Ow...
Hold still.
Okay, all done.
Thanks.
Tohsaka?
I'm making dinner.
Dinner? In a situation like this?
Of course.
We can't come up with decent ideas on empty stomachs, right?
I did a lot of thinking afterward...
About why I started fighting in the Grail War.
About what I wanted to accomplish.
And?
At first, I was just dragged into it, but that makes no difference.
I like heroes of justice.
So I have to protect people.
Even if I'm not a Master, even if I've lost Saber,
I'm going to fight nonetheless.
Oh.
Look, I'm talking seriously here. At least pay attention.
I am paying attention.
The idea of others dying bothers you more than the idea of yourself dying.
So, even if you are weak, you've decided to keep fighting, right?
Yeah, that's right...
What's with you?
You look like a squirrel that bit into a candy instead of a nut.
No, I just assumed you'd be against it.
Of course I'm against it.
But after you saved me like that, I can hardly object, can I?
Plus, I've also learned that you'll do it, even if I try to stop you.
Then we're still partners?
I guess.
Anyway, I'd lose sleep worrying about leaving you alone.
Besides...
To put it in your terms, I don't exactly hate you.
And your cooking is good.
So that's how I feel about it, and you're okay still working with me, right?
I need a refill!
For now, our enemy is Caster.
#14 The Princess of Colchis
She's protected by Kuzuki, a close-combat fighter,
and Archer, who's gone over to her side.
And it's only a matter of time before Saber falls under her control.
Yeah, once Saber's fully controlled by her,
we really won't have any chance.
Exactly. Do you have any ideas?
Hear me out, and don't get mad.
Could we work with other Masters?
It's all right.
Actually, I was thinking the same thing.
We still don't know who Lancer's Master is, so that's out,
but we might have a shot with Illyasviel.
But how do we find her?
I have an idea of where she is.
Long ago, my father told me something.
That the Einzberns have a villa in the forest outside of town.
Why can I not find it?
There is no Holy Grail here.
No, that was obviously a lie.
The Holy Grail War's overseer would never let the catalyst, his trump card, out of sight.
My family is still new to the Mages Association.
Gaining prestige is one reason I'm fighting in this Grail War.
El-Melloi didn't take the last war seriously, but I'm different.
I fully intend to win.
For one thing, I've invested a lot more capital.
Do you think a purchased title is purchased glory?
No, one should use every tool at one's disposal.
If you intend to use wealth as a weapon,
I expect you have a strategy tailored to it.
Don't get the wrong idea.
As a mage, I've made preparations to overwhelm the other Masters.
Come.
I'll prove it to you.
Is this an alchemy workshop?
My family uses a magic system that generates mana via exchange.
Well, it's a primitive curse that relies on human sacrifice.
This workshop is designed to make the system more modern and efficient.
I'll make one to show you.
It works best when the raw materials are pure.
How's that? What should take a month to create, I completed in an instant.
Ah, you don't need to worry about the raw materials.
I won't procure them in Fuyuki.
I bought these from other—
This is too inefficient.
Using all these lives to create such a tiny crystal is the act of a third-rate mage.
What... What did you do?
How could you create mana from an empty kiln?
Empty?
Oh... So this appears empty to the eyes of you modern mages?
Your mana-generating technique must be one step...
No, one dimension removed from mine.
B-But what about the incantation?
I devoted all I had to designing this workshop for the purpose of omitting the incantation process.
The transmutation incantation is supposed to take three days and nights!
I have no need for incantations.
To me, magic is simply something to command.
Forgive me for speaking out of turn, but I ask that you close this workshop.
Throwing away lives is unwise.
As a mage, I cannot abide a workshop that generates such a loss.
Ah, it would appear that I have failed to grasp what a Servant is.
By my Command Seal, I order you...
Do not use your Noble Phantasm on me.
I wouldn't want a treacherous witch to stab me in the back!
Witch?
He called me a witch?
Everyone I meet calls me a witch...
Caster is too much for you, then?
It isn't a matter of ability, but of trust.
Her sense of values is just too different from ours.
She is a woman who can cast magic with a wave of her fingers.
To her, human life is as worthless as paper.
After all, this woman killed her romantic rival by burning her alive in her castle.
Trusting her would be crazy.
I see.
That is how you have interpreted the stories of Princess Medea?
My job is to accommodate the Masters' wishes, as best I can.
All the more so if you have the Mages Association's backing.
Currently, there are five Masters that have been selected by the Grail.
Two slots remain open.
I was hoping you'd say that!
It's possible for me to make a pact with a different Servant, right?
It's never been done, but it is possible.
But before that,
something must be done about the Servant to whom you are currently bound.
No matter how gifted she is in magic,
she's nothing but a vixen whose only talent is deceiving men.
I've already laid the groundwork...
Still, better safe than sorry, Father Kotomine.
I want you to give this to Lancer's Master.
Fellow participants from the Mages Association owe each other this much, at least.
What is it?
Oh, it's only a contract selling the right to dispose of Caster.
If she agrees, I'll be rid of Caster without having to waste a Command Seal.
To Lancer's Master, you say?
What is the meaning of this?
I took it upon myself to dismantle your workshop.
I shall take you to a more suitable place for a fortification.
Dismantle, eh?
What about my supplies?
There were still around fifty.
They were unnecessary, so I freed them.
Then what is this "more suitable" location?
The heart of this ritual.
The place where the Greater Grail rests.
I have located a natural fortress that repels Servants.
If you do as I say, I shall take you there, Master.
That won't be necessary.
I no longer require your services, Medea.
I order you by my Command Seal. Kill yourself, Caster.
What's going on?
It takes more than one?
I once again order you by my Command Seal. Terminate yourself, Caster!
What a foolish Master you are!
Have you forgotten what my Noble Phantasm is?
Rule Breaker...
But I used a Command Seal to forbid you from using it!
Yes, I cannot use it on you.
Instead, I used it on myself to sever my pact with you.
I-Impossible!
To you Servants, that's tantamount to suicide!
You won't be able to maintain your physical form!
Yes, but what of it?
You are about to die here, so is that any of your concern?
What is this?
What's going on?
I refuse to go out like this!
The Grail War hasn't even started...
I haven't fought a single battle!
Not like this!
Yes...
It is a fitting end for you, a man who desired results before he even began.
You treacherous witch.
I feel hot...
In the end, I'm going to die this way again?
Passed around for others' convenience, exploited...
Reviled as a traitor.
All I wanted...
was to return to my homeland...
What are you doing there?
You believe such a strange story?
You don't seem to have a reason to lie.
Or do you have a reason to deceive me?
Rather, it is you who has no reason to help a woman covered in blood.
I will not know what sort of person you are until we speak in the morning.
Have you calmed down?
In that case, we should begin.
Then, you are saying...
You need what you called a "vessel," correct?
I thought your only chance was for me to become your Master.
Or was I wrong?
Just a while longer, and the Holy Grail will be in my grasp.
For now, I guess we have to pin our hopes on Illyasviel.
Berserker is definitely Caster's natural enemy.
Is Caster somehow connected to Berserker?
Archer told me.
He said Berserker's true identity is Heracles.
If Caster really is the peerless witch Medea,
they should have met on the Argo.
It's like my sore spot when it comes to Kirei.
Everyone has someone they just don't get along with.
Hey, Shirou. Would you mind walking ahead a bit?
Sure, I guess.
What was that?
I knew it.
Seems her control extends to the entire forest.
But that means we just tripped her burglar alarm!
I don't think it's a problem, do you?
We came here to talk, not attack.
So it's better to let her know we don't intend to fight.
I get it.
Be careful, though...
It shocks you a bit.
I'll be fine.
Now that brat's made me mad!
I know I heard you laugh just now!
She walked right into my trap.
Rin's really amusing. You get a straight reaction from her.
But I wonder if they'll get here safely.
Maybe I should disable a few of the traps...
Mistress, surely you don't intend to allow those people in.
Wh-Why not?
They said that they're here to talk.
Plus...
There are things I want to ask him.
Mistress!
You're such a worrywart, Sella.
Even if they're planning something, they're no match for Berserker.
Mistress, that may be true, but I'm against it.
Enough! I've already decided!
I'm the castle's lord, so if I say to let them in, you must obey!
If you're the lord of the castle, all the more reason to drive them off!
As the Einzbern princess, you must send a proper invitation,
and then throw an evening party, in keeping with proper decorum!
Sella, you're being stubborn.
Also, what you describe is not what she meant.
All right, fine...
You understand now, Mistress?
In that case, you two go and bring them here.
Mistress?
I'm telling you to go capture them!
Ow!
That jerk, dragging me along with him!
Where the hell am I? Is this really where Berserker is?!
That is not Shirou.
No, he seems like a harmless fly.
Let's deal with him and be on our way.
You two...
Are you Einzbern servants?
If so, that's convenient. Take me to Berserker's—
Hold your tongue.
We have no time to deal with an unexpected guest like you.
Either jump off the roof and flee, or fall to this weapon.
Decide in the next ten seconds.
Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five.
W-W-Wait!
Four, three, two, one.
Are you kidding me?!
I was wondering what you were! Homunculi, huh?
Nicely made, too.
Even though you are humans only in shape, you function as real human beings.
When they made you, they must have used a fine mold.
Sella, he is incredibly...
I know. Don't worry about me, just get away.
Now, don't be afraid.
I shall forgive your disrespect, assuming it is out of fear.
If you value your lives, begone quickly.
In appreciation for allowing my Master to escape, I shall grant you ten seconds.
That boy is a Master?
Then we cannot do as you ask.
Our purpose is to protect our mistress from all outside threats.
I took you for some king,
but we cannot allow a man such as you, who reeks of blood, to pass!
Is that so?
Then fall, like these flowers.
I expect that the Grail's vessel will come running at the sound of your screams.
The Grail's vessel...
You are Illya's enemy!
Shirou is coming here, to the castle where Mother once stayed.
Leysritt!
The mages never learn, do they?
One should never give a tool a human heart.
Humans are incapable of reciprocating your purity.
As long as I draw breath...
I will not let you near my mistress...
Oh?
Then admirably fulfill that purpose.
Leys...
Sella!
You are the doll that possesses the Grail vessel?
I see crossing a human and a homunculus has spawned a peculiarity.
You killed them...
Kill him.
Right now! Kill him, Berserker!
You heard her.
Then come, great Heroic Spirit.
Toying with you will relieve my boredom.
Shall we reenact a battle of legend here?
Stop it, you bastard!
No way! Those were all Noble Phantasms?
I can't wait, Illyasviel!
Your defeat is certain.
Berserker won't lose to anyone...
Next Time A Battle of Legend
Because he's the strongest in the world!