we left the Church's door. Try as I might, my lips twitched agitatedly at the clear show of fear.

I had never even met him prior to the start of the Fifth War, at least not to my knowledge and nearly all the Holy Church's Officials I'd had the… Displeasure of encountering before him were always overly-proud of their oftentimes meager achievements- ignoring the fact Pride was the Prime Sin which allegedly birthed the others- most of these people didn't care.

They simply loved sitting on their high-horse and preach. 'Ultimately, their arrogance proved to be the fools' downfall.'

I was used to being feared, but this was most certainly a new feeling- to be so feared that an Executioner of the Holy Church actually took the time and effort to avoid me like the plague. Couldn't say I disliked it though. "Why didn't thou force their hands, Lord Magnum? Are they not sworn to protect Humanity from the perils of Hell? Is it not their duty to stop Demons from consuming the souls of the innocents?"

Stressing my Title, Artoria scoffed. The look she wore told me she understood the whys, yet the former Ruler of Britain could not reconcile with the fact. The Overseer was sent to- Well, oversee the Grail War. As long as nobody was trying to break the rules, they're not compelled to take actions.

If we had come to with some sort of evidences- something more concrete-

Something undeniable- perhaps they might have considered our proposal, but as it stood, the only proof we had were a mangled corpse and the words of a dead woman. She must've realized how unreasonable she sounded, since when I glanced at her, Artoria quickly averted her gaze. "You were a King, surely you must understand their hardships? If they give us a hand without proofs to back it up, it'd create a precedent for others to follow."

While I'd not allow another Grail War to take place after this mess, the Church wasn't aware of my intention to dismantle the Ritual. Caren and Francesco were simply acting as they're expected to, which was why I could hardly fault or force their hands. It'd serve to do nothing but strain our relationship further, and getting on the bad side of the newly assigned Overseer with possibly dozens of Command Seals from the past Wars stored up-

Command Seals which she could freely allocate under the right circumstances did not sound like a very wise thing to do. "My deepest apology… I was acting like a spoiled brat. It's just when I was knighted, I was charged with–"

"Both you and Shiro do not want innocents' blood spilt, I can understand that. Do keep in mind this is a War. Sometimes casualties are unavoidable." Was it cold of me? Perhaps. But I wasn't the one who invented the Ritual and put the Matrix in the center of a populated City. I was merely another participant pulled in this Death Game.

Saving everyone was simply impossible,

I'd rather focus on saving the World, which was a much more doable task.

Caught in thoughts, I never realized the pairs of eyes staring in our direction, not until Illya, Berserker and the expressionless homunculus maid made their presences known to us- not until it's already too late to avoid the encounter. Like a falling meteor, the Greek Hero fell from the sky, his giant frame leaving the area where he landed a dust-filled crater. 'That's it… Rin and Shirou were confronted by Illya in Canon after their trip to the Church. Dammit, how did I forget such an important fact?!'

"Wha–?!"

Wordlessly beating myself over the simple, yet potentially lethal fuck-up, I called to my Mana and telekinetically pushed Shiro out of harm's way, just barely able to save her from a night spent in the Infirmary as sharp shards from the impact were flung towards us. But I wasn't the only one to notice them,

Before I could bark any order, Saber had launched into actions; her sheathed, invisible sword- used in tandem with [Mana Burst]- cleaved the bursts of wind rushing towards us, consequently equalizing the forces, turning it from a lethal strike to something that'd at most bruise in the morning if it hit us directly.

"Master!"

Saber shouted, taking her eyes off Berserker for just a glance before her [Instinct] kicked in and she raised Excalibur to block a horizontal swing. Heels digging into the ground, Artoria let out a mixture of a groan and a pained yelp as the other, towering Servant's axe-sword sent her spiraling backwards, uprooting every tree and object in her path. "She's fine! I have got Shiro! You just focus on dealing with Berserker first!

And practice caution, [Madness Enhancement] might've negatively affected his judgements and combat-technique, but he's still Herakles- one of the most powerful and famous Hero of Ancient Greece!"

In the heats of the moment, I couldn't quite remember if I had told the Artoria and the girls about Berserker's identity, so just to be sure, I screamed his name as loud as I possibly could, grabbed Shiro and bolted to somewhere safer. I was brave- reckless even- but I wasn't fucking suicidal. Illya and Berserker clearly were not here to talk, and there's also the homunculus maid to worry about. "How- How do you know of Berserker's identity?!"

Hearing Illya's whispered shout, I smirked. "I just know things, which is why you should listen to me and stop this nonsense when you still can! We can talk it out, no reason to be hasty here."

"Sella, KILL HIM! I don't want that filthy tongue of his to speak yet another lie!" Unlike last time, the maid was already in her… Combat outfit(?), the skimpy thing I had seen plenty on every ad and promotion for Grand Order– Ishtar's. "So it is either fucking Herakles or the Mesopotamian Goddess? Yup, I'll take on the latter any day of the week."

As though having heard the disrespect, Sella threw her hand forth, her movements seeming to control the weather itself as… Something- I knew not what it was- descended from the sky with the rumbles of distant thunders. Then the fact struck me, the sole creature that'd qualify to be the mount of the Goddess of Beauty, War and Love- the thus-called 'Queen of Heaven'. "The Bull of Heaven?!"

Didn't she lose the motherfucker in Grand Order?! "So you know of this Goddess' mount? Perhaps you are not bad for, for a human. Show your reverence and I shall grant you your life!"

Yep, the Goddess had fully taken over. "I think you should leave."

"Eh?" The… Demi-Servant(?) echoed in a questioning tone and I- being the ever kind and forgiving soul that I was- explained. "Enkidu and Gilgamesh are both in town, you've been able to avoid their detection by lying in wait in the homunculus' body, but seeing as you have just summoned a living Divine-Construct…"

I trailed off, snickering to myself in a singsong voice as her albino complexion paled even further. "They could be coming any~ second now."

"You're lying." She said with a stoic expression. "You must be, why'd that narcissist be here?"

"You sure you want to risk that?" Grin widening ear-to-ear, I taunted, summoning Invictus to hand. "Why don't you take a good, long look at this rapier? Doesn't it look beautiful? Does it not look like something straight out of aRoyal Vault? Gil has said it herself, she doesn't wish to participate in the War, but if their shared and most hated enemy suddenly appears…?"

The miniature Bull roared, its hooves smashing open the ground as its metallic frame glimmer with golds and jewelry- each perfectly adorned on its body as if every piece had been welded onto it by the most talented jewelers known to men. Its howl, coupled with Berserker's manic roar as he battled Saber were enough to shake the earth to its very foundation… Yet I was still calm.

Saber could hold her own against Berserker for a decent while, and I could just stall until either Enkidu, Gilgamesh or both arrived. Those were my winning conditions,

Theirs was much harder, needing to defeat us before either came to our rescue.

I simply needed to kick back, stretch my legs and relax- as long as I avoided being captured or hit, our victory was guaranteed. "What? Did you think you just happened to be summoned into a perfect, emotionless Master as a Class Card? How naïve, Goddess. Your presence on this Earth was caused by the reunion of Enkidu and Gilgamesh."

Again, I continued to taunt as the Goddess' face grew angry, pulsating veins. "Then I'll just have to kill you before they arrive, no?"

Tilting my head, I smirked. "Not sure how successful you'll be, but you can most certainly try. I always welcome a challenge."

Unless it's Herakles, nobody could give me enough money to solo that crazed bastard of Zeus. Don't get me wrong, the guy had done a lot for the people of Greek and was deserving of praises, but you couldn't tell me he's a calm and reasonable person. There was madness in the Gods, and Herakles had inherited the same madness in the form of rage. Against any other Servant, I might be able to gain a leverage with foreknowledge… The tactic couldn't be applied to him.

Mentions of Illya and her safety might barely restrain the Demigod's wrath, but it's just not a good or lasting solution. "Unfortunately mortal, it won't be a challenge you'll be receiving, but a beatdown instead. Fret not! Once the Lady has vented her anger, perhaps I will even consider keeping you around as a pet. You do appear to be quite the specimen after all."

She finished, licking her lips and barked as she threw her hand forth. "Bull of Heaven! Heed the command of your Queen and teach this foolish mortal the glory of the Gods!"

Like the murder-machine that it was, the Bull's hooves grinded and crashed against the ground as the Divine-Construct readied to charge at me.

With every snort- even though I could tell it's not the creature's intention- a strike of lightning would thunder overhead. It's as though the Bull's very presence was upsetting Gaia's rules and thus she's retaliating. A stomp later, the Divine Construct / Noble Phantasm quickly grew in height. Whereas its head was once to the top of my stomach, it now towered over me by at least two feet.

Out the corner of my eyes, I saw Artoria and Herakles still duking it out, their battle shaking the earth and rendering practically everything in the vicinity crater. At some point, they had changed battlefield, going deeper and deeper into a nearby park. Saber was going to lose if I didn't do anything soon, I could tell.

She's limited by Shiro's Mana-Capacity, while her opponent was being funneled Mana from a half-human, half-homunculus whose existence could be said to be a miracle of Alchemy– the Lesser Grail. My redhead was on the sideline, throwing her falchions at the towering Demigod to little effects.

It's well-within my expectations, I made those falchions to last, and their edges were far more superior to the cheap craps you would find in a store or on the Internet, but it's merely a Mystic Code… It could not hope to pierce Herakles' skin, let alone penetrate his hardened flesh. Knowing this, Shiro had chosen to act as a distraction instead,

Targeting Herakles' joints and all the soft spots on his body such as his eyes, throat,…etc. to varying degrees of success. Blades wrenched out of their hands after a particularly powerful blow, both Servants leaped back to reassess the situation. It took the two walking 'Forces of Nature' but a second to plan their next move before they collided once again, "Pay attention mortal! Your fight is with me!"

Clenched hand thrown upwards, Sella- Nay, Ishtar sent dozens of gems- some smaller than my pinky, others the size of my palm- airborne and each was glowing with Mana, pulsing like real, beating hearts. In a moment, they all burst and out came… Rods- not like that, you horny bastard!- made out of pure, rainbow-colored hard-lights and a barrier which swallowed us- even Berserker and Saber in its wake. "Like it? It's a formation I invented specifically for you–"

Smiling wide, Ishtar floated forth, riding on the edges of winds as she resumed confidently. "– Teleportation is cheating, mortal. And this little arena of ours is cowardice-free. There shall be no fleeing for either of you!"

"Yes, show them their proper places Sella, Berserker!" In response to the high-pitched war cry, Herakles howled- his dark brown skin turning to an angry red, highlighting the bulging veins and strands of muscles which're lining his exposed arms and calves. "AaaRrrrggGh!"

I watched as Herakles slammed into Saber, launching her to the air with a lash of leg while she scrambled to make the best out of a bad situation with [Mana Burst].

That was all I managed to get a glimpse of before the Bull of Heaven charged at me, its horns aimed to pierce my torso and spine. Of course, I dodged to the side- 'cause I wasn't about to take that shit head-on- wondering to myself the reason why I hadn't just teleported to Illya in the first place. Then I remembered why I hadn't bashed the albino midget's head in- I wanted to- Nay, needed to save her and the easiest way was for us to triumph over her Servants.

Illya was- for a lack of a better term- arrogant. Similar to Shinji, she had both an inferiority-complex and superiority-complex. The first was born out a lack of parental love and listening to the bullshits Jubstacheit spouted on a daily basis. The latter came from decades of being treated like the most fragile and precious thing in existence while the Einzbern experimented and modified her body.

Once all the fight had been shaken out of her, she'd have a much better time calming down and think critically, but right now?

With Herakles backing her every step of the way? Illya was essentially incapable of rational thoughts, allowing her hatred to take the wheel completely.

A real fight in which her Berserker lost was not just a requirement to start her development, but a necessity. "Take this!"

Instead of riding the Bull like I had expected, Sella/Ishtar took to the sky to rain hellfire on our heads- and by ours I meant Shiro, Saber and I. Clasping my hands together, I made a twisting motion and something akin to a black hole- a singularity in Space, ready to swallow all in its domain- appeared. Via telekinesis, I quickly funneled the raging fire into the hole, minimizing the damages as much as I could as Saber swung her invisible sword and sent a wave of [Mana Burst] to help out.

"How can a mere mortal possess such control over Space?!" Ishtar shouted in disbelief, yet she did not stop dropping her Mana-filled gems in hope of accidentally injuring us. Meanwhile, Shiro had taken on a supporting role, keeping herself clear of dangers- exactly what I wanted- and would occasionally throw projected blades to disrupt the flow of battle. With a leap, I tried to close the gap between Ishtar and I, forcing sluggish Elder Blood to move.

I succeeded… Kinda? The distance shortened by a large margin, but she's still seven to eight feet away from my reach. 'Alrighty, I can work with this.'

Bursting out of my shadow were Clones- mine to be precise. I hadn't managed to upgrade [Temporal Clone] to what I wanted, but a little over two-hundred clones, each with at least half of my combat-prowess was cool enough, right? Sure, they were non-responsive and not much more than machines carrying out the actions of my Alternates, but sometimes that's all you needed- meat-shields and fodders.

To her credit, Ishtar was able to dodge most of the attacks, and those that did land their marks would only bruise and scar at best,

Unfortunately, with her attention diverted to my clones, she never managed to catch sight of me preparing for lethal [Longsword of Silence] which'd surely take half her torso off if it struck true. My calves tensed as blood rushed to my limbs instead of brain, and I immediately felt it- the familiar sensation I had tried to lock away. Out of all the Traits I had gotten from evolving to a High Human, [Madness Enhancement]'s the sole Trait to have risen by two entire Ranks.

I couldn't understand why or how, if anything I'd say I had grown calmer in the last seven years, but seeing as this would only benefit me in combat, I wasn't about to complain. So what if I became a violent berserker? Herakles killed his teacher with a harp in rage and nobody had ever questioned the Demigod's morality before! Combined with [Godspeed], which allowed me a small increase in AGI while in combat, I was quite certain Ishtar wouldn't be able to avoid the strike.

An explosion of Mana ruptured from where she was, blowing my clones to pieces.

'Should I kill her?' There were benefits to killing Sella/Ishtar. I'd get bragging right with Enkidu and Gil, yet her death would all but guarantee Illya would hate us- or me- 'till the end of time. Swiftly making a decision, I launched, Invictus and I-I cleaving the Mana to harmless bits that took seconds to fully dissipate in the air. "You have lost, Goddess."

I muttered.

She might be a Goddess of War, but Ishtar had never truly fought anyone. She oversaw wars of mortals like the Overseer did the Holy Grail War, her combat-experience was far less than your typical Servant.

"Have I?" Was her response as the Bull of Heaven- at a speed unbefitting of a creature that size- jumped and tanked the my blades. "It can fucking FLY?!"

Tail lashing at me, the Bull sent me spiraling back- a lash which broke one my ribcages and I could even tell it wasn't really trying- sadly, my trap had been set. Ishtar victoriously moved forth, only to yelp when Space itself was sliced open. Gaia forced the cut in Reality moments after, yet the damages had already been done- slicing a needle-thin line on her naked belly. '[Dimensional Rift]! Take that, bitch!'

"You- You dared mar the body of this Goddess with such disgusting mark?!"

"Se- Sella?!"

"I'm going to do much more if you don't surrender." I casually joked, simultaneously taking the time to check my blades. There were chips on both Invictus and Infernal Iris, sure enough, the Bull of Heaven deserved its Title as the Mesopotamian Gods' Greatest Weapon. "Berserker! Abandon your fight with Saber and kill HIM RIGHT NOW! I WANT HIM DEAD!"

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.

.

(Walking through the ruins of what was once the Emiya Residence, I decided to use Spatial-Awareness to sweep the place of valuables. It's not stealing if Shiro knew and had agreed to let me search, right? Sadly, nothing of value remained, all I found were piles of rubbles and broken furniture. Bored, I readied to leave when something- I knew not what- guided me towards one of those pile.

Spatial-Awareness told me what lied beneath: A notebook- Kiritsugu's diary to be exact. There was no rhythm nor reason as to why this singular notebook had managed to capture my attention amongst dozens, but I didn't care- as long as it's useful, it did not matter to me one bit how I got it.)

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.

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"December 4th, 1994! He went to take you back from the Einzbern, but the Bounded Fields wouldn't let him th–" Avoiding a potshot taken by Ishtar, I continued. "– Through! So Kiritsugu tried to break into the Castle only to be chased off by a group of homunculi!"

"Lies." Eyes brimming with tears, teeth clenched with hatred, Illya muttered. "January 7th, 1995: 'I returned to the Einzbern Castle again and managed to reach the courtyard- I was close, so close to getting to my little girl, but I was caught before I could see her. My body has suffered a lot as a side-effect of the Grail's curses. I don't have long, I can only hope the last act I commit on this Earth will result in my daughter's salvation.'"

"Lies!"

Weaving past attack after attack, I grimaced when Herakles really abandoned Saber to take a swing at me. Thankfully, I had no need to protect Shiro, Illya clearly didn't want her dead or else she'd be already. Having only my own safety to concern with allowed me much time to maneuver between Ishtar's Spells and the swings of an enraged giant. "Saber, return to defend Shiro! Get her out of here, I can handle this!"

Once again, the traitorous, intrusive thought crept in my mind. 'Can you? Can you really? It's Herakles and Ishtar we're facing.'

"Once you're dead, I'll send nee-san's mangled corpse as tribute! Now, DIE!" Visibly upset, Illya also chose to join the battle, picking strands out of her white hair to create pseudo-living constructs. "Dammit, what are you waiting for?! Hurry up! You're not Berserker's opponent!"

'Not while you're draining Shiro's Mana.' The Heroine had grown several shades paler in comparison to when we first arrived at the Church- supporting a top-tiered Servant, plus tracing weapons to provide help must have taken a lot out of her. "Your [Magic Resistance] should let you charge right through the Field!"

"What about you?!"

"I'm not leaving you, Leonis!"

"IT'S LEO-SENPAI! S. E. N. P. A. I! GET IT RIGHT!" I corrected and replied.

"I'll live." I think. "February 27th, 1997: 'I didn't understand why Jubstacheit spared me so many times, but I got it now. He wants me to suffer for my perceived crime, he wants my death to hurt, for my daughter to hate me for all Eternity… And he has succeeded. Kiritsugu Emiya is now naught but a bag of bones and failing organs with no daughter in sight. Oh-God, my daughter- my poor daughter! Please, if you're reading this, do what I couldn't and save her.'"

"Lies, lies!"

"He never abandoned you! Even on his deathbed, Kiritsugu's biggest regret was being unable to rescue you from Jubstacheit's clutch!" Falling on her knees, Illya hugged her legs in an attempt to provide herself comfort, yet this only served to heighten her emotions. It's like when someone's trying to clamp down on their feelings just to hear, 'Are you okay?'

"… Lies. You're- *Sob*- You're lying. He killed mom, HE LEFT ME TO ROT then replace me with her!" Seeing their Lady in distress, both Berserker and Ishtar stopped, though I was certain the latter only did so because of Sella. "No… No, he didn't. The Magus Killer was a cold, unfeeling bastard at the worse of times, but dammit did he have the right intentions. He never left you, and he certainly didn't kill your mother. The Grail War did, just as it will you when the Lesser Grail is filled."

Sobbing hysterically, Illya's hands reached behind her head as she wailed- it's the sort of wails which came solely from the desperate- something akin to the cries of animals when it's wounded… And Illya was indeed wounded, just not physically. "Ber- Berserker, get me out of here please. I can't- I can't- please!"

She pleaded to the Servant and he- seeming to have temporarily broken out of his madness- gently carried her small, shaking form on his shoulder, but not before shooting me a death-glare- the likes of which sent shivers down my spine. "Wait! Before you go–!"

A portal opened up next to me and out came Kiritsugu's personal journal. "– Catch!"

I expected Illya to catch it, instead a humongous hand reached for the journal- Herakles'- and for a second I was afraid he'd destroy it, believing the journal to be the main cause for his Master's sufferings. I wouldn't put it past the wrathful Hero, but he stored the object just as gently as he did Illya. "Despite what you might think, Shiro does want a sister. When she learns of your existence, the first thing she asked me was to go rescue you."

Pausing, I searched for the correct words and smiled. "Give her a chance. I think you will like to have her as a sister. She's kind, and caring, and compassionate. Best of all, Shiro's quite a delightful cook. The only downside is her nigh suicidal survivor's guilt and a complete lack of concern for her own wellbeing. Think about it?"

I affirmed. "For real this time?"

Illya did not respond verbally, but she did nod to indicate she had heard me. "Thank you… And next time if you wish to meet and discuss matters, go to Ahnenerbe like I've told you. I don't know how many times my poor little heart can handle Berserker leaping at us out of nowhere."

"I'll- *Sob*- I'll get in contact with you later." She responded and tapped Herakles on the shoulder. "Berserker."

As though he could sense her desire, the Servant knelt to gather momentum and in a flash, they both disappeared from sight, going high up until their silhouettes blended with the clouds. Ishtar shot me a… Glare?

There was something playful in her stare- playful and, disturbingly enough, predatory. "I suppose I can let you go today, but you're mine mortal! This Goddess will have you- dead or alive- and you'll pay for your insolences."

What's that supposed to mean? Was she threatening me or flirting with me?

Those were the last words Sella/Ishtar said to me before taking flight just as a golden ship approached from the horizon. I looked at the destroyed surrounding, myself and sighed. "… Scared the shit out of me. Can't believe I forgot about this encounter." My arms hurt, my legs felt like leads and to make it worse there was this burning sensation in my chest- probably from the tail-lash of the Bull who had been de-summoned by Ishtar a second ago…

That, or Herakles greeting us by jumping from Gods-knew-where must have left my heart in shambles, literally.

"Leo-senpai, we bring reinforcement!/Lord Magnum." Saber and Shiro echoed in unison, though judging from the emotions conveyed, only one was truly worried about my wellbeing.

"Little Lion, are you hurt?" Leave it to Gil to be the best girl, aye? Cautiously, the Golden Queen searched my body for wound and narrowed her eyes when she felt my ribcage cave in for a second. "I'll be fine. This should heal in an hour at worst."

But Gil's wrath couldn't be contained,

What you must understand was the Queen of Heroes was a lot more careless and a lot less quick to anger like her male-counterpart, which was why when she was genuinely angry, it's extremely easy to notice. The pressed lips, the narrow of her eyes, the twitch of her nose and the slight clench and unclench of her hands. It was very noticeable.

"That wench! Is she not satisfied with taking Enkidu from me?! How dared she tread in my garden? HOW DARED SHE ATTACK WHAT'S MINE?!" Her grip on my shoulders tightened.

Desperate to cool her anger, I laughed nervously. "Hey, take it easy. I'm okay, am I not?"

"Why do you think I haven't uprooted this entire City in search of her?"