Chapter 3: Kiritsugu is in Top Form

He opened the balcony window and stepped outside. The interior of the room was reasonably warm, with a fire crackling in the fireplace. The winter air bit into his skin—skin that had been softened by the warmth of the hearth—with more severity than he had anticipated.

I should have worn a coat, he thought. Currently, he had discarded his suit jacket; his shirt was open at the collar without a tie. It was hardly the attire for gazing at a winter night sky. However, Kiritsugu desperately wanted a smoke while looking at the stars.

The white smoke lingered in his mouth. With an exhale, he forcefully sent it into his lungs. The nicotine instantly rushed to his brain, slightly awakening his hazy thoughts. If only he had some disgustingly bitter black coffee, his plan to stay awake would be perfect. But, well, it wasn't something he wanted enough to bother making.

It was already what could be called morning by the time he had spent several hours listening to the story of the man Irisviel brought, Kariya Matou, and then several more hours editing the information.

He had consumed a fair amount of Magical Energy, and his spirit was exhausted from a continuous string of operations. To be honest, he felt like going to sleep immediately. However, the value of the information he had gained by pushing through that fatigue was more than worth it.

"Kiritsugu, how was it?"

"Oh, Iri. Are you awake already?"

Irisviel approached him, dressed only in her nightwear with a haori over it. He pressed the cigarette, which was burned down close to the filter, into the ashtray.

Her expression was, in a word, anxious. This was likely because she was the one who brought the man. There was no need to worry about such a thing, Kiritsugu thought, offering her a smile.

"Honestly, I have to admit I underestimated Kariya Matou. As a magus, he’s less than third-rate... that much is certain. But his greatest weapon was the fact that he possesses the senses and perspective of an ordinary person."

The traps Kiritsugu had set throughout the city and the tools he used for information gathering—if the opponent were a traditional Magus, they would never have noticed them. Even so, he didn't recall placing them in a way that an amateur could find them… but against a resident of the city, the odds were slightly against him.

He had to admit he was careless.

"Yes, um... that too, but..."

Mumbling, Irisviel looked down. There was something difficult to say but necessary to address. And Kiritsugu had an idea of what it was.

"Ah, it’s alright. I won't kill Kariya Matou. In fact, I've decided to form an alliance with him."

"…Eh!?"

Surprised, she opened her eyes wide like a young girl. It was an extremely charming gesture, but after reconfirming how she perceived him, he felt a bit dejected to himself. Since there was no mistake in her perception of him, he had no excuse.

"Ah, no, Kiritsugu! That… anyway, it’s different! Believe me!"

His wife, flustered and panicking, was incredibly cute. He wanted to watch her forever, but since the conversation wouldn't progress, he cut it short.

"To put it bluntly, he is a pawn. I will deploy him at the critical moment and let him be crushed."

"But that...!"

"I want you not to misunderstand."

He stopped Irisviel, who was about to raise her voice, with a gesture of his hand.

Her kindness could be called a virtue. However, dragging it onto the battlefield was nothing short of an act that would invite their own deaths. It was his job to compensate for that. At least, that's what Kiritsugu believed.

"This was his idea."

"He said that?"

Kiritsugu nodded. Her raised hand dropped suddenly.

"Didn't you think Kariya Matou was somewhat strange?"

"Yes, he seemed to have very little physical strength. And he looked to be in poor health. But isn't that because his Magical Energy was being drained by Berserker?"

"That is certainly one factor, but it’s not enough. Most of his body is failing. …It seems he’s been compensating for his lack of Magical Energy by letting Crest Worms eat his body. Even if he were to drop out right now, he wouldn't last a month. In reality, if a makeshift Magus wants to challenge the Holy Grail War, he has to do something that extreme just to stand a chance."

"How could they…"

To what did her words refer? To Kariya, who bore such a resolve? Or to the Matou family, who forced him to do such a thing? Or perhaps, to the structure of the world that allowed it to happen?

Probably none of them. However, when Kiritsugu heard it, he certainly felt indignation. This world is insane. It is mad with murderous intent and malice. A structure where humans cannot take each other's hands. What is offered to an outstretched hand is either a knife or a handgun. A world where such tragedies can only be described as commonplace. All of it is rotten. The worst kind of quagmire.

"He was prepared to use up his life in this war. Perhaps he had already given up on living... Either way, his goal is not to clash with us. If he can be properly manipulated, he is a perfectly usable piece."

There were other reasons. For example, even if they were to steal his Servant, it would be difficult to handle and dangerous. Berserker naturally drains the Master's Magical Energy at will—to the point of consuming their very life. Furthermore, his True Name was Sir Lancelot. The way he attacked Saber suggests he has some sort of grievance. The only reason they managed on the mountain road was because they knew Saber's True Name beforehand and had calmly timed the cutting of the Magical Energy supply. Without doing that, a Servant who attacks Saber on sight is nothing but a hindrance. He didn't think it was wise to keep him in their own camp. Leaving him to Kariya was for the best.

"Additionally, his wish is the rescue of Sakura Matou, and ensuring she achieves a normal person's happiness by keeping magecraft out of her future life."

Irisviel's face twisted slightly. She, too, had her entire life dominated by magecraft. Still, Kiritsugu believed they had grasped a small measure of happiness together. However, Sakura was not even granted that small measure.

"From what I’ve heard, Matou Sakura is little more than a puppet."

In other words, even if she survived, she would not be a threat. Rather, if they could make her re-contract with Berserker, they might be able to use her. Just as Archer had done.

"That is likely why Archer chose her as his Master. And Archer, who can now wield his power as he pleases, is undoubtedly a formidable enemy."

The information Kariya brought was more useful than he could have imagined. For example, her Servant was originally Tokiomi Tohsaka’s Servant. He defected immediately after summoning, found a convenient Master less than an hour later, and re-contracted. He immediately saw through and prepared countermeasures against the attack pattern of the unfamiliar Servant, Berserker, before they even clashed. He has the capacity for mass-scale attacks and a high-mobility Noble Phantasm comparable to Rider’s.

An ability that didn't seem to have good compatibility with Saber from the start. His detection ability so exceptional that allowed him to search for an optimal Master in effectively less than thirty minutes, and he can even launch attacks from the sky using his flying Noble Phantasm. Furthermore, unlike Saber, he has no obsession with things like "Chivalry." He has high tactical planning abilities and executes them with cold precision. He immediately secured a base in the modern era and even turned it into a sophisticated fortress. Archer is, without a doubt, the strongest entity in this Holy Grail War.

Assassinating the Master is nearly impossible. Archer likely anticipated that and has confined his Master inside a base that has become a fortress. Even with Kiritsugu’s skills, he didn't have the confidence to storm a fortress constructed by a Servant.

In that case, they had to defeat Archer somehow. For that, he absolutely needed another Servant they could fight alongside. Ideally, it would be an opponent he could use and discard, and that perfect candidate had come to him on his own.

Most fortunate of all was the combat data on Archer. He had obtained fairly accurate data from perhaps the only opponent who had actual combat experience against him. Information on an opponent who had kept himself hidden, rivaling even Assassin, who was the most secretive of all Servants. Even when Assassin was defeated, he was crushed with bare hands, showing extreme thoroughness. If he had been forced to fight with no data... it was terrifying just to think about.

To achieve his goal, there was one necessary step. He took a piece of parchment from his breast pocket and handed it to Irisviel.

"What is this?"

"A Self-Geis Scroll. I'd like you to sign it too."

"That’s fine, but I see Maiya-san is on here too."

"Ah, well… I made a bit of a mistake there."

The terms of the contract had been decided quite quickly. This was because Kariya only cared about Sakura and didn't try to make any contracts regarding himself.

However, when it came to the actual stage of the contract, Kariya began to hesitate. Kiritsugu judged this to mean that Kariya had discerned he still had collaborators, so he included Maiya. But he soon realized that was a misunderstanding. The person Kariya Matou wanted to include in the Self-Geis Scroll was Irisviel.

Thinking about it, it was natural. Due to his background, he disliked magi. One could even say he harbored killing intent towards them. Therefore, he trusted Irisviel less than the obviously dangerous Kiritsugu, simply because she was a magus.

Including her in the contract was easy. That was fine, but he couldn't hide Maiya's existence now. He couldn't exactly say, "Well, I still have another collaborator, but you don't need to contract with her, right?" No one would trust such an opponent.

Well, he had already judged that securing him was better than killing him. There were problems, but they weren't fatal.

He checked the Self-Geas Binding, which now had the names inscribed quickly, and tucked it into his pocket. Once he showed this to Kariya later, the alliance would be formally established.

"Thank you, Iri. It’s getting cold here, so go back inside."

"Yes. What about you, Kiritsugu?"

"I’ll stay here a little longer. I feel like seeing the sunrise."

For the first time in a long—very long—time, he felt he could smile peacefully from the bottom of his heart. Irisviel’s smile in return was also peaceful. After seeing her back to her room, he looked up at the sky, which was beginning to grow light.

There were a few things he hadn't told her. For example, that it had been decided between both parties that Kariya would eventually be killed.

The Bug Elder, the head of the Matou family, was too exhausted from Archer's attack to show his face. However, Kariya said he didn't think he would die from just that, and Kiritsugu agreed.

Just before the Holy Grail could be obtained, there was a possibility of interference. Moreover, if Sakura were secured, leaving her unattended for too long risked her body being taken over. To ensure the girl's safety, the best course was for Kariya to die once their objective was achieved. While holed up in the castle, interference would be difficult, but they couldn't stay hidden forever.

In addition, he had obtained information he wouldn't have otherwise known. He was very lucky. Almost ridiculously so.

Kariya's very existence was also surprisingly important. Being a former reportage writer, his information gathering was decent. However, his true value lay in his information analysis ability. He related pieces of information to one another, edited them, and conveyed them clearly to others. The only reason he could analyze Archer to that extent was because it was him. If given information, he would likely find things that Kiritsugu couldn't see.

Everything was going smoothly. Frighteningly so. They were advancing surely towards victory.

Kiritsugu Emiya was at peace. Very much at peace.

Nothing was finished yet. The Holy Grail War would only intensify from here. However, his heart was like a still surface of water, without a single ripple. Looking at the light staining the horizon white, he smiled slowly.

Sakura Matou. She must have had a hard life. Her life from here on would likely have been the same. There should have been no one to lend a helping hand. However, Kiritsugu was at peace.

"Rest assured, Kariya Matou."

Quietly, peacefully, with a smile. Kiritsugu whispered to someone who was likely not the person whose name he spoke.

This world is hell. It is full of deception, and everyone wishes for someone else's misfortune. Those in power can't wait to kill people. The poor are forced to kill even if they don't want to. Pointing a gun is meaningless. There is no will behind it. There is only the fact that it must be done. They bring misfortune upon others without understanding why, and they, too, fall into hell.

But even that will soon end.

"I will win. And I will obtain the Holy Grail. When I do, everyone will find peace. Sakura Matou, and everyone else..."

This time, he didn't even know to whom he was whispering.

But Emiya Kiritsugu continued to watch the sunrise nonetheless.

It was a waste of time. I spent the whole night monitoring the mountain road, but Caster couldn't be found. The only saving grace was the Servant body, which is immune to sleepiness. Still, mental fatigue is another matter entirely.

"Ah, I should have gone to crush Lancer instead. ...Wait, crushing Lancer wouldn't really mean much. Damn it."

Rather, at this point, he is even beneficial. As long as he keeps Saber’s Noble Phantasm sealed, it is preferable that he stays alive. It would be even better if he manages to finish her off.

Is massaging my eyes a habit left over from my time as a human? Since it calms me down mentally, I can't stop.

The reason I'm feeling this way is that I didn't accurately memorize the times and locations of the events. If it were a distinctive place like a hotel, it would be a different story. But in a place where there seem to be multiple candidates, it just doesn't go well. I should have watched more seriously. Ideally, I shouldn't have ended up in this situation at all.

As I sat alone in the living room nursing my futile worries, I heard the sound of footsteps.

"...Good morning."

"Ah, good morning."

She looked at me with eyes that didn't even seem to be focused, let alone showing emotion. She finished the greeting quickly and immediately started walking. Her destination was likely the bathroom.

What was on the schedule for today...? The main events were the discovery of Caster and Caster’s attack on the castle, right? It's all Caster-related. It would be great if I could intercept and finish off Caster without anyone knowing, but he’s too hard to track.

If I can pull that off, things will go quite smoothly. Even if the timing changes, Kiritsugu will definitely move to eliminate Lancer. I want to burst in around the time he finishes (or fails) and at least defeat Saber. If I kill the others and Kiritsugu, then secure Irisviel, the rest will be a cake walk.

I suddenly remembered. Today is the best chance to abduct Irisviel. Well, I won't do it. Even if I did, if it were found out that she is the Grail’s Vessel, all the other camps will come after me and I wouldn’t have the time to devise a countermeasure to separate Angra Mainyu from the Holy Grail. If only Angra Mainyu were not inside the Holy Grail, I could act more aggressively—like eliminating all the Servants who gathered at the wharf last night during the duel between Saber and Lancer.

Will the Church make Caster’s abnormality public? Since I’m not there (as Gilgamesh), they’ll likely release all the information. If I do anything, I’ll just take the finishing blow to secure a Command Spell. Well, since it’s difficult to finish him with my own camp, I have to rely on others. ...But if that fail, his actions will become unpredictable again. The odds of a preemptive strike would drop.

In any case, my top priorities are Saber and Caster. If I defeat the one with the death flag and the one rampaging without purpose, the rest can be handled. When they are exhausted and no one is watching—that is the time to move. The difficulty is high, but there are still chances. Moving aggressively isn't too late even after the situation becomes completely unreadable.

Sakura returned from the bathroom, sat in a chair, and remained silent as usual. Around the same time, the Automatas began to prepare breakfast. The room, which had been filled only with silence moments before, suddenly became busy.

I casually check the mana path. The supply of Magical Energy is sufficient, and Sakura's capacity is also ample. Even if something happens, I am in a state where I can respond perfectly.

Sakura’s capacity for Magical Energy is very high. Based on my sensation, it was far more than Tokiomi's. Thanks to that, my Strength and Mana statistic have also increased. ...Though my Luck rank showed a predictable decline. Still, I’m grateful for the Strength boost.

My trump card, Ea, has its power fluctuate based on the Strength statistic (TL Note: STR×20 and can still be increased). When I use it, I plan to reinforce it with the support of the Treasury (Gate of Babylon), but having a high base value gives a different sense of security.

Also, my Skill ranks have fluctuated a bit. Charisma has dropped to B, likely because the "contents" are me. On the other hand, Divinity has risen to A+, perhaps because I don't particularly affirm or deny it and I do not hold any particular dislike or hatred toward the gods. Even so, for some reason, I feel a faint irritation and anger directed only toward Ishtar, though I cannot explain why.

It’s as if the ranks have been swapped. I don't know which is more advantageous, but having monstrous Charisma would only be troublesome. This is fine as it is.

If I had to name one flaw, it would be that I cannot—or rather, do not know how to use or activate Sha Naqba Imuru, let alone releasing its True Name. Whether this is because this body is unconsciously restrained it, because I am not the true Gilgamesh, because it is an unlisted Noble Phantasm, restrictions imposed by the Holy Grail to me, or for some other reason entirely, I cannot say. Whatever the cause, dwelling on it now is pointless.

Yes, it is regrettable. There is no denying that. But even so, I am extremely fortunate. Aside from Sha Naqba Imuru, I can instinctively wield all of Gilgamesh’s power as an Archer-class Servant. It is as if this body remembers what my own mind does not—or perhaps, to be more precise, I possess Gilgamesh’s procedural memory, but not his episodic memory. In any case, I have neither the time nor the luxury to investigate all this matter while the Holy Grail War is still ongoing. As long as I plan carefully and act with caution, I can win this war and survive.

Overall, my camp with Sakura is well-balanced at a high level. If only Sakura could create Familiars, I’d have no complaints, but that would be asking for too much. I should be satisfied with the overflowing Magical Energy alone.

Thinking about it this way, Kayneth's existence was indeed invaluable. He’s the best as a magus, and actually the most decent human being among the Masters, too.

I won't deny that his personality is terrible. However, from the perspective of human nature, he’s not that bad. I feel like there are just too many people whose human nature is rock bottom even if their personality is slightly better.

I obtained his files, and his career can be summarized in one word: Genius. He’s arrogant, but he has the track record to back up his attitude. He’s in a different league from a mere "big mouth." Professor Kayneth is truly impressive.

By the way, I’ve obtained files not just on Kayneth, but on almost all the Masters. That said, they aren't very deep files. Just the kind of background anyone could see. For example, Kayneth's are public records that a poor student at the Clock Tower could look up. I lacked the time and connections to dig into the "under-the-table" details.

Speaking of which, what is Kirei Kotomine doing now? Without Gilgamesh, he probably hasn't awakened. He, too, is annoyingly active in his search for an answer. He should just achieve enlightenment and sit in meditation. No, he's a Christian, though.

If I tell him the radio frequencies Kiritsugu frequently uses, will he settle down a bit? It's not like it would trouble me, so I might as well leak it. For the sake of my safety, Kiritsugu should talk to Kotomine more often. The beauty of this is that it has zero negative impact on me. Only the two involved will suffer. I'll go ahead and try it, even if it's a long shot.

I've also been pulling every string I can with my wealth, but there is overwhelmingly little time. It probably won't go well.

In the end, it seems I’ll have to rely on combat ability. I finished my thoughts with that re-confirmation. And the fact that a sigh escaped me was, as usual, part of the routine.

The appetizing aroma stimulated my nostrils. Thinking that breakfast was almost ready, I felt a sense of hunger that I shouldn't have. I stood up and headed for the table.

Eventually, the time for just thinking like this will end. While being aware of that, I cut away all my worries.

At least until that time comes. I wanted to immerse myself in this trivial daily life.